The Findlay Jeffersonian. [volume] (Findlay, Hancock County, Ohio) 1870-1881, 1876-04-07
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A GREAT CRIMINALS LIFE,
The Last of the Bond FOrgers--Arrest of Walter
Sheridan--The STORY OF His Crimes--A Man Who
Has Stolen Millions of Dollars Caught at Last.

| The Last Of the Bond Foryers--Arrest of Walter
| Sheridan--The Story OF His Crmes--A Man Vino
Has Stolen Millions of Dollars Caught at Last.
The arrest of Walter Cartman Sheri-
dan, alias Walter Stewart, alias Charles
| HI. Ralston, by Detective Robert A.
Pinkerton, of Pinkerton's National De-
tective Agency, in this city, OH Wednes-
day night, nearly closes the career of
probably the greatest thief and forger
in this country, and disposes of the last
of the famous gang of forgers which
under the leadership of Andrew ]. Rob-
erts, almost disrupted the Wall Street
market in the Summer of 1873. The
capture of this cele brated criminal may
solely be attributed to the efforts of
District Attorney Phelps, Detective
Pinkerton, and William w. Hewitt, the
counsel employed by the banking con-
Germs victimized by the forgers. In Or
der to properly understand the causes
which led to the arrest of Sheridan, n
rapid rehearsal of the facts connected
with the history OF the gang of forgers
which introduced the scheme of the
ROBBERY becomes necessary. When, in
1872, the gigantic forgeries OH the bank
of England were planned in this city,
the original subscribers to the capital
necessary to carry on the operations are
stated by Detective Pinkerton to have
been Walter Sheridan, George Wilkes,
Andrew ]. Roberts, and Frank Gleason.
Sheridan and Samuel Perry, another
clever operator, went to Europe, and
finding that George Mcdonald and Aus
tin and Byron Bidwell. who had charge
of the matter in England, were associa-
ting with disreputable women in the
Argyle and the Barnes in London, they
at once withdrew their capital in the
enterprise and returned to this city,
Perry taking passage under the name of
Morgan, and Sheridan under the alias of
Charles H. Rahlston. George or Gott-
lieb Engels, another famous forger, filed
he in turn deserted Mcdonald and the
Bidwells, and they were left to accom-
plish the forgeries alone. They failed
and, on coming to this country, were
arrested by Detective Pinkerton, and
are now serving life sentences in Eng
land To retrieve the losses occasioned
,bo fo; Of ha PonE IF ENGLAND
forging scheme, gigantic combination
was formed among the remaining mem-
bers of the party in this country. Plates
were prepared and false bonds issued
and sold in the market, of the New York
Central Railroad, the Buffalo and Erie
railroad, the Chicago'and Northwestern
railroad, the New Jersey Central railroad
the California and Oregon railroad, the
Union Pacific railroad, Tebo and Neo-
sho railroad, Allentown School Fund
Bonds, and Erie Water Loan Bonds
As nearly as can be estimated, the total
amount of the bonds thus forged reach
ed the amount of 2,500,0 900. The
forged writing on them is claimed to
have been done by Geo. Engels, un-
doubtedIy one of the most accomplished
| forgers in the country. The history of
| the combination is already well known.
| Andrew Roberts and Gleason, arrested
by Detective Pinkerton, by the efforts
| of District Attorney Phelps, are now in
| Ludlow street Jail, on civil suits for
| damages, and liable TO be re-arrested on
criminal process Blaisdell, Lambert
| and Olmstead, who were minor actors,
are under heavy bail to appear when
called on; Stephen Raymond, one of
the men who "laid down" the bonds in
Wall street, is In prison in neighboring
State; Williamson Is in the Tombs,
awaiting trial on forty different indict-
ments, to which he yesterday pleaded
not guilty, and the arrest of Sheridan
closes the career of this party, except
Engels, who Is supposed to be in South
America, fugitive from justice.
The career of Walter Sheridan is a
most wonderful one considering the life
of an ordinary criminal comparison.
Sheridan is now thirty eight years old.
He was born in New Orleans of respect
able parents, and received kerry fine
education. He Is about five feet ten
inches in height, weighs about one hun
dred and sixty-fve pounds, has light
complexion, blue eyes, light hair, sandy
mustache and beard, and is of a gentle
manly address. He has friends at San
dusky, Ohio, and his wife lives at Hud-
son, Michigan. When mere boy he
drifted into crime, and made his first ap-
| pearance in the character of criminal
in Western Missouri as a horse thief
about sixteen years ago. Then he be-
came an accomplished general thief and
confidence man, but especially distin-
| guished himself as a bank sneak. In
| 1858 he was arrested in company with
Joseph Moran, noted Western robber,
| for bank robbery in Chicags, convicted
and sentenced to five years il the Alton
penitentiary, which term he served
The next operation of an, magnitude
| in which he was concernedwas the rob-
berry of the First NatioIal Bank of
Springfield, Illinois. in company with
Charles Hicks and PhiliI Pearson
Sheridan held the teller in conversation
while HicFSand Pearson crwled in at
window and stole s35, 900 fpm the vault
Pearson escaped to Europe Hicks was