The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1894-06-20
Big FURST FAKE.
Two Wicked Reporters
Queer Attempt to Adver-
tise the Alleged Sill
YER Statue.
CONCOCTING A BURGLARY YARN
Chief Murphy Squelched the
Scheme for Which Some One Was
to Pay 500, it is Said.

that Charles Blanket Furst had an exhi-
bition at mis- store last week in addition to
the regular display of curiosities. He had
the famous silver statue of Ada Rehan,
which was exhibited and admired by thou
sands at the Chicago Fair and at various
New York stores the past year or SO. He
advertised the fact hat the statue would be
exhibited, free of charge, at his store, in the
Journal.
There was a lack of interest in the statue
that worried him. His dream of having
half of Jersey City's residents crowd into the
place and make purchases before inspe citing
the big pile of silver and gold, faded away
after the first nights exhibition. He was
about the only visitor at Ada's shrine him
self, and it is said on good authority that he
made many unpleasant and unkind refer
ences to the lady in silver. He looked for
hairs on his head to pull, but finally con-
tented himself by kicking the braid of his
trousers. He had spent a big pile of green
backs to get Ada's lovely form into his store
and to his CONSERVATION he found that he
was deriving no financial benefit.
just about this time a queer coincidence
took place. Queer condolences seem to fol
low Mr.. Furst through life.
In this case the coincidence was that, just
at the time when the apathy Of the public
was greatest, a couple of reporters invenued
q gorgeous fake. They concocted an elegant
fiction regarding an attempt to steal the
statue from Mr.. Furst's store. Of course,
nobody who knows Mr.. Furst will suspect
that he was in cahootS with them to work up
a fake sensation for advertising purposes.
Oh, mol Perish the thought. Mr.. Furst's
high and noble character is too we'll known.
But hat is another story, as Mr.. Kipling SO
often remarks.
H GRAND AXE.
On the evening of Friday last the wicked
reporters in question-two gentlemen who
have been connected with every paper in this
section of the country, but who now have
no regular occupation, owing. no doubt, to
lack of appreciation of their genius-pre-
pared to send over to several New York
papers a glowing and sensational account OF
the attempted theft of the statue. 1t had
been so fixed, as the two entarprizing gentle
men believed, that due confederation of the
facts as written by them would be forth
coming at the right time.
This was the daring and outrageous at
tempt at robbery as 1t existed in their
minds
The Waterman in Mr.. Fursts store was to
be discovered by the police, bound and
gagged. He was then to tell of the at
tempted robbery, give a description of three
men with whom he had struggled, and de-
clare finally that they had dashed out of the
rear door of the store and up Railroad ave-
nue., when an alarm was given.
There is some foolish talk around to the
effect that the two wicked reporters were
to nave received 800 from somebody if this
remarkable advertising narrative appeared
in all the New York and Jersey City papers,
over and above the space rates. But this
cannot be true. Who was to pay the money?
Surely not Mr.. Furst.
But the beautiful scheme failed to work.
One Of the wicked reporters talked too much.
He confided the whole scheme to a reputable
newspaper man, and the latter Immediately
informed Chief Murphy of the despicable
trick.
CHIEF URP STOPPED IT.
Chief Murphy was mad and declared that
he would not allow Furst or anyone else to
get cheap advertising at the expense of the
Police Department. Accordingly, from ten
to one o'clock Friday night, when the great
scheme was to go through, uniformed
policemen were stationed at Fursts doors,
and the cheap advertising dodge was knocked
on the head.
Since that time everyone connected with
the petty villainy has been in fear and
trembling lest the details should become
public and the conspirators become the
laughing stock of the town.
The NEWS has been in possession of these
facts since the occurrence, but knowing Mr..
Furst would rather have his store burned
down again than gain any advertising in
such a mean way, it has, out of Difference to
his feelings, withheld the facts until after
the statue had been removed from Jersey
City.
AMUSING
Among the amusing details which are told
of the. plot is one to the effect that the
wicked reporters were very anxious to haYe
one of the doors of Mr.. Furst's store splin-
tered, but that somebody who was in the
+ deal-the man, it Isl said, who was putting
Pup the S100-objected on account of the ex-
,o.,c of ral0airinp tin door which If is said
would have amounted to $25. The details of
the plan were finally arranged thus:-
A trusted man was to watch outside tho
store until midnight. The policeman on that
post is relieved at hat time. The relieving
point is at Newark avenue and Grove street.
While the officer who had patrolled the post
up to midnight was on the corner waiting to
be relieved, the special Waterman was ito
enter the store by the Railroad avenue en-
trance, bind and gag the inside Waterman,
trip the burglar alarm, which is connected
with the American District Burglar Ser
vice and skip. A specially engaged messen-
ger boy was to leave the telegraph office
on Montgomery street, rush breathlessly UP
to the policeman on Newark avenue, and no
tify him that Furst's burglar alarm had
rung. The policeman, it was calculated,
would then a an investigation, ind the
back door open and the Waterman bound
and gagged. Then was to follow the watch
mans story of his struggle with three
desperate men. The policeman, as iu duty
bound, would notify Headquarters, and a
general alarm would be sent out for the
burglars.
FAKES ALL READY.
The newspaper stories of the affair were
all prepared: and would have been semitic all
of the New York morning papers had not
one of the wicked reporters eontided in the
United Press representative that there was
a big story on hand. The object in letting
the United Press man in on the 'big story"
waste nave him send brief dispatches to
New York, which, without his knowledge,
would ~corroborate the glowing flake" stories
sent previously by the two 'fakirs."-
The news of the fake spread rapidly
among the regular reporters, and they
sought Chief Murphy's assistance. The
scheme was killed in short order by the post
ing of uniformed men at every entrance to
Furst's store. l&4 *
The reporters who were in the deal have
been discarded by their acquaintance aud
from what can be learned from reputable
merchants who nave learned of it, all con-
cerned in the fake will also be given the cold
shoulder.
There has been q good deal Of guying COM