The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-11-11
MISSDAVISNAMEFORGED
A BOGUS LETTER ASKING FOR A
LOAN OF $1,000 SENT OUT.


The Communication Addressed to DR..
Morrow of Nashville, Tenn.-A sus-
picion That 1t is the Work of .Stod-
dard, Who Got Out Of Tennessee's
Jail Through Forged Letters and
Petitions.
JERSEY CITY. N. j., Nov. 1O.-Two let
ters have been sent south from Jersey City
recently. purporting to be written by Miss
Winnie Davis, daughter OF the late Jeffer-
sou Davis. begging for $1,000. One was
sent to DR.. William Morrow of Nash
vile, Tenn, and the other to
Gen. Gordon of Atlanta, Ga.
There is little doubt that they were
written by Stoddard. the forger, who lies
in the Hudson county jail, and who forged
his way out of the Tennessee mines by a
letter to the governor asking for his pardon,
purporting to be signed by the states at =
torney, and the petition pretending to be
signed by a lot of prominent people of Ken
lucky. Supeli ten lent of o ice Smith
received q letter from DR.. Morrow inclos-
ing a copy Of the note sent to him.
He turned the case over to Chief Murphy,
who wrote to DR.. Morrow for the riginal.
A day or two latsr friend of Miss Davis
came from New York with note to Gen.
Gordon. The general knew the address of
Mrs. Davis and her daughter in New York,
and knew that they would not need TO
write to him for money, 50 he sent them the
letter to pat them on their guard.
THE LETTER TO DIR. MORROW.
The letter to Dr. Morrow read:
JERsEv CrTv Oct 10 1901
SIR-Conformably with the request Of my
dear mother, ask of you favor in her behalf
that you accept her note for 81 900, payable in
ninety days, You may send draft or check
Convenience. Mother assures you that
she will certainly be able to care for
the note at maturity, aud will heartily
appreciate your kindness We are having, as
you are doubtless aware, trouble with the pub
fishers of my honored fathers book. and mother
has been ooliged to bring suit to obtain her per-
centage Of the sales, as the firm was inclined to
defer payment beyond the time specified in the
contract. We hope soon to have matters prop
erly adjusted so that we may return to Beau
volr and not again b summoned north. In or
der to escape the confusion and publicity of
hotel life in New Yora we engaged quiet qua ters
In a suburb Of this city, where we are stop
ping somewhat incog. Mother is badly worn
from travel, labor and worry, and is quite
anxious to return home. She has been TO 80
much expense recently that her ready money is
reduced to the minimum point, and she is com
PEELED to effect loan for a short time. She
Will soon be in receipt of a comfortable income,
as the book is an assured success, and will rank
among the greatest works of modern times.
She certainly merits the reward, for she has
t0Ied aSSiduouS!y to complete my lamented
fathers unfinished work. She begs me to
assure you that she will be happy to welcome
you uat BeauvOir whenever it may please you to
call We will extend all the hospitality in our
power. Awaiting your gracious response, be-
heye me, sir, very truly, respectfully,
WINNIE DAVIS
No. 81 Ash street, Lafayette, Jersey City, n. j
Dr. Witliam Mo7ro,o. Ndshville, Tenn.
WHY sToDDARD is SUSPECTED.
"Tbe reasons for connecting Stoddard
with the case are several and cumula i've"
said Chief Murphy in an interview this
morning. "ln the first place the language
is Stoddard's he often began his letters
with that word 'coDformably,' and he
usually closed with something about a
gracious reply. Then again, whoever
wrote the letters must have known DR..
Morrow, who is a convict labor contractor
IN Tennessee, and who would know all
about that lotter better than Stoddard9 2
Besides that, when l detailed Detect
I've Clos to watch the postoffice
Ior any lady asking for letters for Miss
Winnie Davis, and found that nobody went
lor them, l was sure that a timId accom-
plce had been frightened away. had sent
dummy letter to her at No. 81 Ash street.
and nobody there knew anything about such
aperson. Ii the writer had been free to 90
Eol the poStotiice that would have been a
uliferent thing, but when man is in jail
He cannot easily go to the postoffice. There
Sno proof that Stoddard wrote the letters,
winch appear to be in a genuinely feminine
ana thoroughly formedhand writing. They
are written on small ruled note paper Of
rather ordinary quality, and begin on the
lelt hand page instead Of the more common
rlght haod page. The chlrography is not
az all that of refined person, but belongs
WIN the language Of the notes. 1t does not
at all resemble that of Miss Davis" No. 81
M AS9 street is big tenoment house and even
Is inmates would not dignity it by the
uame OF quiet and convenient quarters.