[78-L] Auctioneers. Was: History Detectives ....

[Steven C. Barr]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Mike Harkin" <harkinmike at yahoo.com>
> To be fair, as Josh Billings once said, "I was told that by a auctioneer, 
> and I have never knowed a auctioneer to lie, less'n it were absolutely 
> convenient...."
>
He was speaking of PROFESSIONAL auctioneers...with whom I often dealt
back in the 1972-75 era, when I attended central-Illinois farm auction so
regularly that I was known as "the guy who will ALWAYS bid a quarter on
a box of "junk!" (and bought many thereof for $0.25 each, finding all sorts
of interesting old odds & ends!!).

Ewotsit sellers are FAR from as knowledgable...or even as HONEST...as
actual "auctioneers!" They are simply average fundamental orifices, hoping/
intending to reach "SUPER-rich" status (a standard goal in the XXI
Jahrhundert!!) by selling "RARE! COLLECTIBLE! ANTIQUE!" junque
found at yard sales or during basement/attic/garage "clean-outs!"

Fortunately for them, there abound an equally-sized body of sucke...er,
happy buyers...who, being similarly ignorant of esoteric datae, will fall
for their pitches...?!

What I find frustrating is that this same degree of "hopeful ignorance"
exists among the folks who write the price tags at thrift stores!! Couple
of years back, a local "inependent" (neither Goodwill nor Sally Ann)
thrift store had about a dozen 78's; one was a c.1920 Columbia disc
I didn't own! Problem is, they had put $10 prices on all these discs;
when I tried to point out their error, I was told  "Oh, no! These are
ANTIQUES...about a century old...and VERY valuable!!"

HUH?!

FEH!!

...stevenc