The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1871-05-05
Signature EXperts-mtcrestin Facts
for Business Men.


corning signature experts" the occa-
sion being the late Taylor will case,
which turned in Il great measure
on the genuineness Of the testators
signature.
More than twenty years ago, in Gin
cinnati, | copied the Declaration of In
dependence, appending tac-Sia,ileS of the
signers names. Mr.. Thomas Stevens,
at the same time editor Of the Cinein-
natl AtlaS, took occasion, in a pleasant
way, TO doubt my assertion that | had
copied the signatures with pen. To
convince him, asked him to sign his
name ona sheet of paper, which he did.
| Immediately wrote ten copies of his
! signature, above and below the original.
and handed him the paper to select his
own. After a careful examination he
selected one as his own. He was wrong.
lie tried again and again, with the
same result, and finally, 10y mere guess
work, he hit the right one. And it was
remarkable fact that after he had
really discovered his own lie could sec
the most astonishing absurditics in all
the others.
Some six years ago was speaking
with well-known publisher of this
city, who sat ut his desk signing some
checks that the book-keeper had pre-
pared for him. The signature was Of
the firm, and was peculiar one as he
wrote it. | casually remarked that it
was an elegant signature for forger
He promptly responded that there was
no forger that could sign that name so
as 70 deceive him.
sob, yes, there is" said |.
Where is he p
He is standing at your elbow
Do you mean TO say said he.
that YOU can initiate that signature
so that | cannot detect the forgery p
mean to say" said |, "that |
think | can do it, and am willing to
try it"
"fyou will write that signature" he
replied, so that cannot distinguish it
from my own, will -"
There, there, don't be rash; | should
dislike to take advantage Of your pres
ent excitement. If you will Just write
the signature at the top OF that letter
sheet. we'll see what a little impudence
can do.
He did as requested. took the sheet
and went to the book-keeper's desk.
Here exchanged it for another Of the
same kind. and in the same relative
position | initiated the signature in
very free, careless way, not attempting
a servlle copy. but preserving the char
acteristic stroke. then very carefully
wrote underneath it three faithful sig
natures, all my own. These | took to
the proprietor and told him to select
his own signature. With surprisingly
little effort he pointed out the first sig
nature, and at once began to criticize
with severity my base limitations.
Well, " said |, - | will confess they
are not as well done as | expected TO
do them, or as ! could do .hem if my
nerves were steady. But really" said |,
:" don't you think that if one of these
signatures was placed at the bottom of
your ordinary check your bank would
honor the check ?''
Well, no, said he, :" | don't think
it would
" suppose" said /, there is no
doubt about the ignature-that would
bring the cash p
"Oh, yes, should like to see our
bank refuse that 81 gnature for an ordi-
nary sum"
| then went to the book-keeper's
desk and produced the original sigma
ture.
How about this?" said l..
He looked at the signature-then at my
base limitations then at the crowd
of interested spectators who had quietly
gathered around, and who were begin
ming to take in the richness of the
joke, and finally he bursted out in an
expression which was a mixture Of as
constituent, chagrln, merriment, vexa-
ton and perplexity, and holding out |
his hand with unconditional surrender !
written all over his face, exclaimed,
" Sold ~
That was the only word in the Ameri- |
can language that could adequately ex-
press the situation.
But the sell VIZ very easy one, and |
required no skill at ALL The fact is |
that when the original signature was
compared with the forgeries the dis
crepancies were so palpable that 4" a
waytaring man, though fool" need |
not be ia ken in and yet, if my friend
had not been de aeon, which he was
and is-and if | had been as most for
gers, | could have won a very nice
sum, had | offered to stake it on the |
issue.
Finally, to convince the Deacon that
he was not the only fool in the firm, | |
called up one of the other partners, and |
showing him the three false signatures.
asked him TO decide which was the |
genuine. With a great show of ready
discernment, he selected the top one,
and began at once to point out the
weak points in the others simply by
comparing them with what he consid.
cred the genuine. % Yes" said he, !,
" they are pretty fair limitations, but
don't you see the length of this g and
the turn of this n? Now look at the
original, and see where this capital J
sweeps round. There is an attempt at
it in the imitation, but it is very weak
one
Then you couldn't be imposed
upon by one of these lower signatures p
said /.
mo, not |. They bear forgery upon
their very face"