Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-09-13
ESPECIAL TELEGRAM TO THE DISPATCH

| IoEhSLAL Ih14EGRAM DISPATCH.l
BIRMINGHAM, ALA, September r.
The grand jury of the o nited States Dis
trict Court has just returned batch of in
dietments against W. H Harrison, better
known as "Widow Harrison" for pension
frauds. Harrison is credited with swindling
Uncle Sam out of $1,000 to S12, 900 by
means OF bogus pension claims. A history
OF his operations reads like dime novel,
and be is certainly sharper of no mean
ability.
Harrison came from somewhere in Ohio
several years ago, and settled in Tuska-
leosa county, near the line of Walker
county. He was school teacher, pious
young man, who taught secular school
during the week and Bible class in the
Sunday school. His neat appearance and
good address helped him to win his way in
the backwoods where he had located, and he
soon established flourishlng school, His
scholars loved him, parents liked him and
soon Mr. Harrison was prominent and in
huential man.
AN IMPORTANT INDIVIDUAL.
The country people sought his advice on
all sorts OF subjects, and some of the country
magistrates soon learned he had studied
law and they called on him to settle many
knotty law problems. So great was the
fame of HarTison's school in Tuskaloosa
county that the people OF Walker organized
a much larger school and induced him to 90
over and take charge of it. In Walker be
became even more popular than he had
been in Tuscaloosa, and finally, to please
everybody, he agreed to teach half the year
in each county.
Harrison's popularity and influence
among the people continued until Deputy
United States Marshal arrested him on a
charge of pension frauds. He was unable
to make the S1O,0 600 bond required, and was
placed in Jail in this city and then the
officers went to work looking up his record.
AT the time of his arrest there were three
cases OF pension swindling against him, and
1t was supposed that was all he had DONE
When the officers investigated a little
more they were amazed to find that Harri-
son had been Systematically swindling the
Government for four years and if be had
not grown careless he might have carried on
his operations many years without detec-
tion.
AN EXTENSIVE OPERATOR.
From every little Dostofice within ten
miles of where he had been teaching school
Harrison had been forwarding pension
claims to Washington. The claims were all
properly made out, sworn to before magis-
trate, the physicians certificate was o. K.
in every particular. The claims seemed
regular and in time they were allowed by
the department. There was considerable
back pay allowed; IN one case it is said to
have amounted to $500.
Most of these claims were from widows.
and there was widow Harrison" at al
most every postofiee in that Sec
tion. There were also "Widow Smiths,''
" Widow Browns and a few
surviving veterans, all drawing pensions.
So many disabled veterans and widows of
disabled veterans in the interior of Ala
bama at last aroused suspicion, and an in
vestigation was set on loot, with the result
that only one veteran and one widow were
found.
Harrison was the Alpha and the Omega
Of this colony of veterans and widows. His
work had been bold. Every magistrates
certificate, every physicians certificate, in
fact, every claim, was a forgery from be-
ginning to end.
sINGLE-HANDED swIDLER.
Blanks of all kinds necessary in making
put the claims had been provided by Harr1-
son himself, and he was drawing all the
pensions. All the details of his remarkable
'windle will come out when he is placed on
rial, which will probably be at the spring
erm of court. AT his preliminary trial
when he was arrested Harrison denied
everything and managed his own case, re-
using to employ lawyer.
1t has never been ascertained exactly
low much money be obtained from the Gov
but the officer who worked up the
'ase estimates the amount at $1,000 to S12,-
100.
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