The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1899-06-23
run DOWN IN HARRISBURG.
One Of the Trio That Swindled
Farmer BOyce in Jail.

John R. Green. better known TO the po-
lice as Crooked Mouth Green. is under
arrest In Harrisburg, Pa, for swindiing
B. f. Boyce. a Walla Walia farmer. out
OF $500 by means of the ancient "send'
trick Chief Reed received telegram
containing such Information yesterday.
The Harrisburg authorities. at the in
stance OF the local and Walla Walla po-
lice. have been working on the case for
some time. Success crowned their efforts
yesterday. and both sets of authorities
were at once notified. Meanwhile the pris-
oner is trying to secure his liberty through
the medium OF a haheas corpus.
Green is one Of the cieyerest confidence
men known to the law officers. He has a
record written in crime. In separating
Farmer Boyce from his hard-earned gold
he called to his assistance two others
hardly less gifted In the art of swindling.
These men are John T. Gray and Harry
Gilmore. whose trail OF aliases would fill
a small directory. The two executed the
trick with dispatch and cleverness. 1t was
conceived and planned In Seattle along
in March last when Green and Gray were
here. Soon after having accomplished the
trick. sl.5oo Of the money is said to have
been left with a Spokane saloonkeeper for
the purpose OF thwarting any EFFORT TO
run them down. The rest Of the money
they divided.
The send trick, which with all of its
antiquity Mr.. Boyce fell victim Of is In
the nature OF a lottery. The operator. as
In this case goes into the country under
the pretense of buying a farm He and
the farmer are travelling about looking at
land, when an accomplish of the first
swindler is met by chance, apparently. The
second swlndler announces that he Is Civ
ing away lottery tickets merely for the
purpose OF advertising the lottery. He al
lows the farmer to win a ticket drawing
a big prize In Boyce's case II was 5000
The swindlers demand OF the winner that
he produce an amount OF money equal to
that called for In the winning number
told that the money will not be paid.
Boyce unluckily, had S. 600 In bank. He
produced tx. and this sum, with an equal
amount supposed to represent the lottery
bank roll. was placed in box. presum
ably tin one, During the transaction the
swindlers substituted another box. which
Boyce. to his CONSERVATION, found upon
opening contained nothing but iron wash
Green got the appelation Of Crooked
Mouth" through fight he had with Chi
eago faro dealer. He and Tom o'Brien.
another confidence king. sat at the table
when a quarrel ensued. The knight OF the
green cloth rose pistol in hand, and shot
Green in the face, the injury twisting the
victims mouth and otherwise despolling
his personal appearance.
Gilmore killed a Chicago hackman and
got thirty years in the penltentiary for his
crime. He was pardoned and later turnec
states evidence against Chicago postal
clerk named Cook with whom hs was I'M
piicated in mail and paStoffice robberies.
From Chicago he went to Denver and there
killed Sparks, also known as u bad man OF
the gun fighting persuasion. And so On
down crimes crooked course he led his
way. He saw the inside Of dozen or
more jails anc penitentiaries. during much
OF which time Green and Gray were also
behind the bars. Abou; the last sentence
they served was five years in San Quentin.
Green lived with and was known as the
husband OF a woman named Annie Gray,
herself a crook. She is now dead. How
ever. during one ~ Green's periods OF en-
forced confinement she Tell in love anC
elnfed with his friend Tom oBrien. The
couple went 20 Paris, and there o'Brien
Killed KID" WaddeIi. his cham. and was
exiled TO Devils island, the prison home Of
Capt Dreyfus. Annie Gray die not desert
him but raised purse OF many thousand
dollars and planned an escape Tor her
lover the only one ever effected from this
famous French penal colony.