Union County courier. [volume] (Elk Point, Union County, D.T. [S.D.]) 187?-1913, 1889-08-07

erasss ossshold OF John !.
ls r ~ -
4Chssssi.is Bci<acs Monthly. After getting
Mr.. Piunkett thoroughly under his
inhuense he paid particular attention
to his wife and in the short time of Q
month she was ready to desert her
husband. He went under the name of A.
Bentley Worthington. Mrs. Plunkett de-
cided that life was not worth living with
any one else. The peculiar manner in
which Mr.. and Mrs. Plunkett declared
themselves divorced, and the equally IN
formal way in which WortLington and Mrs.
Plunkett subsequently declared themselves
married, were enlarged upon at the time it
occurred. When investigation revealed
the true identity Of the man, lie disap-
peared, as usual. first acknowled-
ing, as his reputed wife, Mrs. Plunkett,
or ex-Mrs. Plnnkett, still does, that
he has been in one person, and Mt
different times Samuel Oakley Crawford,
Eugene Samuel Bouvier Walton, Mai.
Eugene Bouyier, Eugene Bonner, E. I.
Bannerton, M. Bennateau, Maj. Horace
Oakley Wood, Arthur Wood, ". ID. Wood,
Arlington Buckingham Wadsworth, Gen. "
A. b. Ward, and lastly A. BENTLEY Wor-
thington. Under each alias he has sue
ceeded in acquiring new wife in one way
Or another.
/. His whole history reads like romance,
and it was ut first hard to believe that
there could be person in this world with
SO little heart. For over twenty years he
has succeeded in betraying innocent women
and robbing them of their money. sparing
neither orphans nor widows. He skipped
from Grand Forks, OAK, last January,
after forging his law partners signature,
and leaving o young wife. who is now in a
charitable institution III st. Paul, Mimi,
where she is about to become mother
He has succeeded in avoiding arrest at
nearly every place where he has resided.
As nearly as can be ascertained, which
is not any too nearly. the fellows real
name is Samuel Oakley Crawford, and he
was born in Saugerties about ls48. Craw-
ford served little while in the army
during the war, and also studied law in
Saugerties, N. Y. Afterward he was a
Methodist preacher somewhere in New
Jersey and an insurance agent in Pennsyl-
v MIA, finally turning up in Albany, where
he married telegraph operator, who is
crookedness, the nature of which is now
unknown, got him sentenced to three
Years imprisonment, and after serving a
part Of the time he got pardon through
friends and went west. Along in 1873 he
turned up in Toronto playing in the Helen
Blythe Dramatic company under the name
Of Eugene Benneteau. but giving Eugene
BannertOn as his real name. December
2Gth, 1878 he married there pretty act !
ress, who is now in New York un er the
name OF Hudson. 1t is said the young
couple retired from the stage and went to
live at New Lisbon, Wis, where Banner
ton practiced law and got trusted. When
his credit ran low he is said to have
forged some checks and notes and was ar
restel but released on the bail furnished
by his law partner, who trusted him i'm
plicitly. A few days later he disappeared.
His wife returned to New York, aud was
still infatuated enough to devote her earn
ings for long time to paying Off the
debts Of her husband, which she did in
full. She afterwards procured q divorce
ON the ground Of desertion.
In 1886 the fel ow had adopted his pre-
sumably real name, and as S. o. Crawford,
accompanied by two women whom he rep-
resented ~ his sisters. he leased q fine es-
tate near Charleston, W.V.a,and set up as
man Of wealth retire from business to
recuperats his health. In 1856, having got
changed somehow into Judge John D.
Crawford, he met j. +. Dan big coal
operator interested in marketing large
tract Of timber land. Crawford tame with
his two sisters" to New York, and wrote
to Mr.. Dana that he had made the sale.
He afteward showed what purported to be
q contract for the sale. aud Mr.. Dana gave
him money to buy off Washington man
who held m option on the tract. Craw-
ford brought back forged receipt for this,
and ct once got %, 600 more to buy out the
interest Of q man in Nebraska. That was
money. Crawford afterward lived at Dor
chester, Mass, with the two women, who
we're Mrs. Sargent and Louise Jenkins.
soon as he could get divor Q. She sup
ported him for q year on the strength Of
the promise and forged paper tina he told
her was divorce. He got 81, 900 from he,
besides the years keeping and fed.
From West yirginia ha went to Griffin,
Ga, where he called himself Maj. Horace
Oakley Wood, and made violent love to
Miss Ldsxie Hill, daughter OF a wealthy
citiScn. He married August 81. 1855, and
q large piece Of real estate was the wedding
present frnm the brides 70 her. In the
spring Of 1857 Wood announced that be
was going 70 start bank. He got a. .OO0
ont Of . man who wante to be cashier,
- 900 from another man, and "a, ,OOG
from others. Then he made his wife 90
to Atlanta md get some relatives to cash
. check for ~, 900 to which he had forge
his father-in- laws Endorsement. With
the Sl5. .O00h 10 disappeared. leaving wife
infatuated enOugh 10 refuse almost to this
day to belisve that be was scoundrel.
In August, 1881, he popped up at 6po-
kane Falls, NJ. r., where as Arlington
Buckingham Wadsworth he presented let
ters Of introduction from some OF the
best known mon in the country. and
claimed to b in control Of vast capital,
He was getting up gigantic banking
scheme TOR ~ vest IN territories, when,
in October, l667, his swindling propensi-
ties got him into troub an i be fled,
He seems u have gone Immediately ia
Providence, "A. L, and m Arthur b. Ward
~ met EmmA Perry, an accom-
plishsd young woman, daughter Of we'll
known residonts Of Providence. and worth
@l50. 900. uAish was about TO como INTO
her hands, a four days he won her and
they wers ulAssied The day she was u years
old 4 wesk later his wifs's financial a.
faiys were aeltaod up and the couple vent
west, sstelan = arsnd Forks, Dsk.,
whase he pg1eetoed law. He s0on became
~ heso 6 ~ town and was genesAlly
known - 0oaerAl.s and wont deeply into
policies: ~ vAteh ~ hDs osatoricai pow
IN Attsd ~ y! He borrowed saonsy tIssaly
nevsr tsp 4 nd cot trusted Il ~ ~