The Portland daily press., 1899-08-11
The Dentists and Doctors Have Also
Suffered.
How the Game Has
Been Carried On.
The Police Are Looking Up
Clues to the Forgers.

A gang of forgers has been reaping
small harvest at the expense of the drug
gists, dentists and doctors Of the city dur
ing the past few days.
The police have oo9nizance of several
worthless checks which have been uttered
recently, although only two complaints
have teen made and they are hard on the
track of the cuiprits. All of the checks
are for the same amount and the manner
of procedure was the Same In every In
stance.
Ascheck was drawn up and a note writ
ten to the intended victim by the sup
posed bearer OF the check, asking IL the
victim woIld please cash the check. The
check and note are carried by boy.
Tuesday afternoon boy went into w.
W. Fess's drug store with a check pur-
porting to be payable to DIR. Chas. M.
Talbot, the dentist. over George C.Shaw's
store. 5S5 Congress street, and signed ts
W. IL. Wa.dron a. Co, He also had
note asking that Mr.. Foss would please
cash the check. The 10y got the money.
went out and nothing more was thought
OF the matter until tho check was sent
to the bank Wednesday forenoon.
BY curious coincidenee DR.. Talbot
was at the bank when the check came in
and the clerk thought the writing was
strange, SO he called the Doctors atten-
tion TO tina check. 1t was seen immedi-
atsly that 1t was spurious, for no attempt
had been made to initiate the doctors
handwriting, and the police were in-
formed.
The police wers soon on the track of IL 9
forgers ana in very short time learned
that several other bad checks had been
disposed Of among the druggists OF the
city. The amount of each check was
so and all were made payable to the doc.
tor or dentist and then taken to a storo
to be cashed.
A check was sent into Simmons &
Hammond's drug store last Saturday
with a note signed with DIR. j. IL. Chase's
name. Both the note ana check were In
an envelope and the nots asked that the
money be sent back by the bearer, who
was boy, as In the Talbot. Foss cass.
Dr. Chass's Office is directly over Sim
mons & Hammond's drug store, and he
frequently sends checks to the store to be
cashed, so the clerk had no suspicion
that everything was not right and he
took SO from the drawer and placed 1t
in the same envelope and returned it to
the boy, who left the store.
This check was made payable to DR..
Chase and was also aligned with the name
Of W. Ii. Waldron s. Co. Dr. Chase
thinks that possibly woman who was
in his Office Saturday morning may have
been implicated.
She impressed him as being very mys-
tsrious person at the time, as she asked
to he trusted for the work done on her
teeth, and at the same time refusing to
give her namc or business, excepting to
say that she was travelling saleswoman
She came back later In the day, paid the
doctor the three dollars due him and
youchsafed the Information that she had
a good reason for concealing her name.
Both checks were drawn on the Chap
man National bank and no attempt was
made In either to initiate the penman-
ship of the signer or indorser.
The fact that people will not notify
the police when they get caught for
small amounts insures the immunity to
the thieves, which would not happen If
the police were notified in season.
A scheme similar to the one Just used
was operated in Portland about a year
ago. Many of the merchants were vic
timizsd, among them Morrill, 81 Ross, the
groesrs, who lost SCI to the rogues.