The evening tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 189?-190?, 1897-05-04
BOGUS AUTOGRAPHS.
ROBERT SPRINGS SUCCESS IN BOLD
LITERARY FRAUDS.

American t'Striots, and His Forgeriss
Are Treasured by Many . Collector.
How He Was Detected.
One of the most expert of autograph
forgers fiourished In this country and for
time enjoyed success only equaled by
That OF the notorious Vrain Lucas the
frenchman who victimized M. Charles,
the savant to the tune Of 40, 900 francs.
rIhe name OF this rogue was Robert Spring,
md though the actual scene of his rascal
Tiles was not New York, there are many
IN New York's collection that are infected
ny his fabrications, and that, too, In the
department. now held In highest esteem
that OF American history, and especially of
Washingtoniana
! Spring was Londoner born and served
his time as indentured clerk to scrivener
OF that city This person, Furnival by
name, was noted bbliophile, and it was
in his employ that Spring doubtless ac-
quired his knowledge Of old books and his
marvellous facility in using the pen.
1t was In ls45 that Spring came to this
country and opened bric-a- -brac shop in
Baltimore, dealing also in rare books and
autographs In the last line his business
was large and profitable, as he made the
autographs himself, needing no other tools
than the stump Of quill pen, bottle of
brown ink and a few blank leaves taken
from the volumes on his shelves. Encotr-
aged by his success, he overdid the thing,
and Baltimore became undesirable as a
place Of residence. So he removed to Phil
adelphia in the early fifties QS54 it Is sup
posed) and opened another curiosity store
on South street, west of Broad, and for a
har f,f nd
pered.
Collecting autographs was fashion OF
the time, and Spring fabricated them by
the ream, asserting in later years that he
had sold at least 600 Washlngtons, besides
many Clymers, Franklins, Hopkinsons,
Jeffersons, Whipples and others. He was
very partial TO the signatures of the sign
ers, in fact, and supplied them to the trade
ad libitum. He not only had much knowl-
edge of out Of the way Revolutionary his
tory, but also was an excellent narrator,
and Is his conviyial moments most anus
ing companion. His frauds must have
been almost numberless, for he did a large
business, both i'm New York and Canada,
selling TO a lawyer in this city go bogus
letters from Benedict Arnold and his wife
Margaret, while he supplied the erudite
Kanucks with many Franklins and Wash
ingtons.
Suspicion was first aroused against him
when the library of one of the early Amer
lean judges, a connection Of the Washing
ton family, was sold at auction in Phila-
delphia. Many of the books had in them
the autograph of Washington, and these
naturally brought high prices. But it was
thought extremely odd, to say the least,
when in one of the volumes letter of
Springs was found, worded ambiguously
and Offering his services to some one in
terested in the sale, nephew of the judge.
Moreover, o copy of hook printed in 1904
was also graced with Washington's sigma
ture. 1t is difficult to see how Washington
could have written in a book published
after his death, and this posthumous pro-
ceeding provoked much talk, well informed
bookmen being of the opinion that Springs
omnivorous industry In deception had been
employed In giving a fictitious value to
volumes with the autographs However,
this was mere suspicion, and came to
nothing.
! Perhaps, indeed, If Spring had led
regular life he might never have been more
than dimly suspected. But for his drink
ing habits it is question whether he
would have been detected at all. Wary and
reticent when sober, he was just the oppo-
site when drunk, and toward the last of
his life this was his usual condition. While
intoxicated he would make no secret of his
forgeries, but would take up a pen and
show his skill by writing a Penn, ely
mer or a Morris TO friend he declared
that he had sold 10 country clergyman
an autograph of Poniius plate for So, and
he described with much humor the trcm-
bling eagerness with which this modern
DR. Primrose secured his fancied prize.
His actual detection was due to a Dr.
Davis of Philadelphia, TO whom he had
sold a number OF the signatures OF the
signers. BY accident one of them became
wet and faded out 1t was then found
that it had not been written with ink, but
with a brownish pigment which the forger
himself had made. DR.. Davis inquiries
made Spring swindling manifest. Spring
was arrested and taken before Mayor Nc
Michael, who declared that there was no
excuse for such rranks. collectors" " he
proceeded TO say, "had the means Of test
ing the characters of these writings by
comparison with numerous authentic spcci-
mems of the handwriting of the immortal
Washington, to whom we are so indebt-
ed etc. Accordingly, IA Washington au-
tograph was borrowed for the moment
rom the independence hall c0llecCon,
about the genuinencss Of which there could
be, Of course, no doubt. This autograph
was laid side by side with the forged pa
per. Heterogeneous were startling, but
confusion and tribulation followed when
Spring said quietly:
why, gentlemen, that's one Of mine
tooi''
For few seconds there was silence, and
then unmitiRated disgust at themselves
among the collectors assembled I'm court.
Then the mayor told Spring that the dig
nifty Of the law would he vindicated I'm his
case some day, and the forgor left the room
ss soon as possible Deprived by exposure
of his former income, he lived meanly and
miserably, wasting I'm wretched dissipa-
tion the few dollars he made by petty
forgeries. Finally his habits demoralized
him completely, and he became reckless in
His swindling and escaped imprisonment
frequently only on the plea of extreme
poverty. At length he died in the Penn
sylvania hospital Of asthma, aggravated
by intemperance. Though be has been
dead many years, his fabrications still cx-