Major finds?

[Archive]

Posted By: Rich W

I know this thread started as "recent finds", but one of my favorite finds took place right before ebay took off in 1997. AOL had a little chat/buy & sell section where you could post regarding numerous topics, including collectibles. I would peruse it everyday in hope that someone would have a nice item that I could get. One day someone claimed that they just unearthed some tobacco cards from their wall stuck to scrapbook paper that was marked Mayo. I immediately responded and received a response in 10 minutes. Amazingly, the people lived 40 minutes away. We chatted and they said they had 100+ of these cards stuck to thick scrapbook paper. I gathered all the cash im my house, called both my banks and withdrew the maximum cash and went to their house.

When I got there, I found an old, 19th century near-dilapidated house. The woman answered the door, holding a 1 year old. I was welcomed inside to the sight of 4 kids, plus Mom and Dad. I had more money in my pockets than these people ever saw.

The cards were, of course, N300 Mayos, and there were over 100 of them, many in super condition (albeit, stuck to the scrapbook). Now came the tough part: negotiations. The husband and wife were very reluctant to give me a selling price, trying instead to keep there options open by claiming that others had some interest. I offered them this deal: I will write down a number. If my number is higher than your number, I will pay my number. If my number is lower, I will walk and you can pursue other offers.

The wife reluctantly agreed and spouted her number. I could tell she tried to up the number without appearing too greedy. My heart skipped and sank at the same time. Her number was numerous thousands, but over three times less than what I had written down. I revealed my number to her, and she began to cry. I stuck to my deal and whipped out my satchel of $100.00 bills. What little regret I had for "over-offering" was relieved when I realized how badly they needed the money, and that I was going to do just fine on the deal.

Several of you out there may remember these cards, as this was the 2nd Mayo collection I was fortunate to get in a one-year period. Although some had some back damage, the fronts were gorgeous.

Sorry about the longwindedness, but I know I love reading these stories myself, so I am banking that others out there will enjoy this one too.