I went to an auction of baseball cards and memorabilia one day. There were many top quality items up for sale. When I arrived I was intrigued by a lot that included a ball, a bat and limited edition lithograph of Hank Aaron and Saduharo Oh. Each of the three items in the lot was autographed by both Aaron and Oh.
I am not a big spender at auctions, so I knew I was unlikely to acquire the lot. But only 14 bidders showed up at the auction. As the bidding progressed it became apparent that none of us bidders were willing to drive the prices up. Quite often, if one of us placed a bid on an item, he won the item uncontested. Cards were going for about ten per cent of the book price.
When we got to the lot of Aaron and Oh’s autographed items I was very nervous as I really wanted to win the pieces. When the auctioneer told us about the lot, he said that the reserve was $150, but it was worth much more. When he finished his description, in as strong a voice as I could muster, I bid “$150”. The other 13 bidders looked at me, and shrugged their shoulders. The auctioneer pleaded, but no one else bid!
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