Pike County press. (Milford, Pa.) 1895-1925, 1896-04-03
BEAT THE BELMONTs
THEY cAsHEp MENDozAs sPuRioU,
SIGHT DRAFT.


One Of the Most Audaeious swindiinE Op
erations That Has Occurred In Nev
York In Years-He was Employed n
an Undersecrstary.
NEW YORK, April IA suave, middh
aged foreigner, protesting complete iRno
rance Of the English language and describ
ing himself modestly as a tourist, arrivet
here from Cuba on March II He travel
cd alone, carried no baggage except al
eminentiy respectable looking satchel anC
registered at the Hotel America In Irwin.
place as Manuel Gonzalez Mendoza o.
Havana.
Although stranger in strange land
Mendoza Instantly made himself very
much at home On the afternoon of his
arrival he employed Mr.. Gentini, profes
sionsl interpreter, as secretary and scom
panion.
That night Mendoza and his secretary
occupied a box In a variety theater an6
the latter noticed with surprise that his
employer apparently enjoyed every joke
cracked by the English speaking come
dians az II they spoke his mother tongue.
Observing Mr.. Gentini's wonder, Mr.
Mendoza smiled inscrutably and re
marked:
81 laugh at everything. It's harmless
habit Of mine"
Later In the evening the light hearted
Mendoza emptied two quart bottles Of
champagne and sampled great variety o.
American mixed drinks. He was finally
taken from under a table in the Hote
America cafe and carried still laughing,
to his room.
Early the next morning Mendoza reap
peared as fresh as a daisy. Accompanied
by the faithful Gentini, he entered a coupt
and was driven to the offices of August
Belmont & Co., 90 Nassau street. There
the stranger, with true Castilian grace,
presented sight draft drawn on tht
bankers bearing the ostensible signature
Of Hidalgo & Co. Of Havana. 1t was for q
large amount probably in the neighbor
hood of s25, 600.
Presented at RelmOnts.
OF what followed Mr.. Gentini alone OF
the interested parties will talk.
According to the interpreter, the pres.
entation of the draft was met with de-
mand for Identification by Belmont & Co. =
chief clerk.
Mendoza was unruffled at this and ex-
planned that, anticipating the difficulty,
Hidalgo & Co. had written letter inclos-
ing his (Mendoza's) signature, and asking
that the matter Of personal Identification
be waived.
81 am surprised, " murmured the plaus.
ible Mendoza, THAT the letter is not al
ready here. 1t should have arrived by the
steamer on which ! came"
As If in providential vindication Of his
truthfulness, while this conversation was
still in progress the talked Of letter ap-
peared. 1t was precisely as represented by
Mendoza and bore the seemingly genuine
signature of Hidalgo & Co.
Reaching for a pen, the smiling and tri-
upmhant Mendoza swiftly traced his name
on a slip of paper and handed it with q
bow and afiourish to the still doubtful Bel
mont clerk
Observe" he remarked, through the
medium of Mr.. Gentini, "that this writ
ing is an exact reproduction of my sigma.
ture inclosed to you by Hidalgo q Co
Now, kindly oblige me with the money. II
st is probably all right" responded
the hesitating clerk, "but us the amount
is a large one must trouble you to salts
fy me still further"
Blandly protesting perfect willingness
to submit to any form of investigation,
Mendoza and the interpreter accompanied
Belmont & Co.'S representative to lis
Wall street. where the Havana bankers,
Hidalgo & Co., have an agency. Mr. SaldC
is their representative, and to him the
draft bearing stranger was introduced.
Everything Looked Regular.
According to the interpreter the paperi
and signatures were carefully examined
and Mr.. Saldo disslpated the last lingering
doubt of Mendoza's reliability by remark
ing:
Everything looks regular. Iguess it II
all right"
The draft was then oashed and Mendozl
returned to the Hotel America. For tn,
next two days Mendoza celebrated hi
affiuence and the worthy Gentini was KEEP
constantly at work drawing eorks and or
dering fresh glasses.
Then the hilarious stranger departed
ostensibly for tour of the south, taking
the interpreter with him. At Washington
Mendoza suddenly dispensed with Gen
tini's services.
: According to Chief Clerk Lewis of tn,
Hotel America, nothing more was heart
of the mysterious stranger until tw'
weeks ago, when two detectives question
cd every one In the hotel about Mendoza
appearance and movements and finall,
explained to the management that th
draft collected from Belmont g. Co. was
forgery.
Nothing has been heard of the presen
whereabouts of Mendoza. August Bel
mont refused to say anything about tn
matter and showed intense annoyance a
being questioned in regard to Mr.. Men
doza.
At Hidalgo & Co.'s agency, 113 Wal
street, Mr.. Saldo was almost equal,
reticent. "This is Mr.. Belmont's busi
ness" he explained. st would be oh
viously wrong for me to speak"
Tried to XIII a waitress.