The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-10-14
BIG SWINDLING SCHEME
FAKE DIRECTORY MAKERS HEAD
QUARTERS RAIDED BIZ POLICE.
A Simple Little Voucher Finolly
Turns Out to Be an Order for
Directory Advertising.

iilC SOdiNI LSddA0di rs Al NiAAH NASys
have at last come to grief. Last week
Thomas Wills and Frank Rose, alias Eu-
gene Sullivan, were arrested in st. Paul,
and NJ. Roy Daniels was arrested in Cleve-
land. All were charged with obtaining
money on false pretenses. The first two
are owners, with Hamilton B. Wills. of the
Rose Publishing Company, of this city.
Daniels was simply an employee and may
be an innocent victim of his employers.
Rose and Wills were released the day aft
er they were arrested on habeas corpus
proceedings, but the State would not have
it that way and caused their arrest i'm
mediately on another charge and they are
now held in Jail.
The Rose Publishing Company has an Of
flee at 371a East Washington street and
its business is scattered all over the United
States. This whole business, 1t is claimed,
is a gigantic swindling operation, for which
the victim receives absolutely nothing in
return. The plans of such concerns have
been exposed a number Of times before,
but the most recent one of the company
has not been aired in the press. An agent
will call on the business men of a city and
solicit small advertisements for a so-called
of some kind. The names are
among them are "Manufactur-
SAo GAho " iio0A1 AlAIOL lCltG
Directory Company UNITED States Trade
Guide" and Manufacturers and Mer-
Almanac"
These directories have never been pub
lished. A few books are gotten up to show
as samples and the agent tells about an
edition of twenty thousand that is soon to
be printed and which will be placed in
the leading business houses of the country.
He often secures a small order for the in
sertion of d name in black-faced type or
as a heading to a column. He then makes
out a receipt Cor the money paid, usually
81, which receipt has a large stub attached.
The stubb is then filled out and presented
to the customer with the plausible excuse
that the agents accounts are closely aud
tied and he must send to the office a
signed statement of all money he collects.
This is for the protection of the customer,
so the agents say. This large stub as filled
out is as follows:
No. 1866.
COMPILER'S TRACER.
TO PUBLISHERS:
This is to certify that we have paid
the sum of 81 for the insertion of our name
and address in your book under ...... trade
headings.
THE BOOK IS NOT INCLUDED.
size or
Name OF
Bought
All of this is printed except the words
"have paid and the amount that is paid.
This stub is then sent to the office and
in a short time it appears like this:
CONTRACT FOR ADVERTISING.
TO THE PUBLISHERS:
This is to certify that we agree to pay
the sum of So for the insertion of our name
and address in your book under $50. trade
headings.
THE BOOK is NOT INCLUDED.
Name or
ADDRESS
No credit allowed on the contract in
advance of publication.
Names of heading appear on back of
contract.
CHANGED WITH CHEMICALS.
This change is very simple when one has
the necessary things to produce it. In the
first place the top is cut off and it is
no longer a "compiler's tracer" as it pur-
ports to be when signed. Then by means
of a little holder. which was found in the
office yesterday the paper is held perfectly
smooth and tight so it cannot become
wrinkled while the chemicals are applied
which remove the written words ''have
paid" and the amount paid. The printing
press is then brought into use and the new
heading-"Contract for Advertising"-is
printed at the top. The words agree to
pay" are printed where the words have
paid formerly were and in the same type
as the rest of the line, and the two SEN
fences added at the bottom of the CON
tract" are printed on it. This completes
the meta n,nrphnSic and tia orioi1oI 6soo-a
pliers tracer becomes a contract for ad-
vertising."
Several books of receipts with these
stubs were found in the office, the receipts
being for different publications, but the
stubs were of one kind. The United
States Mercantile Register" and National
Commercial Register" were two of them.
The receipt shows the former to be located
at Room 76 Mitchell building, Cincinnati,
and the latter in 8 West Fourth street,
Cincinnati, old No. SO West Fourth street.
Both addresses are fictitious. it is claimed.
Among other things found in the waste
basket in the office was a proofsheet that
to change the so-called 'compiler's tracer
into the contract for advertising" It
contained an imprint of the types set up
and properly spaced out TO make them
print in the blank places in the tracer.
which had to be filled in to convert it into
a contract. This, together with a large
AAlD y LllC & ElCEIS, I'LL TEAuV
to send out for collection, seems to estab-
lish the fact that the changes have been
made on numerous stubs. Some of the
stubs that were changed showed that the
inserted words had been printed at a diff
ferent time from the body of the stub, by
the fact that the lines did not run straight
and by the difference in the amount of ink
used.
The other effects Of the office showed
some things that are damaging to the pro-
mOters of the company. In an envelope in
the private desk of Hamilton 3. Wills was
found an inventory of the assets of the
concern. 1t is headed 'Sigs. (Which is sup
posed 10 mean s~ignatures) on hand Jan.
l, 1894" Then follows the list: Sandusky
Is; Syracuse, IA; Buffalo. S5: Washington.
1e; Louisville. %; Pittsburg, IL; st. Louis.
8; Indianapolis, rs; New Haven, 8; Column
bus, %: Troy, 4; Toledo, IS; Albany, 6;
Dayton, AZ; Cleveland, 166: Springfield, 4;
Detroit, %; Hamilton, s; Chicago, 9; Balti-
more, g; Bridgeport, /; Kansas City, s.;
Minneapolis, II; ST. Paul, 4; Des Moines, 20;
total, GAS. The invoice then states that
there are six good books on hand. These
agents carry. At the bottom of the sheet
is the statement that on April l, 1894, the
invoice showed 1852 '.foils' on hand.
Whether 'foiis'' means signatures to the
''compiler's tracers" is not known, but it is
thought that 'foils" and ''sigs' mean the
same.
There were also many books which
day had a page showing collections. remit
tances and expenses. The books showed
that agents collected all the way from SIC
TO 500 a day and RENTED the largest part
of il. Each page was Endorsed thus: III.
B. w, s." Rose, s. IT. B. Wills.