The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1891-07-09
THE PENNSY STEAL.
A Huge Fraud Prevented by Pre-
mature Operation.

1t is not known to what extent the
swindling operations in connection with
the bogus Pennsylvania Railway pay
checks have reached. It Is
the opinion of those well informed
that it was great q scheme
badly worked. To use the lang
uage of a lower Montgomery street saloon
keeper, If these scoundrels had waited
until the thirteenth or the fourteenth Of
this month. saloon keepers and certain
Pennsylvania ferry TO Union Hill would
have been heavily duped-many, per-
haps, ruined"
Thousands OF pay checks are issned BIZ
the Pennsylvania Railway Company every
month. Saloon keepers, especially those
place and Montgomery street, are IN the
habit OF drawing from the banks
and cashing from ten TO twenty thou
sand dollars worth in a sinqla
day. The genuine checks are printed on
a peculiar bond parchment. The qualityt
pains has been taken by the company to
make a counterfeit as Difficult t
as the Government takes to preven
counterfeiting its bank notes. The init a.
tionss with the exception that they are
from one-eighth 20 a quarter Of an inch
Is evident that those who devised the
costly plates for the bogus checks did not
intend to limit the swindhng operations
to the passage Of the few SO far discovered.
These pay checks are not always pre-
sented by the saloonkeepers at the bank
Many ofthem are handed over to brewers
in settling accounts Three were sent back
from the Second National Bank to a
brewery agent yesterday. The agent
claims that he often receives $1,000 OF
them in q month. The saloon keepers
never endorse them, because they are
drawn to the bearer, aud the brewery
agent cannot always make up his mind
from which Of his patrons be received the
bogus drafts.
The police officials Of this city and nriv-
ate detectives Of the Pennsylvania Com
pany are Investigating the matter. All
are more or less noncommittaL
In addition to the ma mes OF those pub
hshed in yesterdays NEWS as victims
in this ciiy. Thomas Doyle, who
keeps the "Old Stone House." at
Newark avenue and Grove street, is
reported as one. He did not discover it
for forty odd dollars was returned to him
marked no good.
Saloon-keepers Archie Crossman, of Hud-
son and Montgomery streets, aud Foley,
OF Exchange Place. reported as having
been duDed, deny the report. SO
place; but descriptions nave been fur
nished by Mr. Steup's son Of the man who
laid down the check. The bogus check
was cashed, and has been seen by News
reporter.
L c. Cox. re presenting the main Office
of the company at Philadelphia was found
By NBws reporter IN consultation with
the on1clals OF the Hudson County Ma
tional Bank this morning. He denied
the report that the scheme
could be successfully worked at the
other end OF the road or in other cities,
and said that so far the investigations
have not shown that the swindling oper-
ations amount to much. The company
was merely endeavoring to protect the
outside people. The company and the
banks were safe.
Mr.. Cox was asked If there was any
truth in the report tDat the company
would do away with the system of paying
of BY checks, as several saloon keepers say
they have received authentic information
that such was the case. Mr.. Cox said he
did not think the recent discoveries
would change the system