The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1876-01-05
THE DEVILS DIAGRAM.


A DARING ATTEMPT TO DEFRAUD RAILROAD
AND INSURANCE OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES Ex-
PLOTS.
The New York Herald has the following
strange recital of attempted fraud: week
ago there was published in the Sunday Her
aid short chapter on blackmsil," show
ing how a so.called private dete ,tive, one
Major Ezra S. Goodwin, had attempted TO
extort a large sum of money from Mr.. Fer
dinand Gedowsky by plot that Goodwin
had matured, to prosecute Geldowsky on a
charge of setting fire to building (Geldow
sky's factory,) and deiIaudiDg under
writers out of some $50 900 insur-
ance money. While carrying out
this bold blsckmailing job, Goodwin
and his confederate were approached by
three officers of the state detective force and
sent to Jail where they now are waiting trial.
Good win is a short and rather thick-seI man,
weighing perhaps $50 pounds, and is ABOUT
forty years OF age. He has round face, Is
dark complexioned, has restless, dark eye,
with the front center OF his head not ex-
sctly bald, but like the ground side of
watermelon, and sparsely covered with short
and crispy hair. His conversational pc wers,
such as they are, he uses to good advantage,
as they have frequently helped him to gain
the confidence OF honest men while he
robbed item of their money. His caresr in
checkered, but superb; about as superb as a
score or more of our best hotel keepers and
laadlsdes could make il, without seeing
any of bis dollars.
his CAREER AS A swINDLER.
is not so interesting, perhaps, as his dectec-
tive experience. In September, 1872,
through the agency of some Influential out
side parties, Major Goodwin was appointed
politan 70 adj He paid but little attention
to the legitimate duties of Ii, commission,
but in a sneaking, underground way began
to investigate the conduct of the conducto rs.
He engaged suite of rooms at the Win
throp House, including a private Office, and
kept a number of hacks always at bis com
mand, including one of Barnaro's enupss,
that was engaged at SIS per day. While
prosecuting his so-called search after crooked
aud tbieviDg conductors, he went SO far as to
get a number OF men who mad besn dis
charged from the road tor dishonesty TO
make affidavitS to statements that he would
draw up, charging the officials OF the road
with specific acts OF maud and theft, he
promising to give these men fat jobs on tbe
road for their sworn statements. In this
way he obtained q mass OF testimony
against men in charge OF shops and yards
and stables, charging them with taking the
property OF the road. His pack bills were
he was uneartbing big swincle, he would
start at the dead hour of night, drive off to
Jamaica Plain or some out -of-town station,
and wake up men at 2 and O'CLOCK IN the
morning on the pre- ence of getting evidence.
Finally bis Investigations and charges took
IN the superintendent and his experienced
clerk, who as his evidence shows, were re-
ceiving a big royalty Tor putting men on
the road. But, not resting here, he claimed
that there was
A HEAP OF CROOKED TRANSACTIONS
in the Office of the treasurer, and also that
the counsel for the road, a silver haired
gentleman, W no is above suspicion, was get
ting large percentage in adjusting DANA
ges for accidents. In short, his investi-
cations were so searching that nearly every
person officially connected with the road
was in some way engaged ln defraudlng the
corporation, ana in a little while they would
steal the road. In due time this testimony
was laid before the president OF the road
who named day for Goodwin to hold his
court, and y was held, Goodwin appearing
as prosecuting attorney against the whole
| OF them. 1t took but a little while to show
that the whole thing Was farce and thai
Major Goodwin was a fraud. The men he
| had procured to make false affidavits went
back on him and he Ietlred in disgust, but
drew no snekels tor his services, a.
| his pay had all been trusted by landlords
| and landladies, jewellers and tsilors, while
the road fatty refused to settle any OF his
stable bills or office bills. He did manage.
howe er, to dispose OF his mass OF testimony
| to other parties, who thought it might some
| time bs valuable to them, for the sum oil
5000. which he pocketed. On leaving Bos-
| ton he managed, through the Influence OF a
prominent Boston lawyer, TO get appointed
by Mr.. Was president OF the Erle roao
as a special detective on that road, calling
| himself 'chief of the = rie detective force.'
His fret move after securing this posi1lor
was to rent the basement of notorious
house near Twenty-third street., New YorE
City, which he hat
FITTED UP IN GRAND STYLE
with the richest of office furniture, includ
ing one of Herring's nightly ornamentet
safes. He then commenced in regula
metropolitan style to take evidence agsins
every body on the road. bis object being U
show up the grain, -four and produce ring
that he claimed were linked together iron
one end OF the road to the other. For TIL
purpose he had prepared large diagram
} representing thirteen different rings, will
radsnts extending from The center or nos
! ring, where he located the "head devil, q
, the twelve outlying rings, representing TN
men aud stations where the -four and graz
frauds were being carried on. This curiou
diagram he laid h,efore Mr.. Watson, wiz
his graphic and stunning details Q
how the rings we're worked and mar
r aged by the "head DEVIL" wn
3 was a we'll nown millionaire. BIT Nj
4 Watson did no see it, and his whole "inves
t tigation," lie that on the Metropolis
{ road, collaps ed. About this time he seize
Q a tug boat 10 North river, claiming that
Q had evidence that the tug was the propef'
4 of the Erie read. This seizure was one
1 his last acts on that road, and came vef
! near Sending him to prison on cnarge