The morning news., 1889-04-28
BOGUS COIN TOO PLENTY.
Nimble Counterfsiters at Work But
They Make it Poorly.

!
John Warning, colored shopkeeper,
was committed 70 Jail yesterday afternoon
by United States Commissioner Frank La
Inar, in default of $500, on the charge Of
passing counterfeit money.
A preliminary examination of some
length was held and quite number of wit
nesses we're called. United States District
Attorney Marion Erwin prosecuted the
case for the government and W. Z. Morri-
son represented the defense.
| 1t was stated that on the night of April
l3 Warning boarded a Belt Line car and
| passed countei felt silver dollar on the
conductor, W. T. Baggs. the latter ident-
| fving Warning as the mau who had handed
| him the spurious coin.
| An attempt was made to pass counterfeit
money on L. II. Shaves, B. L. Tullis and
! George Myers, q II street car conductors,
who charge Warri With being the party
| rendering tho coin, OF one dollar deno'nina-
| tion.
| The manner in which clew was obtained
1 against Warning must have been dOubly
! annoying to him Warning left a cnlored
| boy TO watch his shop and the lad, in "a piping
| the till, found two silver dollars and one
was a counterfeit. Afraid 70 pass 1t him
| self he consulted with another colnred lad,
| Hing where he got II, ana the c1nversa-
| ton being overheard it came to the ears of
| the officers, and Warning and the twD boys,
! Louis Bowman and solomon Spencer, were
arrested.
| District Attorney Erwin suggested to
| Commissioner Lamar to let the boys go on
| their r. CO enhance and their parents bond
| until next Wedne3 Jay al 4 o'clock p. m, by
| which time he will decide whether to prose-
cute tlem. with view of sending them to
| reformatory, as they are not more than
| lO rr IL years of age.
Warnings brother is in custody at Macon
| on charge of passing counterfeit money,
| and District Attorney Erwin says that
| when arrested the prisoner had on his person
| coatiden ,ial circulars from purported agents
| OF counterfeiters
| There Is great deal Of this spurious coin
| in circulation in Savannah, but the counter
! felt is so base that it ought not to deceive
| anyone. The cou lterfeit silver dollar is
| lighter than the silver dollar, is rougher,
and, wherever the quicksilver is worn off,
| the counterfeit coin IS as dingy as lead.
| they are evidently m de IN the crudest
| kind of ordinary plaster moll, which pre-
serves the general outline OF the coin, but
| they lack smOothness and flash. The rough
| work is concealed and tae counterfeit given
| prese 1tab appearances by applying a
| little quicksilver TO the surfaces, but this,
| however soon wears If.
Coun erfeit quarters and half dollars are
also in circulation, and COmmis ,ioner La
| mar has quite COLLECTOR of the spurious
coin brought ia by victims. 1t is rarely
that Americans are deceived by the bae
metal, the greatest number of complaints
coming from foreigners who keep fruit
sta ds, Chi amen and co.ore1 people. The
counterfeis are usually passed upon col
| cred men under the influence of liquor, and
| colored boys OF II years AID under are usei
| to advantage where possible.
An in tance was reported not long since
where a colored boy gr bbed from a colored
dan silver dollar, aud when caught, not
| having tried to ge out Of the way, explained
| that it was joke aud begged IF after re-
! turning the man a dollar which proved t.
be u counterfeit. The boy then took to his
heels as soon as he turned the market house
corner.
o. Friday Fred Ruckles, who keeps fruit
stand on Jefferson street, had one of these
spurious dollars passed on him, and as his
| entire receipts for the day were but 81 so,
the poor fellow was considerably mort fed
to learn that two-thirds OF that was worth
less.
Several arrests have been made from
time to time, but thus far none of he outfit
for making tue spurious money has been
discovered.