The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-11-22
The Doings Of a Pious Fraud
Under Cover of the Rabbits
Cloth.
LEES IMPORTANT CAPTURE
Railroad Men All Over the Country
Victimized by the Rev. Rabbi"
SchWeitZ.

Rev. "Ph" Schweitz-for that is MS real
name, although ne has numerous aliases
was brought from Sacramento by Captain
| Lees and Detective Cody yesterday. They
also brought his trunk along with him.
| The police have procured evidence TO
show that Schweitz is one of the cleverest
confidence operators that ever visited the
Pacific Coast According to this evidence
he not only won the confidence of Rabbi
Voorsanger but also pulled the wool over
the eyes of such keen men as William
Bedell, general agent of the Pennsylvania
Railroad, and Greenewald Brothers, the
ticket agents on Market street.
Last Sunday he took an order which he
received from the Southern Pacific COM
pany for a half-rate ticket to New York to
Mr.. Bedell and asked for the transporta-
! ton, but Bedell declined to issue the ticket.
Schweitz talked SO glibly to him, he says.
that he became interested The preacher
told the ticket agent he was going 20 New
York for a short visit and on his return
was to deliver lecture in one OF the syna-
gogues. He displayed a check for SIS and
blandly asked Bedell to cash it for him as
he was in need OF ready money. Bedell
did so and Schweitz cordially shook hands
livered his lecture he would furnish him
with a free seat in front pew of the syna-
agogue. Bedell will swear out warrant
against him this morning as he feels sore
at being 'ioshed' by other railroad men
for being such an easy victim.
On the same day Greenewald Bros. were
! asked by Schweitz to buy the order from
the Southern Pacific, but they declined the
| purchase. He got them so worked up by
his engaging flow of conversation, how
/ ever, that when he presented his check for
$40 with the suggestion that they would
greatly oblige him by cashing it they were
only too happy to do so.
Mr. Bedell and w. Ross of the Southern
Pacific called at police headquarters yes
that Schweitz had beaten" every railroad
in the East during this year by obtaiAing
from them orders for half-rate transporta-
ton. and then selling the orders to
! scalpers.
In Chicago he was known to the railroad
people as the Rev. Isaiah Agat, Hebrew
clergyman connected with the Moses
! Clay Gray. Congregational minister; Rev.
John McPhail, EVANGELIST NJ. E. Church !;
Rev. George I. McClelland, Presbyterian
minister, formerly of Prescott, Kans. !;
Rev. D. ii. Schweitz and Rev. PHI.
! Schweitz, Jewish rabbi. In Upton, Mo-,
he was known as Rev. W. S. Rae or Rev.
w. S. Wray, Presbyterian or Episcopa-
Brooks of the Church of God; in Council
Bluffs, Iowa, as Rev. George Muller of the
Peoples church; in st. Louis, Mo-, In
! dianapolis, Ind, and Minneapolis, Mimi,
as Rev. D. II. Schweitz. In all these
places he obtained orders for half-rate
tickets as a cIergymen and sold them to
| ticket scalpers.
Charles e. Sawyer. 636 Waller street,
| where Schweitz lived for The short time he
was in the City, and George E. Mcguire, a
I friend, also called at police headquarters
to see the clerical impostor.
! "Mr. Sawyer and his family and myself"
! said MIR. Mcguire. 'became acquainted
with Schweitz while on the train on our
| way from st. Paul to this City last month.
On the second day from st. Paul he got
| talking to me, and as he said he was a
| Clergyman and was going to San Francisco
/ introduced him to MIR. Sawyer and fam
! lily, and he became one of us.
''When we got to Portland / introduced
him to friend of mine, c. E. Holmes, of
the Windsor Pharmacy. He bought few
| trinkets from Holmes store anG got him
to cash worthless check for $2S 60. / was
not aware of that transaction till we
reached this City, and when | spoke to
| Schweitz aboutit he telegraphed to Holmes
| that he would be in Portland last Wednes-
| day night, but instead OF that he lett Mon
| day morning for New York.
when we reached here he expressed q
desire to stay with us, and being nice
sort of fellow we took him in. Mr.. Saw
yer introduced him to his brother. L. E.
Sawyer, $50 Scott street. and he stole a
pair of valuable opera-glasses from him.
| The opera-gasses were found in Schweitz' S
funk when opened at police headquarters.
Captain Lees said that as soon as he saw
the article in Tuesdays CALL about
Schweitz's operations among the grocers
on Haight and adjoining streets, and the
account OF his flight, he thought he might
1 find him in Sacramento. He was not long
in hunting him up. Schweitz had, in the
short time he had been in Sacramento,
won the confidence of Rabbi Simon, and
was working him in the same way he
worked Rabbi Voorsanger here.
Schweitz was booked at the City Prison
on two charges OF forgery, the complain
ing witnesses being John Tiedemann,
grocer. Haight and Fillmore streets, and
John Blohm, grocer, 600 Haight street.
Other charges will be booked against him
| to-day.
The reverend impostor claims that he is
rabbi and that he is the victim of circum-
stances. Captain Lees will make inquiry
in the East about him and expects to get