Sharp Dealing - Futility Closet

Sharp Dealing - Futility Closet

An episode from P.T. Barnum’s childhood in Bethel, Connecticut: ‘What is the price of razor strops?’ inquired my grandfather of a peddler, whose wagon, loaded with Yankee notions, stood in front of our store. ‘A dollar each for Pomeroy’s strops,’ responded the itinerant merchant. ‘A dollar apiece!’ exclaimed my grandfather; ‘they’ll be sold for half the money before the year is out.’ ‘If one of Pomeroy’s strops is sold for fifty cents within a …