Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-11-23
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ESPECIAL TELEGRAM TO THE DISfATCHsi
PHILADELPHIA, November 22.-Charles
B. Wigton, the Secretary Treasurer of the
Glamorgan Iron Company, who is held
under SIS, 900 bail on the charge of forgery
in reissuing paid note for $40, 900 indorsed
by A. Pardee & Co., james Long, R. B.
Wigton and G. T. Roberts, made full con-
fessiOn to-day of having reissued paid notes,
indorsed BY the same parties, aggregating
S66,5OO. "He made the confession" said
Major John R. Fell. Of Ario Pardee & Co.,
'in the presence of Mr.. Edward Smith, a
member of Charles Smith & Sons, brokers,
who negotiated the notes, and myself
1.-The amount of altered paper, WigtOn
confessed, amounts to $500, beside the
$4,000 note for which he is held. The
notes are for the sums of 10000, $4,000,
three of Sc, 900 each, and one OF $500, and
have been negotiated through concerns in
Bellefonte, Lewistown, Altoona and other
country towns in Pennsylvania. We have
not as YET been able to ascertain whether
this is correct statement of the full amount
Of altered paper. More spurious notes may
have been issued, though it is not likely"
A PECULIAR POSITION.
The firm of Ario (not Aaron) Pardee &
Co., in consequence of the forgery, to-day
issued the following statement:
Within the last three days fraud mas been
developed in the affairs of the Glamorgan Iron
Company, which has caused no little sensation,
and has taken the community by surprise. 1t
appears that the notes of the Glamorgan Iron
Company, indorsed BY r. B. Wigton Sons,
a md "A Tha0d0ro
Roberts have from time to time been paid. and
thus passed into the hands Of the Glamorgan
Iron Company. c. B. Wigton was the Treas
urer of the company and r. B. Wigton was
the President Recently it has been discovered
that the old notes thus paid have been altered
as to date and time Of payment, and then re-
issued and sold. To what extent the fraud has
been perpetrated Is not yet known, but the
treasurer has given a list of such notes
amounting to over $4,000 Under these
circumstances the indorsers have determined
that they will allow all notes now maturing to
go to protest, so that they may be able to find
where the notes are and then, by thorough
investigation into the books and accounts Of
the company, ascertain, If possible, what of
these notes are genuine and what are fraudu-
lent. They are prepared to pay such of them
as are genuine notes, but they do not regard
themselves as liable for those which have been
fraudulently issued, and the course they have
determined to pursue has been adopted as the
only method of ascertaining for them what
notes they are are really responsible for. They
adopt this course with regret, as they do not
wish to subject any one to Inconvenience by
not paying the genuine notes at maturity. but
it is the only one left to them to protect them
selves against the fraud which has been perpe-
trated.
ONLY RAN A SHORT TIME.
Mr.. Edward Smith, of the firm of Charles
Smith & Sons, brokers, said that Mr.. Wigton
in his confession said his forgeries date back
to September, 1889. "We have negotiated
paper for the Glamorgan Iron Company"
said Mr.. Smith. ''only during the last six
weeks, and the $40, 900 note for which he is
held is the only spurious paper we have
handled of that company. I desire TO say
this because it has been incorrectly stated
that we have negotiated all of the spurious
paper for the Glamorgan Iron Company.
The report that the note in question, added
Mr.. Smith, chad been sold to US for Sc, 900
is also erroneous. We took the note at our
ordinary rate of interest, and the Sc, 900 was
only loaned on the note"
1t was stated to-day that the crooked
treasurer did not reissue the paid notes to
pay off his losses in stock speculation, but
to pay gambling debts. 81 understand, rs said
a prominent banker to-day, "that Mr. Rich
ard B. Wigton has often paid off his son
Charles gambling debts, and it is TO this
source believe the money has gone.''
Charles B. Wigton's further hearing will
take place before Magistrate Durham on
Tuesday next.