The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1898-03-25
FOURTEEN CHARGES.
Claim q to BE Sick but Author ties Think
He Is Shamming.

ne Is Snamminxs
The pension fraud operations in this
city, which seem destined to 10 among
the largest in the history OF the pension
bureau, and upon which pension exam
liners have teen 1T work for some tine
and are 1t II st work. are gradually being
brought to light. The matter was first
brought to the attention Of the depart
meut last summer In the case of william
A. Munson of East Providence. who did
large business here a. pension agent.
1t Is said that psnsloDer for whom lie
had teen agent died. and his daughter
applied to him for the money which is
allowed by law for burial expenses, etc.
lnstsnd Of getting this for her. as he
| promised to DO. he keeps putting her on
anu drawing the mans pension frau tu-
lently every three months. One OF the
| girls frisnds wrote to the Boston agency
asking why the money was not ssnt and
on looking on the looks there 1t WAS
found that there was no record Ut the
mans death.
An investigation followed which re-
suited In the arr st Of MunsoD, who was
| charged. "a q notary public having csrt:-
tied to pension certificates, with havin 3
helped another to impsrsonAts . dead
man who had teen . punsloner, and with
having fraudulently transmitted To the
assistant treasurer Of tbs Unitsd Statfs
forged orders for pension money. He
was admitted to bdil and was soon taken
| sick, and has apparently team unable TO
be brought up for trial ever since. AZ the
time he ives arrested, Draper, who was
arrested two days aQo and committed TO
jail in default Of bail. went 20 q man in
this city who had the epportunity 10
bring the matter to public notics and
asked him to keep 1t quiet. as II was o.
he said that Munson was good fellow
and he did not want anything said about
him that would injurs his reputation.
| 1he reason for bis an xious solicitude for
| Munson is now apparent, since he has
been arrested for being implicated 10 tn
same sort Of business. He was trying to
cover his own tracks evidently.
william j. Gerret a clsrs In Phin-
| ney's cigar store. 26S North Main street,
| where Munson hud an office, who was
| arrested Tuesday. was charged with hav-
| Ing assisted Munson In his fraudulent
| business. The warrant on which Mum
son was nrkt arrested hnd eleven counts
and bis tail was placed at $4,000. since
bis sickness he hss heen several times ex-
nmiosd by phy ian at the request OF
| United States Marshal AcCate. AMI they
| reportsd him unable TO be moved. 1t bas
reen said that after the doctors left his
| house MuDson wUuldsget up from his bed
and 40 about the house Whaling and
| apparently feeling in good spirits, AS he
| Is a man about 60 years ol,, this did not
| s. EN- very consistent to the marshal, who
| was inclined to believe that the man was
biu:fing In order TO escape trial. hunson
| recently transferred . large amount OF life
! insurance into a woman's name, ana
| when this was known il wns thought
tl.t b.. nor tom, \. lar 4 m %
suicide as the best n cans OF escape.
The insurance company sent man on
| to watch him. In the n etntime tire psn-
sion examine had made such thorough
| examination of matters that they had
found fourteen Few cases against Nun
son. On the Strength OF this warrant.
containing the fourteen counts, was
sworn out against him. But nothing
could be done so long as the doctors for
bade him Tn be moved.
So Yesterday Marshal McCate ssnt DR..
Budlona an DIR. Palmer of this city, with
spsci ial Pension Agent Hanson to ex-
smins him. They reported To tie clark
oil the United States court that he was
suffering from general debility. but would
not say wnsthes they Thought he could DO
moved. TIE result Cf their re ort was
that Marshal McCabe accompanied ty
Uri'sd States Comm issiorer MumforC
went 10 Nuns ms hot 90 yes tr1ay after
n on hnu pinoeu nsin uuuor hicSo Oh VIC
IA rev counts, thus making 20 In all toat
be- 4 now heli for.
Q mmissio ler Mumford then arraigne0
th. man In bed on one of thcss o.unts.
Munson plea ei not guilty ard not peiIR
atie 10 farnish bail VAS left IN charge OF
a keeper. Ta,s, tr ,nsactions for witch
no Is held cover the period OF tue last III
years. TwD other warra Is wee servei
yes erday, both on the sane person, At
bic !. Elnke of East Providence. She was
charged w ith the ssme offence ana was
relsased on 5000 ball. Before Commits
sioner Muirford she ststei that she had
doue nothing with any intent to defraud.
She said taat SIZE hnd taken the checks
th 70 Munson gave her TO tie tank TO be
cashed and that she tai simply written
her name on the iack If them as re-
qDt s,eu to O by the bapk officers. She
Gid net know that the pensioners " era
&c Il. Ctasr warrants duplicating other
persons. 1t is said, have birn sw,rn out,
ard scms of them will bs served very
soon. some OF them will not be. fer
the persons named In them have left
the state ard rotbing Is known OF t'eir
Dc sent whereabouts. Later investige tion
may also result In irore warrants being
sworn out. Ii MunsoD Is found guilty on
ell tre charges no v III receive such = SON
tercs that 1t will probably emount to o
lie sentense for riin. Hk.
When he was first srres ell last .iuns he
claimed taat he was the victim of circum-
stances and gave very cever deieoce.
Hal not tbs examiners found Other cases
in be tourte II their Investigations IL 4
| n, ssibls that he would have bean sbls to
establish his defence ns valid. But 90
many oher instances were found whero ho
had Drawn pen sion money altar the oeata
OF the, person for whon he was netting as
ayent that treGe could be no doubt Of his
Guilt or someb b,uy elss'r, for In orjsr ~
set the money fruu the government
vouchers bavs to o fillsd out, siRnsd by
tfe pc sionsr. vitae sseo by persons, who
swear thu, IN y know Of their own knowl-
edse that the man signlnS 10 the pen
siouer. that taey saw him sian his name,
ard that tfey tre pei sonallv stqu iinted
with him. In every casa where the
moi ey he's lesn ufawn after the death OF
the psnsioner IL has been ecesssry for the
agent OF some accomplIce To forge tho
name Of the man who Is dead. Ire
VI ucrers when completed have to be sub
sor.tei &, before notary public, who
makes the de, aration that the person ep-
netring lefcrs him hos been folly identi.