Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1872-05-30
rha pae.ery naslaesa.


published in St. Louis, No, the follow
ing history of directory dodger is
taken, with reference 10 one Richard
Edwards, noted directory compiler:
Mr.. Richard Edwards was born in
Wales. He came to America when n
boy. and subsequently entered into the
hook trade in New York City. he
next turns up as publisher of the Vir-
ginia Gazetteer, which he had pub
lished in Baltimore in 1856. In this
transaction he is said to have swindled
most of the parties who attempted to
support his work. Immediately upon
his failure in this business, he issued a
Baltimore city directory IN opposition
to Mr.. Woods, the directory publisher OF
that city. The printing houses of Balti-
more refused to print this book for I'D
wards, having already suffered by his
previous schemes. He managed, how
ever to induce Mr.. Sherman, of Phila-
delphia, to do his printing on the Baltl-
more opposition directory, and COM
munication from that city states that he
has not yet received single dollar for
the work. A bindery establishment in
that city was also invelgled into the trap,
and is out about one thousand dollars.
The two Baltimore directories were
issued on the same day, but Edwards
book was so inferior that in less than a
week after its birth he offered it for hall
price. 1t was still refused, and Edwards
was compelled to leave the city, having
utterly failed in his attempt to swindle
the people of Baltimore second time;
He came to st. Louis in 1853, and
opened negotiations with Il. V. kennedy,
Esq, the original directory publisher OF
st. Louis. Thereupon he issued a pub,
LEGATION known as the Great West.
To carry out this advertising swindle,
Edwards succeeded in borrowing one
thousand dollars from Mrs. Walton, of
this city. He effected this loan by
having the name of John O'Fallon, Esq,
to the note, which Mr.. O'Fallon repudl-
ated having signed. This was in 1867,
when he fled to Chicago, hoping to es-
cape the consequences of his crime.
The note becoming due the act was
discovered, and a warrant was issued
for Edwards, which found him in Chi
caso. He was conducted to this city by
an officer and lodged in Jail, but the
tricks of his lawyers effected his escape,
Mrs. Walton has not received her money
vet, and of course never will.
1t is not little surprising that the
business men of this city should sup
port man who had previously left the
city to escape the consequences OF his
own villainy. Yet they have done so,
and Edwards has continued his directory
since '65 with considerable success. The
present year, however. there was not
printing house in st. Louis who would
accept work at his hands and he was
compelled to have his printing done in
Cincinnati, where, as also in this city, |
his books were, as soon as issued, seized
by the sheriff at the instance OF parties |
who claim to have been swindled by his
reckless operations.
The publishers Of the San Francisco
Directory say: /
THAT Notwithstanding the repeated |
promises of Edwards to exchange on re-
ceipt of their directory they have sent
two of their books to this city and have
received none in return"
One of our exchanges from Cincinnati,
Of March 9th, in speaking of Edwards
in that city, has the following:
THE Gazette Printing Company has
attached Edwards type for $1,000, and
that having been paid of, and the mate
rial released, a book-binder made a levy,
and as soon as his claim is settled an
other binder intends repeating the dose.
The following from the Cincinnati |
Bulletin of February Is will show up
Edwards as a census-taker:
Tomorrow the members of our City
Council will be required to act upon the
recommendation Of the finance commit
tee to appropriate, out of the public
funds, $500 to cheeky individual from
Chicago to enable him to publish an in
different city directory in opposition to
Williams & Co., who have been faithfully |
supplying our wants in this respect for
twenty-five years past, without any other
assistance than such as was volun-
tarily given by the patrons of the work.
Edwards has long nursed an ambi-
ton to supplant Williams & Co. here,
and has repeatedly expressed determi
nation to cross swords with them. But
when he had sounded our business pub
lie, and satisfied himself as to the
universal esteem entertained for the
Williams City Directory, he suddenly
amended his tactics. Changing the title
Of his intended publication to Patent
Census Report" and keeping his motive
dark, he quietly interviewed a number
of prominent citizens and officials, and
before they knew what was up had them
committed to his scheme, and their sig
natures attached to "a request for him
to visit Cincinnati with his corps of ex-
perienced assistants and make a new
census report similar TO the one he got
up to order for Chicago. 1t was a bold
movement, and quite characteristic Of
the man"
A Baltimore paper is still more severe
than any of the above quotations. An
Richard Edwards is the man who does
ask for the confidence of the St. Louis
public. 1t remains with our citizens
whether or not we shall any longer toll
crate this successful swindler.
When a man has become as notorious
for swindling as Richard Edwards, his
name cannot longer be regarded as
necessarily excluded from the columns
OF the newspaper press; and it is partie-
ularly necessary that this gentleman
should be placed squarely before the st.
Louis public, in order to prevent repe
tition Of his past fraudulent operations
among us.
The late edition Of Edwards Memphis
Directory, so full of errors and inaccu-
racies Gomez from the same source