The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-12-26

Fourth street, New York The mail of the
| oooaleF Is generally received at sOme saloon,
Wnere IL Is letJ Tor him.
TOM DAvIs's GAME.
''The Doodle game is worked in various ways -
remarked Detective William Kennock, who has
been in the secret service for twelve or fourteen
years, during a talk about the relation OF hood
ling to counterfeiting. "Tom Davis, we'll
known as the hacker of sporting men, and
worth, I suppose, 100000, made
all his wealth in the Doodle bust
ness. Tom and his brother, The Davis,
were the biggest 'boodlers' in the country but
they have retired from the business Tom Da-
Wis mad as many as half dozen 'cappers,' TEL
lows, you know, who would bring ia customers.
II lhey were corresponding with man who
wanted to buy counterfeit money these cappers
would be at the hotel when he arrived in the city
10 make the deal, and would take him around to
the place for doing the business. They were al
ways on the lookout for victims. That was
their part Of the game When Gus
6emer would come into the Office of Davis to
make DEAL Tom would take him around be-
hlnd the counter and throw open the safe where
MS ~ oney was kept He always had from $780,
900 to $4,000 in bills ranging from ones on up
neatly tied IN packages. The money was, of
course, perfectly genuine. Davis would throw
open Ine sa1e 10 the stranger and say, Here,
Sir Is my counterfeit. Examine it for YOURSELF
and count out the amount that you want to
Duy.' The stranger would compare what he
supposed was the counterfeit with his COED
money, and would find difference. He
would invest his every dollar. After counting
Davis would wrap it up in his presence and
would lay 1t IN little panel above the counter,
wnere 1t was changed for an exactly similar
looking package made up of blank paper. If
the stranger held to the money and refused
70 alioW It to leave his hands, other schemes
Hau 20 DC resorted to- one of which was to say
that he had an arrangement for shipping his
eoo4s oy express, and as it would not do-oh.
In his possession, IL would be shipped
to the stranger whenever he wished
to receive it. The money would then be placed
he rpa Of rl,a Il
one OF the cappers' would be called to take it to
the express Office While the stranger and the
G-Pper We're passing out at the door the yalise
wSuld be changed for one exactly similar and
at the end of his journey, brick, piece of
WOOD, or something thro wn in for weight would
De found instead of the counterfeit money
which it was supposed was being bought There
are several other ways of working the game,
and If one scheme failed anot her would be re-
sorted to- The Doodle would always be worked
on. II they found man somewhere who wanted
not o name counterfeit o. Sd money, and could
deal, the Doodle would be sent TO him by express,
z. o. D. OF course the charges would have 70
man swfndled by the Doodle game would hardly
dare TO make complaint, because he was conniv-
ing at fraud when caught"
Are the boodlers ever arrested" was asked
IT., mo, there Is no sympathy for their victims.
me man that gets caught by them is a rascal,
and would, for the reason that he is attemptlng
to buy counterfeit, be criminal if he could
The only law under which the bOodler can be
prosecuted Is for obtaining money under false
preteDses or for violating the postal laws in
using the mails for the purpose of defrauding."
YICTIMIzING A PRIEST.
"a Catholic priest from Michigan once COM
planned to the secret-service department. that he
had been robbed by counterfeiters in New
YORK." the detective said, in reply to an inquiry
regarding complaints from victims. az went
there with him to investigate the matter He
explained to me that his Pensioners had
been receiving letters from counter
letters in New York, and he had
undertaken TO detect them and have them pun
lshed, but they had robbed him of his money
Inc truth OF the matter was that the good priest
mad taken all the money he could collect among
his parlshleners to New York TO invest in coun-
terfe1t money, and had been caught by
the boodlers. 1t was not the kind
Of case that required my attention 1t
belonged to the P0stofhce Department, but, to
satisfy my own curiosity about the priest,
called on Tom Davis, who, by little question
ing, round had worked the game.
thousands of DOODLE circulars have been re-
ceiVed in Indiana in the last few months" De-
tective kennoch says, land they have given us
an endless amount of trouble. There are a
number of men in this State, TOO, who have been
victimiZed by this Doodle game. There
is city official in Indiana, in
a city OF 10000 inhabitants, who has been
making desperate effort to buy some counter
felt. You would probably not believe it, but
1t is true. that among the letters received by
boodlers, which have captured there are two
from ex- congressman in the South who tried to
buy counterfeit bills, and one from a firm in
Boston employing large number of men, whom
they paid every week. wanting small currency"