St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-05-02
LONGS CAREER CUT SHORT
A Denizen Of the Flats Nabbed on the
Charge Of Forgery.
SMITH IS VERY SMOOTH.
Several Hundred Italians Swindled
by a Sharper --West Side
Melange.

A man giving his name as w. A..
Long. was arrested by special officer
Charters yesterday and locked up on a
charge of forgery. Long has been a
resident on the flats for some time and
has previously been suspected of
crooked work. no positive proof being
presented, however, until yesterday.
when he entered the store of Herman
Grawert on Dakota avenue and pur-
chased stove for 81 rendering check
for SIS in payment therefor, which
Grawert cashed. and gave him
$l1 in change. The check
was subsequently found to have been
forged. and complaint was made at
the station. leading to Longs arrest last
evening, as stated. A check for a like
amount, unindOrSed. was found on the
the person of the prisoner. Long will
be brought up for hearing before
Judge Burr this morning. Gus Oleson
and Norman Name were taken IN last
evening. charged with being drunk and
diSorderly.
Johann Smith is the name of an
Italian confidence man, who successful
ly flimfammed the Italian colony of
West st. Paul out of ABOUT $500 on
Tuesday. Smith talks very good
English as also does Pietro Carlo, who
is a recognized foreman and interpreter
for the members of the colony, ana is
implicitly trusted by them. Smith
cam across Carlo in Minneapolis, and
represented to him that he was in need
of two hundred men to work on
the Anchor line, near Hart
City, Dakota. He asked Car
10 if he knew where that
number of men could be obtained.
Carlo replied that there we're plenty of
men, but that he should require refer
ences before proceeding with any ar
rangemeEts to furnish them. That
didn't feaze Smith, in the least. He
took Carlo to Hart City, and there
showed him line Of stakes driven in
the prairie which, he declared, marked
the route of the new road. which he had
orders from the company to proceed to
grade at once. He also introduced an
accomplice to Carlo. as the chief
engineer of the. new line,
and succeeded in convincing him
that it was a square deal:
to Minneapolis, and commenced hiring
came to West st. Paul and made his
presence known among the Italians OF
the colony. hiring men right and left,
and collecting from each one S1O.25, os-
tensibly for railway fare. On Tuesday
afternoon Smith was arrested on SuS-
picion by officer Rutfner, and taken to
the Ducas street station, subsequently
being released ON an order from
police headquarters. several of the
mans victims having gone to
Chief Clark and vouched for
his Integrity. Smith again proceeded
to the Italian quarter, and before he
left, succeeded in collecting s1,4O0. He
afterwards got 800 from Carlo, which
the latter had collected from the men
hired in Minneapolis. Smith left final
instructions to the $50 or 200 men, from
whom he had collected the money. to
be ready to depart for Hart at p. m.
yesterday, and then saying he would go
up town to supper vamoosed, and has
not been seen since. The scene on the
flats yesterday morning when the
swindle became apparent to the vic
tins was peculiar. No one would have
thought there were so many Italians in
the city as were gathered there, excit-
edly discussing their loss. In small
frame house on Fairfield avenue. pre-
sided over by Mrs. Maraus AllesandrO,
there are fifteen Italians, and every
one of them was victimized by Smith.
When reporter for the GLOBE called
at the house, Mrs. Allesandro sat on an.
egg box in one corner, the only article
of furniture in the room except plain
deal table. Her chin rested in her
hands. and as she gaZed through the
dirt-stained window at the cherries
world beyond, she looked the picture of
abject dependency. Not so with the
men, however. They were mad, and
told the story of the swindle in the
rapid, ejaculat0rv manner peculiar to
the race. Pietro Moresch remarked, as
his hand wandered invOluntarily toward
his boot leg, that there would be trouble
if he ever met Smith again. A chorus
of approving yells greeted the senti-
ment, and Smith is marked man. Yes
terday afternoon Carlo was arrested,
charged with completely IN the swindie,
and will come up for hearing before
Judge Burr this morning.
The Ladies auxiliary OF the Y. M. g.
A. will meet at the rooms of the associa-
ton on Friday evening.
The Liedertopel Singing society is
preparing a musical entertainment for
presentation in the West Side Opera
house.
The West Side Debating club will
hold a meeting at Christensen hall to-
morrow evening.
The citizens union will hold a meet
ing in Thompson hall Friday evening
for the discussion of the questions most
prominently before the West side pub
lie at this time-the levee, the low
bridge, the proposed change of grade on
Dakota avenue, and various other sub
jects of equal interest and Importance.
A card party was given last evening
at the residence of Mr.. and Mrs. Nc
Mann. on Ohio street, there being pres
ent large number of young friends of
the family. Music added variety to the
occasion.
The Brooklyn Gun club held its
weekly shoot yesterday afternoon, the
best score being made by Fred Guion,
who killed nineteen birds out of pos
sible twenty-one at thirty yards rise.
A row occurred between Fred Strange
and Walter Carroll, two stock yard en-
plOyeS, who were out on a tOOt last
night. The scrimmage took place on
Fairfield avenue, near State street, and
Waged for several minutes with good
deal of ferocity. On the approach Of a
police officer, both men decamped.
Mrs. G. F. Stout is the most active
mover in perfecting plans for some
what unique entertainment to be given
at her residence, May %. The title is
sufficiently attractive to secure large
attendance: ga Festival Of Beauty"
the beauties to be girls under fifteen
years old. The beauties will amuse
themselves and their friends with
music, and the occasion will doubtless
be very pleasant one.
The Young Peoples Society of the
Clinton Avenue M. E. church IS arrang-
ing for a social entertainment to be
given at the church on Friday evening.
The main object of the meeting is to
get the young people together for pur-
poses of reorganization. An excellent
musical and literary proc ramme has
been prepared, in the rendering of