The Dakota chief. (Gann Valley, Buffalo County, S.D.) 18??-1913, 1894-12-06
A HUGE SWINDLE.
DISCLOSURES FOLLOW A YANk.
TON FAILURE.
Foreigners and Fasteners Swindled by
Bogus Securities Spurious School Bonds
Tax Certificates and Other Securities
Floated In London and New York by j.
X. W.. Pierce.
Nearly St.OOo.OOO involved.

The biggest financial sensation IN
South DakOta's history has Just cone
TO light in the collapse OF the LAND
and loan firm Of Pierce, Wright x Co.
ut Iankton. The failure of the firm
was brought about by the discovery OF
forgeries perpetratcd in issuing school
bonds, tax sale certificates inc other
securities through the London branch
of the house. Tue frauds thus perpe-
trated will probably aggregate el,O00,-
OC0. The firm Of Pierce, Wright
Go. is composed wholly of j. L. NJ.
Pierce, Mr.. Wright having with
drawn from it some years ago. The
''iirm' hus had offices at London.
Eng. Spokane, and at Ilolyoko, Colo,
and has done business i'll all those
places. The principle Office OF issue
has been at Yankton. which has also
been Mr.. Pierce's place OF residence.
The London office was the place where
his various issue of fraudulent papers
were negotiated and turned into cash.
Mr.. Pierce has dealt largely in school
district bonds and tax certificates.
These have been generally Of i licti-
tious character, being manufactured
by the wholesale and forged or iic-
titiOus signatures attached, together
with seals, Notifications, etc. He
seems to have found a ready market
for his bogus paper, probably through
the good standing OF his London
house. Who is responsible for the
various acts of forgery is only Il mat
ter OF conjecture. Perhaps Mr.. Pierce
did some of it or did none of it. That
1t was done there rests the evidence of
the fraudulent paper. In his school
bond issues he has covered the South
Dakota counties of Yankton, Bon
HOmme. Hutchinson, Turner, Clay
and Union, SO far as Is known. The
business has been going on many
years.
a sample OF the FOrCeries.
The last school bond to come to light
is dated December l, 1893. 1t pur-
purted to be the bond of independent
school district No. > of Bon Hommc
County. 1t was for the sum of $25. 0J0,
payable to }. L. Crennan, who died
several years before it was issued. w.
II. Brown Of Yankton is the alleged
notary. who atte~ted the document.
An opinion as to its legality is at
tached signed Gamble Bros per III.
S. Gamble" The firm of Gamble
Bros. was not in existence at that
time and II. $. Gamble was never u
member of the firm. The signatures
are forged. This paper was sold to
English parties and has recently been
made the subject of investigation by
L. Maliinson of Texas, an Englishman.
This is given as Il sample of his work.
The aggregate amount of fraudulent
school bonds and tax certificates is not
known, but i, very large, and there
are in addition numerous fraudulent
mortgages, which have been palmed
of upon unsuspccting Englishmer.
Fioa,cd Nearly ii Miiiion.
1t is the opinion of u gentleman in a
position to know something about the
business that Pierce has iloated from
$500, 600 to $1,000. coo worth of this
manufactured paper. He has built
extensively in Yankton, some of the
most substantial improvements in the
city being the result of his invest
ments He has lived extensively. too,
maintaining an establishment there
and one in London. He has put $l15,-
600 into the grade and right of way of
the Yankton and Norfolk Railroad.
though there is Il belief that the mon
ey for the railroad work was not a
portion of his income from the school
bond tax certificate factory. This
mount of money has probably not
been ont into the grade, though there
is good authority for the statement
thai the sum named was subscribed
and paid by itnglishmen for invest
ment in the railroad. Pierce left
England October 5 for America, and
it is supposed he is now in Mexico.
He is married to a Yankton oman
whom he left in London. Rich de-
v~elopmcnts are expected in a few
0oVS