File:Jesse-james-was-a-piker.jpg

An in-house advertisement for the column, "The Watchdog", a feature of The Farmer magazine. From the 5 September 1959 issue. The line "Jesse James was a piker!" is a reference to a speech given by Harry Truman on 20 December 1937, in which he compares Wall Street's financial ruin of businesses to Jesse James' thievery^[1].

Advertisement reads:

Jesse James was a piker!

During the 1870's, the name of Jesse James was known throughout the land for the numerous daring robberies commited by him and his band of desperados. Jesse and his gang held up trains and raided small-town banks, eventually coming to greif when they attempted a bold daylight robbery of a Northfield, Minn., bank.

Although his escapades became a legend and his name has come to stand for accomplished thievery, Jesse James was a piker by today's standards. Modern crooks operating under the guise of a legitimate business rob the American public of several billion dollars a year, and in so diung incur far less personal risk than Jesse took.

According to economists, buyers in the U.S. will spend nearly $260 billion this year. Most of these billions will go for goods and services that are honestly sold at fair prices. But some will go for bogus stuff, foisted upon unwary buyers by means of chicanery and deception.

Readers of THE FARMER are spending a reasonable share of those billions. Whether you get real value for your money, or let your dollars go to enrich the gyp artists depends on your wariness and good judgment, based on your knowledge of what to look for.

The Watchdog column, a regular feature of THE FARMER, is designed to supply you with that knowledge, to help you be on guard against the phony schemes aimed at your pocketbook. It calls your attention to questionable and devious ways, some of them legal, that a sneaky hand can reach into your savings. That The Watchdog's warnings are effective is attested by the hundreds of letters from grateful readers who, alerted to spurious propositions, have refused to be swindled.

If you are in doubt about a "wonderful opportunity" to make, or save, money, you'll probably save even more by writing to The Watchdog for advice before you buy. And if you believe you have been imposed upon, The Watchdog can tell you what steps to take in order to bring your problem to the attention of the proper authorities.

References