Evening journal., 1888-09-28
Foster Follows BedeII.
He Has Swindled New York
Merchants Out Of $169,ooo.
ANOTHER RASCAL FOUND OUT.

Disappeared and cannst be Found-His
Father WIN Make Good.
NEW YoRK, Sept ss-wnlian r. Foster,
who was counsel for the trustees Of the Pro
uuce Exchange gratuity fund, has robbed his
clients out OF Sl0s,0 In precisely the same
way Forger James 4. Belell swindled Shin
man, BGrlow, Larocqae e. Chonte. When
Alexander Mum, ons OF the trustees Of the
fund read Thursday of Beiesrs forgeries be
decided to have an examination of the mort
cages in which the 81, 1876, SOL 0s belonging to
the fund were supposed TO bo invested. It
never occurred to Mr. Muna that any one
connected with the guardianship Of the fund
was guilty Of wrong doing, but being clear
headed business man he thought it might be
well to have the funds securities looked over
Saturday Of last week be spoke to Duncan r.
Norvell, the secretary, on the subject. and
the result was that it was resolved 70 consult
MIR. Foster, their counsel
No man in the city stood higher in the
esteem Of the members Of tho Produce Tx
change than Foster He had been one of
the organizers of the gratuity fund and was
Its counsel from the start. Ho was a mem.
Der of the law firm of Foster q Wentworth.
and his offices we're In the Exehang, build-
ing. Messrs. Mum and Norvell called at
Fosters office Saturday afternoon. but were
Informed that he was out OF town No sus-
plcion OF his honesty had entered tho mind of
either Mr.. Mum or Mr.. Horvell They con
cluded TO defer their examination OF the
securities of the fund until ho could be CON
suited, and waited until Moniay Monday
Foster was still out Of town, bat Tuesdav he
went TO his Office, and Ia tbs afternoon called
on Messrs. Mum and Norveu at the Office ef
the trustees. Whom told Of tho dezire on the
part OF the trustees 10 have thsir mortgaga,
looked into he acquiesoed readily and com
posedly, and spoke Of Bedells case. He re-
marked: ~ don't see how the discovery of
Bedelfs forgeries could have been deferred
50 long,
Messrs. Mum & Norvell had asked him
during their joint consultations to 70 to the
registers Office to compare the mortgages on
file there with the ones in the trustees safe
Foster made plausible excuse for not going
at once, but promised 70 meet Messrs. Mum
Norvel the following morning. That was
the last That was seen Of him by either Mr.
Mum or Mr. Norvell.
Alexander Meachim and Evan Thomas
Went 70 Fosters office Tuesday to consult
nm about Delaware and Lacllawanna rail
road mortgage for a very large amount of
money. He promised to give the matter bis
attention Az what hour he left his office. or
whittier he went from there, is not even snr-
missed
Wednesday morning Secretary Norvel
waited for Foster long time after the bou,.
liked for the meeting. At length. when it
became clear that Foster would not keen the
appointment, Mr. Norvell Went alone To the
CITY registers Office with forty MORTGAGES
representing about S65J, ,001 Of money invested
by the gratuity fund. He handed the mort
cages TO Deputy Register James ] Martin
and In few monsnts thirteen of them
aggregating Sl6S,0O0 were returned to him
with the information that they were for |
geries OF the Bedell kind The forgeri.s ,vera
not difficult TO detect. The counterfeit rows
ters seal with which they were STAMPED lyas
smaller than the genuine, and the impression
It made upon the paper was not So clear -. |
wei defined, and the forged certfcntion was
printed IN type different from that used IN /
registers office. Moreover, the forged mort I
cages were not recorded
The assurance by Deputy Register Martin
that each of the thirteen MORTGAGES ref.rrol
10 was fraudulent astounded Mr. Norvau
II occurred 70 him then for the first tim.
That W lillian r. Foster, Jr, was the forg.r
re hurried back to his office in the Prnducs
Exchange and laid the matter before Presi-
Gent UT and the trustees A thorough in
vestigation followed, lawyer Horace d.
Deming being called in to assist the prolncs
Exchange officials. 1t did not take the ex-
aminers long to convince them TINT Foster
81 < "A
afternoon notice was posted on the bulletin
board Of the Produce Exchange announcing
Fosters rascality. II caused great excite.
ment
William r. Foster, ths aged father of the
forger, had been informed of his sons crime
earlier than the posting Of the notice. and it
is said he assured f. B. Thurber and Presi-
dent Orr that he would maks good any loss
up TO S@o0,OJO caused by his son Mr. Foster
Sr., is wealthy and universally esteemed
-four merchant at - Canal street
BE is a millionaire
Foster IS method Of robbery was ascertained
to be similar to Bedels Tie only difference
IS that there was no 60 between such AZ
bedell had IN the person Of young LAWYER
Henry. Fosters game was slrer and simpier
After he had forged a mortgage and had au-
proved Of it as counsel for the fund he nro-
cured check for the alleged amount from
the treasurer as a matter of course. Checks
would be made payable 10 him for the ar-
count Of the fictitious mortgagor, and some
times 70 himself alone Then. in order n
get the money from the Produce EXCHANGE
bank, where the gratuity funds account Is
kept, all lac had 70 DO was to indorse his own
name, either Tor his own account or for that
of the alleged mortgagor. Foster kent his
own account in the Chatham National bank
He began his system Of forgeries in lss3 one
year after he had assisted in organizing the
Iund. Like Bedell, Foster paid interest ON
the forged mortgages, and thus succeeded in
averting suspicion as to their genuineness.
None Of the men who knew Foster wore
able to give guess at what the forger Ind ,
done with the Sl6sOO0 he had stolen. He !
was bachelor, and his only extrayaganc, =
appears to have been in the matter of bis
attire, which is said to have been ALWAYS Of
the very best material and the latest make /
He was between 45 and 90 years Of are. tail
and athletic, and his hair and mustache iron
gray. Lately he has maintained what is de-
icribed by his New York friends as a modest :
bachelor establishment at Bayport. L. \
The house and grounds are computed to have q
,ost $4,000. He was a member OF the Union. '
University, Down Town and South Side i,
,lubs Of this city, and of the West End club !
# Newport, R. l. His acquaintances claim d
o know that Foster did not squander money
m women.
William r. Foster, Jr., said Mr.. Went
worth, his law partner, was absolutely the {
'est man knew on earth would sooner a