The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1877-09-06
LIGHT ON THE BIG FORGERY
WILLIdM IT, BEERS GIVES TyFORMI-
TTON ABOUT TIE CRIME
He Says that the s8t, 900 bogus Chcck was
Tracery from - Genuine Check-An Em-
pIoyee ImpIicatcd-The Detective Work.

He Say. that the sei,OOO Bogu. Check was
q Traccry from ~ Gcnuinc Check-An Linz
pioyee ImpIicated-The Detective Work.
Mr. William II. Beers, vicc-Presidcnt and
Actuary Of the New York Life Insurance Com
pany. whose name has been connected with tho
mysterious tG4 900 check forgery. returned from
Europe on Tuesday evening. in the steamer
Bothnla. He was visited by Sun reporter last
evening in his mansion in Yonkers. He said
that neither he nor any other officer Of the
New York Life Insurance Company was inn
pcated In the great forgery. At any time
he could have put his hand in the company's
safe and taken out million dollars in cash.
There was no incentive for him or any
other officer to connect himself with
forgers. He employed cx-Special Agent Jayne
10 trace the forgcrs. he said. and II was known
before he went to Europe that Col. Gesner was
one of the principals in tho gang. He was not
familiar with the developments that had been
made in his absence, and was disnclncd to tell
| what he knew OF the inside history of the case
until he had scen his counsel Mr.. Knox. Of the
firm OF Fullerton Knox IL Crosby. and learned
what might be said and what ought not 10 be
| said Some time before he started for Europe
man named Brc came 10 him. and claimed
that he could aid in bringing the forgers TO
Justice His story was that they were try
Ing to fastcn the crime on ViccPrcsi-
dent Beers He said that he was
| intimate with the forgcrs. and saw the
s6l 600 check Mt n place in Greenwich street a
snort time before II was passed. Mr.. Beers said
he scnt Brio TO Lawyer Knox. who had several
| interviews with him. Mr.. Knox satisfied himself
that Bric knew little or nothing about the for
gerry and that his pretence made for gain
or to find out how far the suspicious OF the
authorities and the company extended toward
the guilty parties Mr.. Beers and his advisers
moved very slowly and cautiously in tracing
the forgcrs. They found that what they were
doing leaked out. and they feared that their
plans might be spoiled. SO they became very
| guarded in their investigations. Mr.. Beers
began his Investigations after the Union Trust
| Company had sccmlngy abnudOncd their
efforts TO discover the forgers. For consider
able time his officers worked 50 quietly that 1t
was no, known outside that he was, striving TO
/ that certain points that they were working on
were dNulg"d. they became very distrustful
! At times It WIS necessary to resort to duplicty.
| and to pretend to be following up clues that
they knew TO be worihlcss.
| Whom Bre saw MIR. Beers and LAWYER Knox.
so Mr. Beers continued. he said Col Gesner
was one of the foreers hut they had already
| been informed from other sources OF the latrrs
completely. 1t was ascertained that Brie had
been IN state prison for forgery, and i was
said that he took Agent Jaync. in the case be-;
cause he had the rs,putgiion of being shrewd
Insurance Company assured themselv,s at the
! beginning Of their invest lgatlOns that the
! s6i 900 check was not n stolen genuine blank
| check, or u check that had been raised from
| some small amount. The conclusion was that
i was an out and out forgery. but
| check The way the discovery was made has
heretofore been secret TO all except few per
| sons In hunting for clue that would show
how the check had been prepared. the officers
OF the insurance company came on an old can
| celled check for tl5OOon. made payable to the
order OF the Chemical Bank. The check had
! been issued a considerable time before the
| forgery. and had been paid in the Union Trust
n 4 Aff loo 81 Ibaaptfnpflx ppHt la
! the Insurance company. On comparison OF the
fraudulent ga 900 check with the :l5o00o
! check the signatures Of President Frank.xl and
/ Vice President Beers were found to b" pr. 'isc-
y alike in both. and there were certain marks
! of resemblance between them showing conclu-
| Sive| TINT IN" former was r,simile oi tle
latter. The signatures, besides being exactly
| alike. appeared in the forged check in III" very
| sam" positions A. on the genuine. The sirane"st
feature IN the rcsrnblunce was in the capital
letter " in his name. In writing his signature
| over u grease spot in the paper, and tho first
UPWARD stroke OF his pen had lcit blank slnce
blank in the W was reproduced In tho se4 900
check AMI those who were shown the milari
IS oi the checks felt conyin ed that tn sigma
turos in one Ind been traced from the other.
| Experts explained that the tracing had been
undonltcdIy done 10y pln INK the 6lnOO chock
over tho $50 600 on n rlaes stand VIII. . ;..w.
crfu light underneath to reflect the genuine
ssnaturcs through the check TO be- forged
to learn how the tl5)UOO had been obtained by
the forgrrs. and how it had got back into the
boon triico. Tho suspicion was that i had
either bcon stolc,. hY employees OF lhe Union
TRUST Company Wine - lis P'ssnssihph, sh @ or
fros the INSURANCE company after had hrcn ,
returned to II. Mr.. Beers said last evenn- NAT
the insurance company had almost positive
proc; that the check had been stolen hy one Of
his employees. who would be- arrested and
prosecuted 70 the fullest eStcnt when the proper
time arrived Hc would not in the mean time
give the name Of the cmrloyce, or tell how his
guilt had been asceriaincd. The genuine and
District Attorney Tho Internal HCVnpnp
cngrosscd on the sCi 900 check was thought at
first to be genuine, the suppostion hoing that
the forg"rs had got the stamped paper from
Washington, and aftcrward engraved the
mime OF the INSURANCE company and traced the
signature on II. Lawyer Knox showed the
cheek to experienced Treasury cngrayers. and
they pronounced the revenue stamp counter
Mr. Beers was very guarded in his talk about
the forgery. yins TINT J." lcnr'd If he said t9o
much he might rctard the invest igation. lie
was positive that one of the right men had been
caught in Col. Gesnor hut he declined to say
how the ON 'crs had obtained the clue that lod
10 tho detection. lie was asked II II was trnr.
n Mr. Whcoer II, Pe,l,ham. counsel for the
Trust Company. was reported aS saving. that
was implicated and would be arr ,cd.
h. c r"pSd nT dH, he did ID, no" not know
however influential or rich they might Ice. nrrd
not oNpet my cnmpromis lng ~ the elsn ON the
part Of the NcY i?rk lie ,Insuraneo Company.
forged chr'k for $4,000 IN s.. Louis subsequent
To the s6iooO swindlc, When the sGioQi or
Trust Company sought t. clear tho mystery II
the forgery. believing that the check was gen
uinc, but that it had boon raised. in
which casr the loss would. undcr recent Court
decision. have iqllen on The Insurance Com
pnny. Aitcrward the Trust Con pany abandon
ed the investigation. and Nlec-lresident Beers
took il up whore they LETT of.
\ motion is To- be- made to-day for tho dis
charge of Col. Gcsuer. ON the ground that b."
WIS indicted pending the examination OF his
case before a police magistrate.
OH, ,ing His Frnuduicnsy.
Tho Sixteenth ward Republican Association
iu rurn lltU william -nr,h last evening" c,rrd the