The Cleveland leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1865-1865, 1865-06-15


SoLDIER Sw1sDLED our OF -Four HUNDRED
DlLLARs.-We have to record another con-
fdence game. which was successfully play
ed upon q soldier named Samuel Hszsll, in
this city LAST Tuesday afternoon. he is q
young man perhaps twenty years old, and
resides at Franklin Mills in a neighboring
county. He has been in the army four
years, was just paid off and mustered out,
and had got this far on his way home, when
two lsnd-sharks nabbed him and snstched
away all the money, ave i've dollars, he
had. We are obliged to detective Van
hu5en atthe Union depot for the following
account of the matter:
This young man on arriving here was
approached by q runner for the Farmers
Hotel on River street, whittier he went.
Not liking the looks of the place, he pushed
up town, and was standing on Superior
street, about the middle of the afternoon,
when a stranger msde up to him, and
in an oily manner asked if he was
looking for a hotel. On saying herwas, the
man pointed to the Weddell House, and
said, 81 am stopping there, that is q good
hotel, come along over" The young man,
honest himself and believing all men like
himself, followed on without a suspicion
As they were going up the front steps of the
Weddell, they were met by a man, an &C.
complete of the villain, who stopped them
and entered into conversation. They told
the soldier that they were merchants doing
a heavy business in Pittsburgh, that they
thought a great deal of the soldiers, and
wound up their smooth palaver by assuring
him that they would give him thirty-six
dollars a month to serve as 9 clerk for them,
He gulped the bait, hook, line, pole and
men, and took up with their liberal offer,
but begged that he might, first, be allowed
to spend a fortnight at home, to which pro-
viso they assented.
When they saw they had magnetizsd the
youth, one of the merchants" told the
other that he hadn't money enough by
several hundred dollars to pay the bill Of
goods they had bought here. "Merchsnt'
No. 2 was also strapped in making Pur-
chases. They very considerably asked the
young man to loan them $500 until they got
to Pittsburgh, when it should be immedi-
ately repaid. Without any hesitation he
handed over the hard-esrned wages of fouI
years of toilsome marching and desperate
fighting, to these villains who, if caught
should be made to run the gauntlet. They
all started down Bank street, and when
they had reached a certain stairway in the
long block opposite the Academy of Music
they told their victim to stay there a mo-
ment until they could step up and pay theil
bill.
BE waited there some time, and at last
mistrusted the true state of the case.
He climbed the stairs and satisfied himself
that they had passed down 8 back way
and made off with his money. When the
certainty of his loss fell upon him, he near
Iy tainted away. He said he had been
away four years in the srmy, and had
earned little money which he wanted tt
take to his folks. ,
He immediately notified the police, who
were put upon the track. of the r~ascals, and
we are glad to be able to state that the
men are marked and, it would seem
must certainly be caught. Mr.. Yanhusen
says they have not left the city on any Of
the trains. p a --;1h-
The young man staid tIet uight at the
Soldiers Home, and yesterday went home,
Ga ssdder and, it is to be hoped, q wiser
man." The tree of knowledge, or wisdom,
always bears what seems at the time bit
ter fruit, and as this is the appointment,
the order must be put up with. We can
not but sympathize with the swindled,
honest young man, but there are many peo-
pie who cannot learn in any other school
than that of the toughest discipline.
The moral of this true story is 30 plain,
that, It would seem, we need not stop to
expand and enforce it. The returning
soldiers should all know that crowds Of
rsscals and Gu. throats will follow them to
the various mustering-out camps, and lie
privily in wait for them in streets and sa-
looms, after they have been paid of. Il
behooves them to know what they are
about, and trust themselves infinitely more
thar any other. "a word to the wise," &c.
~