Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1893-04-21
a NOTED FORGERY
One That Is Without a Parallel In
the History Of Crime.

been serving n long sentence in the
pcnitcntiary for forgery, was arrested
on another charge of the same kind as
he was leaving tho prison Catc the other
dry. after having completed his last
sentence, says Il Topeka (I[an.) corre-
SpoIdcnt of the Ncw York Times. g.
There wcs nothing remarkable in this
except that his arrest rccGll1 = story OF
forgery that is without parallel in the
history of crime, Gr lcGGt III The west
Lewis Ind been IL messenger ii Wash
iaGton, detailed on duty at the war de-
partacnt. 1t v&S While there that he
ccEr-ittCd the first forgery that led to
his imprisonment. lie had been IN
pT!@on less than = year when he pro-
cured through the assistance Of friends
= blanl: pardon, such IS Is used by the
president of the United States. Thi.
he flied out and signed tic names Of
President Grant and the then assistant
secretary Of war. Having completed
this work, nc GlnCGClcd it into tho priS-
on mail, opportunities for which were
plenty. rs lie had been detailed rs clerl;
in the Hardcn's Office. In due time the
friend in Washington to whom il had
been sent tc(cGraphcd the warden that
the pardon had that day been transmit
ted, signing tic name of the presidents
private secretary to the dispatch.
When the expected pardon was re-
ccivcd by Warden sraith the signatures
were compared with others known to
be genuine, net that there was suspi-
cion, but merely IS 4, matter OF prec;.u-
ton, Us had been customary. The par
don was pronounced correct t, and Lewis
nj So -,
ccipt and notified that he w;,s q free
man. Had he been satisfied with his
freedom he would s3cu have been at lib
crty, and detection Of The forgery might
not have occurred fer years.
When the warden Lcld hiEa to prepare
to change lIis clothes fer these Of Il cit
| izrn Lewis asked that lie might haze
the pardon. i'll compliance with - mar
GinGl note il the paper. This request,
showing u l:nCWlCC."G Cf TIC tCIltcntS
Of the document t!lat lid MT been
shown him, excited the ri r.. The
deputy warden, who desired ~ know
THAT he wanted it fer. Il:v answer
wGH rcGt!y: Fer Eurrcat5 6 !. rrliti2a-
ton" l!C wa orCCr, / H::-!: - III cell,
and the warden thea; t>icT-; ,5::cd TO
l'rt...G 1T Grant iEGuiGiI!" !. rhc par
don had been issued on ~ !; - dis. In
less than tour hours the ;G:.G.i: Ir WAS re-
turned ilIi!G IL lad rot beer isGltcd then,
and that il such ~ document had been
r. !ciycd IL wG3 fraudulent.
When confronted with this message
Lewis denied Ill Knowledge Ct the trans
action for ~ time, but tho dark cell aoo1
caused lin to confess. it Was only
then that another anI equally boll
forgery came to light, which Was 4 part
of lis scheme for providing for himself
when frcr.
lie had III some manner secured q
draft on u Virginia bank. payable ut
one of the Lcavcnworth national
banks. The amount On the draft was
one dollar, which he sliillfully raised 20
twenty thousand dollars. This nc sent
to The First national OF Leuvenworth,
with al order that two hundred dollurs
be paid upon the amount and the bal
ancc deposited in a Richmond (Va.}
banl; to his credit. The two hundred
dollars was paid and the deposit mado
| as directed, but it was coon discovered
| that Tie draft had been raised. Lewis
| had mi3Calculatcd only two or three
days in the time he had arranged for
| the pardon to arrive. lie had intended,
as soon as released, TO take the pardon
with him fer purposes of Identification,
| secure the nineteen thousand eight hun
drcd dollars, and theu leave the United
| States.
After the complete exposure Of oil
his schemes he was asked to write the
nnmc os Con. Grant, which he did SO
perfectly tb~t the nest expert could not
distinguish it from the genuine sigma
tNre placed beside it. Lewis claimed
that no could reproduce the signatures
OF most of the public men in Washing
ton of that time from memory.
This last arrest WIS for forgery md
obtaining money under false prctensc,
being. the utterance of the draft for
twenty thousand dollars. lie will pass
the remainder of his days in the Kan
III, &c