New Britain Herald Newspaper, December 29, 1928, Page 13

wym ‘merican ndustry Amazing Confessions of a “Retired” Professional Beggar Who Explains How Soft-Hearted Citizens Are . Relieved of Millions Annually. P bt 2 STARTLING FACTS ABOUT BEGGING IN AMERICA. Surveys have shown that the following large American cities contribute, each year, approxi- mately the sums indicated: New York, $30,000,000; Chicago, $20,000,000; Philadelphia, $10,000,000; Detroit, $4,000,000, and Washington, D. C., $2,500,000. The average professional beggar earns about $25 per day. Some earn $50 per day while very clever beggars have been known to average $500 per week. Professional - beggars are divided into classes according to the methods they employ. The chief classes are: “ngmy Chuckers,” those who simulat: epi- lepsy. “Crust Throwers,” those who “plant” crusts of bread upon which they pounce when crowds are about. “Throw Outs,” those who deliberately throw bones out of joint to fake deformities. “Floppe those who squat on subway plat- forms and streets, pretending to be maimed. “Blinkies,” those who glue eyes shut or other- wise fake eye affections. “Sailors,” those who wear sailors’ uniforms and use stories of having missed their ships. Next there is the “flopper.” The “flop- Types of per” is bettter known than most typ Beggars. The for his particular “gag” calls for little “Blind” Man talent. As the name implies, the “fiop- Is Taken from per” simply flops down at some conven- the Motion ient and likely looking spot. Usually Picture, “The Strect of this is a subway platform or a busy Forgotten Men.” Over corner. Then, with hat extended and His Right Shoulder bundle of pencils, he awaits the dona- Is See‘n a "I!‘I(opper." l'n tions which he knows will come. the Upper Corner Is The “flopper's” takings usually are a_“Crying Mally. in_direct ratio to the originalily While Bf'o'(;'"" 188 rings to the craft. For instan Throw Out. may double one leg under him in grotesque fashion as to immediately in- cite the pity of those who pass. Or he may s(r-E one arm closely to his side, and pin the empty coat sleeve ac chest, wherc no one will miss s One “flopper” was particularly success- ful by working along the following lines: He strapped his left leg back, so that it seemed to be missing. Then he selected a busy thoroughfare, and propped him- relf against the only tree in the block. The pavemeny was fairly narrow at this spot, and the “flopper” extended his . 4 right leg directly across the sidewalk. e #5 4 4 Y i A Any passerby either had to trip over v Ly the leg, or go out in the street to pass. TR By ANDREW L. MARTS (Alias the “Dummy Chucker”). IND reader, comfortably relaxed in the soft cuthions of your own easy chair, perhaps with your feet stretched grate- fully toward the warming crackle from an open hearth, wouldn't you give a few pennies to a hopeless cripple, crouching in abysmal solitude on some windswept corner? Yes, you probably would, and that's just what makes professional begging a one-hundred-mil- lion-dollar American industry, for which no logical rhyme nor reazon can be found, nor any adequate justification brought forward. To introduce myself, the “Dummy Chucker,” I have begged and panhandled in practically every large city of the United States and Canada. I have pushed my weary way through London’s crowded Strand, catching the coppers as I went, and for a time I was a member of the “Syndicate,” a very exclusive organization of Paris Beggers, I assure you. The certain re- wards of hard work and sobriety need no em- hasis in America, and o, today, I am retired. hus I am able, in the following paragraphs, to give some idea of the elaborate ‘‘back-stage” machinery which annually pries millions of dol- lars from the purses of the gullible and the sympathetic. First for a few facts and figures. 1 have made a survey of my own, and I have studied the surveys made by other competent observers. It is safe to say that eighty per cent of the mendicants who daily implore you for aid and raise dolorous glances of solicitation are fakes. They are professional beggars, who would rather beg than work, and who reap a far richer golden harvest from the outstretched hat or cup than they would from useful employment. Next, the takings of such professionals vary with their skill and ofiginality. Some make a bare living and are forced out of the ‘“racket.” I have known others who never average under $60 per day, and who usually deposit $500 or more in the bank at the end of each week. Do not think that the “millionaire beggars” you hear about are newspaper fiction. I could name several of them, one in particular, who “works” along 34th street, New York, in the vicinity of the big department stores. He lives on 135th street, has a car, dines at the Plaza, his wife has expensive gems, and at night he is a respected member of the community. This is the exception, not the rule, but it exists. The crowds of large cities are the beggar’s “meat.” No professional mendicant will stay long in a small town. He becomes too well known, and his “racket” goes bad. In the large city he is protected by the very crowds he pr upon, and his profession #, particularly easy New York, where he may obtain a peddler's license without trouble. Thus equipped he is practically immune from ar- professional may be a victim of paralysis, loco- “;}Me e Y motor ataxia, or what have you. This gag also the gontle art of begging, As1was a “dummy 1° cffective, and wins instant sympathy. chucker” 1’d better expinin that fi 1t ix one Next comes the “crust thrower.” A French. of the harder “gags” and requires some acting 1 invented this gag, and the yndmtek ability, but the returns are in proportion. The SedBEcn RU i WL RO ns b e T, “dummy chucker” cashes in on the public’s horror leunderstanding of human psychology. The of, and sympathy for the victim of cpilopsy. e ‘fil";r““p R T IO TR e n icc 504 aces it in his mouth, 8 CaL e P AR A 2 “fit” he proceeds'to do his act. he ""':h‘"“;‘-" and awaits an 3"{‘?&‘(‘;““’0:!}°c""::““:; He foams at the mouth, goes through horrible e, the time srriv s : s contortions, and then (ah, here's the artistry of Shuffling along, his rags cascading about him, the profession), he put over his “blurh.” This ahd quite frequently with venerable white hair i a sad story, “Gas in France” is a good hanging down to his shoulders. Suddenly he gag right now be it’s a wife and chil- stops, and with a joyful cry dashes to the curb, dren at home. . starving. “Ah, thenk pounces upon the crust, and greedily sets his you, thank you! God bless you! Thank you so teeth into it. Y much.” And then the “dummy chucker” is ready Does he wait for alms? Not on your life! He for another fit somewhere e hobbles swiftly away, apparently centering his Then there’s the “thrpw out.” whole attention upon his crust. But he does sional beggar who uses the “throw out"” s not go so swiftly that he cannot be overtaken by times must be a bit of a contortionist. two or three women, and maybe a man or two, learns quickly. The “thr out” means who have been touched by this display 9{ hunger. throwing one hip out of joint, an ea, - Then comes his story. Always there is a story. once you are shown how. Thus “deformed” the v be a tale of how he was an inventor and had his patents stolen. Or maybe he’s just come to town to look up a wealthy son John D. Godfrey, Mendicant ~ whom he can’t find. Whatever story he Officer of the Brookiyn uses it is a good one, and once more the Bureau of Charity, purse strings dance. Examining Some of the Prooklyn Bureau of Charity, Examining Apparatus Manufactured by Real Cripples Who Are Helped by by His Organization. o Y A Pathetic Picturé! He'll Sell You the Dog for Three Times Its Value. yer Featurs Service, 1738, That “flopper,” and he was one of the old timers, used to make twenty and twenty-five dollars an evening when five dollars was real money! There are other specific classifica- tions. The “blinkies,” who glue an eye shut, or so discolor one or both eyes as to make them apparently seriously af- fected. They accost the stranger with: “Say, pard, did you ever stop to think how it feels to know that vou're going blind?” They follow up this little song and dance with careful explanations of just why they’re going blind, and they always get help. Another “racket” that's still good is the “uniform game.” Those who plav this need only a sailor’s uniform. They hang around busy corners, and when they “spot” an ‘“‘easy” they stop him him with a sad tale. They are sailors, they ex- plain, and they've been left behind bv a recently departed battleship. They can catch her at Nor- folk, and they're trying to raise the fare. Of course they’ll send it back! Pride of the service, you know, and all that. It's a good racket. Thus the story goes. Every conceivable dodge i employed to gyp the public, and the public falls every time. The Paris “Syndicate” was an admirable organization. It was presided over by one Andre, a murderous character, who ex- acted toll for all he did. In his cellar in the Les Halles section he used & Who Invented “Crust Throwing. A French Member of “The Syndicate” Cards Presented hy Fake Beggars Who Pas® Through Subway Trains and Reap Silver Harvests of Dimes and Quarters. to make humpbacks and deformities of all kinds. Young men were made old and decrepid in an hour or two. Then Andre assigned them regu- lar “beats” along which to work. But his great- est service was protection. He kept legitimate and other professional beggars as well from working in the “territory” over which he pre- sided, and any »fessional with Andre behind him was assured of a good harvest. Having be ar and having seen the game from ie, I might be expected to have somc 1grestions concerning possible means of cutting short the golden flood. I have such su s. 2. is nearly as old as the ld’s “oldest profession.” It has deep psycho- logical root. Men frequently give out of generosity alone, trongest compelling factors, it always has seemed to me, is the “inferiority x"" which has fallen into disrepute of late. A man, mq ately succe: 1, vet feeling that he really iz not all he tries to make people be- lieve he is, gets secr mulation out of giving to a beggar. He giv h a grand gesture, and a little voice whispers to his consciousness: “There now! That poor beggar is ever so much more a failure than you are!” Others give because they fear embarrassment. A great many begga his. These are the men who go t t cars, passing out little cars like those pictured on this page. The cards sometimes carry a verse, with the in- formation that the beggar is in straits, crippled or something else, and is trying to support a family. If one or two persons in a car give, a good many of the others follow because they are afraid not And so ness continues good. Legislation is favorat no capital is required to start, the at American public has a soft heart, and there is a fortune if not fame for the clever pro- fessional begg: Even for the amateur thers is “opportunity for advancement!”