The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-09-18
WORKING THE SUCKERS
A Con Game Which Caught a
Wise One.
AS WAS TOLD BY CHAPPIE
Picked Out a Mark Who Was ONLY Too
Anxious to Get Fleeced-A
Doubly Crooked
Deal.

|
The police have heard nothing more
concerning the alleged crooked grain
| brokerage firm, a tip on which was
| given in an anonymous letter written
| in Helena a few days ago and ad-
dressed to the chief of police of Butte.
| The writer evidently knows a thing 5r
| two about how crooked shops are run,
and it is possible that he has been VIC
| timized. The police would take more
| stock in his tip if he would thought
| fully sign his name to a communica-
| ton.
| While on the subject of crooked wire
work, the following story told by
New York Telegraph man comes in
| handy:
You see,'' said Chappie to the re-
| porter, 1.-The way we work it is like
| this: We get in with a man who we
know has plenty of money, and we fig
ure it out beforehand Just how much
he will give up. We hire a room in q
| good office building, set up desk or
| two, table with two telegraph instru-
ments, several pens and pad of West
ern Union telegraph blanks, some wire
run from the wall to the table, put one
Of our own fellows in charge, and thai
| part is ready.
| I'VE took a furnished office in the
Monon building this summer, put in our
| stuff and Jean Celeste was left IN
charge. He plays the part of the West
| ern Union operator.
The office was partitioned off at one
| END, intended for use as private Of
flee. We kept this locked. and when
| our man was brought up to discuss
| business, or at the critical moment
| when he had to produce the money to
bet on the horse we gave him, We had
| the 'Swede,' one of our crowd, in the
private part, and he kindly wired all
| the stable information" through the
wall, distance of about six feet, to
| the operator.
| Having everything ready as far as
| that part was concerned and our man
! spotted Tom and l were the ones who
had to get him, tell him the story and
| get his money"
| I'VE were the stars you know" in
| terrupted Baker Tom"
I'm telling this returned Chappie
with dignity, and he continued: I'VE
| had him picked out. A man named W.
| j. Thompson, who had a wholesale gro
| Gerry store out on Halstead street We
! knew Kit Chinn, the starter, and he
happened to be in Hawkins & John
| sons place on Clark street this day. We
| had some drinks, and as our man ap-
peared to be ready to leave / asked
| him to break bottle of wine. We all
| got to talking, and the presence of
| Chinn, who apparently thought we
| were not doing business just at that
| time, helped 1t along, and when l gave
| him the hurry up talk after Chinn had
| quit the game he rather liked the idea
II told him 1 knew l was drunk, but
| that l hoped he wouldn't mind. I had
bought several bottles then, and
| wouldn't let him pay for any of them
and while l wasn't really drunk he was.
| and assured me that he would look out
| for me. Then l introduced Tom as
| Wyoming cattleman, and they got to
| be good friends over another bottle.
| Finally in burst of confidence, told
| him l was in deal to make a lot of
| money, and he could cut in if he want
| ed. He declared he would like nothing
| better. He asked us to dinner at his
| house out on the North Side and waxed
very friendly with us both.
He would easily have fallen for sew
| eral hundred In any gambling game
| we could propose, but we were looking
| higher than that. Finally we all went
| to dinner at Rector's, where l played
| good fellow and got our mark sobered
| up, while Tom insisted on settling the
| bill. By this time he regarded US as
! old and tried friends, and we be-
| but little of what we had told him in
| the saloon, and when / asked him If he
could get his money to the office by
| noon next day, he said: Why, what
money? For the race l said. BY
| George he said, I make the funniest
statements when I'm full Tell me
| about it, So we did. Tom told him in
straightforward, quiet, but impress
sive way, the scheme we had. How we
had tapped the Western Union wires
from the st. Louis fair grounds to
three big Polk and Dearborn street
poolrooms and had the connections all
made by the aid of a confederate who
was in the employ of the Western
Union. Told him of several wads CT
money We had made, then outlined our
plan. We had selected this certain
poolroom as the scene of action. Ten
blocks away, in our office in the Monon
building, we had connected the wires
Whlch ran into our office with those
that telegraphed the results of the st.
Louis races to the poolrooms. We
could tap or cut the wires and receive
the results on our wires. No matter
what the winner of the race, we could
hold the wires Is or 20 minutes only
wiring by means of our operator and
connecting FOR moment their wires
with ours, that the horses were de-
layed at the post by some horse which
was a bad actor We would get the
results, send our men to these pool
rooms with twenty-five hundred dol
lars and bet the money at whatever
post odds we could get. When they let
us know that the money was on, we
wired the poolroom opera tors from our
office the results, supposedly coming
straight from the track there, Well.
of course, our money would be on the
winner, we would have our commits
soners first in line, cash the tickets and
get out.
THAT is our regular game which we
work all over the country.
THE mark went home, asking to be
allowed to call at our office next day.
He came all right, just like the honor
able business man who will try to buy
green goods to bunco his friends with,
and we showed him our plan.