The Saline County journal. [volume] (Salina, Kan.) 1871-1893, 1879-10-23
THR FORGER'S BRIDE.

Trip - Prison.
washinstm Cor. Philadelphia Timsa
The recent arrest, in England, Of VIM.
Ringold Cooper revives the memory Of the
social As well rs political success in this
city Of the daring, INSCRIPTIONS forger
and scoundrel. During the winter Of
1854 there appeared in Washington a
handsome, dashina young man, who rep
resented himself to be the son of an Eng
lish nobleman. He made great parade
of his aristocratic lineage, and asserted
that, impelled BY love Of adventure, he
had come to this country and had done
valiant service for the union by deeds of
daring In the navy. Mr.. Welles was then
secretary of the navy, and was terribly
imposed upon. Cooper trumped up .
plausible reason for desiring q cierkship
in the navy, and obtained it without any
trouble. This situation enabled him to
study the handwriting, as we'll as the
business of paymasters. The gentleman
was too elegant for work. And passed his
time driving fast horses and counting the
girls. Of course, don't know how many
affairs he had on hand at the same time,
but know of one other than that of Miss
Motherhood, Mr.. Defrees' niece, not
daughter, as has been published, whom
he married. A retired army officer had
an only daughter, who was a charming
musician. Mr.. Cooper devoted himself to
her. He had a stylish team, and the
young lady shared his rides. The couple
became engaged, and when Mr.. Cooper
was laid up with smallpox the romantic
young lady wrote the tenderest notes to
him and daily sent delicacies made BY her
own fair hands. She believed him to be
immensely wealthy and listened with de-
light to his Claude Melnotte descriptions
of the home and estate of his ancestors in
England. The girl was really refined,
well educated, and of good lineage, but be
always impressed her with the idea of her
inferiority to him. and that it was great
condescension on his part to notice her.
She, like so many American girls, tamely
submitted, and did not evince the slight
est spunk until he deserted her and mar
ried Miss Motherhood, whom he supposed
to be wealthy. His forgeries were discoy-
cred several days before his marriage, and
it seemed cruel to allow the ceremony to
proceed when the detectives were outside
of Mr.. Defrees' house, and followed him
and the BRIDE to the train, taking
passage with them and not los
ing sight of him for one instant. At
Havre de Grace the arrest was made.
Cooper begged the detectives not to let
the arrest be known until he reached Phil
adelphia and placed his bride In hotel.
To this they agreed. He returned to the
poor, unsuspecting girl, sat beside her,
and entertained her most agreeably all of
the evening. The party proceeded to the
Continental hotel, Philadelphia. where
Cooper engaged room, escorted his bride
to it, and then, with the promise Of re.
turning soon, left her. She never saw
him again. Vainly did she watch and
wait during the long hours of the night
In the morning her uncle, Mr. Defrees,
arrived and told the dreadful truth to the
frightened, horror-stricken girl. He
brought her back to his home, which she
had left only the day before so bright and
happy. Before leaving this lady will
add that Mr.. Defree quickly obtained a
divorce for his much loved niece, and Miss
Mortherhead returned to Indiana. In a
few years she again married, and, he
lieve, has been SO happy that, except for
the frequent turning up of the scoundrel
who so cruelty deceived her, she would
have forgotten this dreadful episode of her
youth.
When cooper left his bride in her cham
Der at the Continental the detectives were
waiting to conduct him to prison. HIS
trial and conviction soon followed. II be-
came known that he was the son of hum
BILE parents in Delaware. His mother was
a widow, and testified that he was always
bad and unprincipled, and used to invent
falsehoods to suit his every purpose. She
had known nothing about him during or
after the war. Cooper received the mild
sentence Of FIVE years in the Moyamensing
prison. He served out his term, and has |
led the life of forger ever since. He
deceived men with the same facility that
he did women.
The generals daughter, whom Cooper
Tilted, Of course felt much chagrined when |
she heard that Cooper had married anoth. |
er, but the news Of his disgrace so quickly |
followed that she felt thankful for her es- |
cape from q worse humiliation. She i'm |
mediately dispatched her father to the |
navy department to beg the secretary to |
give him an order for the delivery Of her |
letters and souvenirs which might be
found among Cooper's papers, which, of
course, had been seized. was present |
when the general came IN with The pack
age. The young lady sprang from the |
sofa to receive them, when her mother
cried out: Don't touch them, they may
be infected with smallpox. General, take
them to the kitchen and put them in the
but the daughter would inspect
the bundle first. Every letter was folded
and briefed like a business document
Each letter was numbered, and his COM
ments upon the contents of the letters
were recorded on the back One read:
Dear little -, how she loves mel"
Some of the reflections were not 80 COM
plimentary. and the young lady finally
yielded to her mothers command that the
general should consiQn the package to the
ere, nor was she satisfied for several days
that the family might not lie infected
with smallpox by the handling Of the
tender missives which had been sent daily
TO peguile the tedium of the sick-room.
Cooper was as successful in California
and England as he was in Washington.
II seems strange that no one ever recog-
nized him as the ex-convict. He had
many disgraceful transactions when he
was with the feet on the Mississippi dur
ing the war. and yet he came direct from
them tn Washington, where he was in
daily danger of being confronted with the ;;
officers whom he had defrauded. In San !
Francisco he was always exposed to recog-
milton, for he does not appear to have
adopted aliases, and in England has been
equally bold. Obenreizer, in Dickens
No Thoroughfare, says the world is 50
mall and narrow, tina, We are always
.unning across the same people. but this
las not been the case with Cooper. for he
loes not appear ever to have been reoog-
,ized until he was detected in one of his
lever forgeries, and then he has been q
Identified as the most successful forger /,
Imong the Cooper. I(
Sin Against Nature. IL