Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-01-10
JANSEN IS MISSING
And With Him Have Gone $500 of
the Swltchmen Unions Money.
NEARLY FORFEITED THE CHARTER.
Sweeney Arrives in Time to Save the Life
Of a Gilt Edged Lodge.
GOSSIP OF THE INDUSTRIAL WORLD

I. Jansen, Financial Secretary of the Gilt
Edge Lodge, of the United Railroad Switch
men of America, is mysteriously missing.
In consequence of his absence the charter of
the Gilt Edge Lodge has been forfeited, and
Grand Master Workman Sweeney, of Chi
cago, is expected to arrive here on Monday
to redeem the lodges charter, and to place
the lodge where it formerly belonged in the
Brotherhood.
The Gilt Edge Lodge is composed of
Pennsylvania Railroad switchmen. Jansen
is married, and has a wife and one child liv-
ing on Penn avenue, near Forty-seventh
street. Three weeks ago he took about $500
belonging to his lodge, and notified his wife
that he was going into the city to pay the
money into the grand treasury of the lodge.
The money was not turned over to the
Grand Lodge, and the Financial Secretary
has not been seen since. That amount of
money was due from the Gilt Edge to the
Grand Lodge, and in consequence
of his failure to turn it over
the charter of the Gilt Edge
was declared forfeited The officers
of the local lodge were notified that their
charter had been forfeited, and further In
vestigation developed the absence of Jansen.
Grand Master Workman Sweeney was
notified at once. Yesterday he wrote officers
of the Gilt Edge Lodge that he would be in
Pittsburg early next week, probably on
Monday, to reinstate the lodge and aid in
investigating the accounts of the missing
Financial Secretary.
Jansen and the Money Are Missing.
Jansen's absence was not generally known
to the switchmen until yesterday. When
they learned that their money had gone
with the Financial Secretary they were
highly indignant, and some of them insisted
that the police should be notified. The Of
ficers of the lodge prevailed on the enraged
switchmen to remain silent on the subject,
promising that every switchmen's lodge in
America would be notified of the missing
man, and that he would be overtaken in the
regular way much quicker than by notify
ing the police.
Jansen is young man of good presence.
He stood high in his lodge and enjoyed the
confidence of all who knew him. He had
no bad habits, and those who know him best
refuse to believe that he went off with the
money, but rather incline to believe that he
will turn up all right before long. Some of
his associates are fearful that he met with
foul play and that his dead body was con-
cealed to protect the criminals. 1t is said
that many of his associates knew he in
tended making the payment to the Grand
Lodge on the day he disappeared.
The young mans wife has been almost
prostrated with grief She has been i'm
patiently watching fer his return ever since
he left home, and she refuses to hear any
thing of his having gone off with the money.
She says he will yet turn up all right, but
she has no information of his whereabouts.
She was too much distressed yesterday to
talk of her husband, but she said he would
not leave her for any amount of money.
His Absence Discovered.
Jansen's absence was made public on Fri
day in rather peculiar way. A member of |
the Columbus, O., Lodge of Switchmen |
came to Pittsburg last week to secure |
artificial limbs. He had been in !
railroad accident nearly a year ago |
and had both his legs taken off below |
the knees. On Friday he was wheeled ON
an invalid chair to the lodgeroom of the |
switcbmen, but found it closed He want
ed some services rendered him, and was
taken to the officers of the lodge They
were unable to assist him officially, and no.
titled him of their financial distress and Of
the mysterious absence of their financial
A member of the Gilt Edge Lodge said
Yesterday: No one seems to know anything
about Jansen. His absence was not discov-
cred until our charter was forfeited. That
two weeks ago. Since then, and
through no fault of ours, we have been
without lodge protection. Had any of us
been hurt we could not have secured the
weekly benefits allowed by our lodges, and
had any difficulty taken place between the
iwitchmen aud the railroad we would have
been known as scabs. The whole matter
will be settled early next week. The fnan-
,ial less we sustained will be borne by the
Grand Lodge, and wewill start offnext week