The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1899-07-24


ment the attention of the two directors
Of the bank, who always watched the
process Of printing their notes, Brock
way took wax impression Of the plates
| He had studied electro-chemistry and
was fully prepared to make duplicates
OF the plates from the wax impression
He and his companion turned out about
one hundred thousand dollars worth OF
notes from these plates, BrockWay
forged the signatures of the bank ON
Gals on the notes. The bills We're float-
ed and accepted by the bank. Finally
the forged signatures were detected and
BrockWay was brought to justice. he
got a sentence of five years in prison,
| but escaped after few months.
After his escape he continued to make
| plates for printing counterfeit money.
| AT different times he counterfeited notes
of the Plttstield National bank, the Sec
oad National bank, of Wilkesbarre, Pa;
the Pittsburg National bank, and the
National Exchange bank of Baltimore
Receiving tellers of these banks ac-
cepted his counterfeits as genuine 1t
was not until 1861, when he was thirty
nine years old, that he made his first
|
bonds. After he had pulled himself out
of this scrape, one hundred thousand
dollars or so better off, he occupied his
time making and floating counterfeit
| fifty and one hundred dollar notes.
Lead impressions for the backs of these
plates We're obtained for him by Minnie
Langdon, clerk in the treasury de-
partment He made the plates for the
faces of the notes himself.
Between the years 1878 and 1880 six
different kinds of one hundred dollar ma
tional bank notes were made by Brock
way, and a great quantity Of the spuri-
Gus money was put in circulation.
His next venture was the making of
| six per cent. one thousand dollar gov
eminent bonds, which again landed him
in the tolls of the police. The. secret
service agents knew that BrockWay was
| the only man in the country who could
make such counterfeits and he was
placed under arrest, together with his
confederate. Charles II. Smith, at whose
house the bonds were made. Smith, to
save himself, turned states evidence
against Brockway, who again escaped
under suspended sentence by turning
over the plates and counterfeit bonds
which he had on hand.
During the month of March, 1883,
Chief Drummond was informed that a
man whose actions were suspicious was
visiting a downtown printing office.
Drummond called on the printer, and
was shown a piece of steel, called
"bed piece" which the stranger had
left to have a proof taken Of 1t. On the
steel were engraved the figures $1,000
and a scroll work corner. detective
was stationed near the printing house to
watch for the stranger. He had not
long to wait The next day we'll
known form jumped from surface car,
cast hurried glances up and down the
street, and then entered the printing
shop.
The detectives had considerable diff
Guilty in following him, but they finally
located him at 761 Greenwich street.
From there he was tracked to No. 231
Lexington avenue, where he often went
and stayed four or five hours at a time.
A watch was set upon this house and
one day he was seen leaving it in com
pany with a little man, who proved to
be Nathan 3. Foster, of Bradford, ILL.,,
brother -in-law of Doyle, Brockway's
former pal and an expert engraver,
BY clever work on the part OF the de-
tectves Lewis b. Martin, printer and
counterfeiter, stopping at the st. James
hotel was found to be associated with
these two During all this time Brock
way was deep in transactions in Wall
street, which led to the conviction that
he was getting ready to float some bo-
gus bonds. In the meantime the plate
which Brockway had left at the printing
office had been sent to Washington by
Chief Drummond, to ascertain if 1t could
be used in making any part of any gov
eminent security. 1t was found to have
no significance there, SO the case was
turned over to the New York police au-
thorities.
Arrest Of the Band.
Captain McClusky, who was then a
plain detective on the force, figured in
shadowing the band. Brockway was
next traced to the office of steel plate
engraver at No. 31a Division street. He
carried parcels there and also had a
room there. He had moved in the
meantime from No. 761 Greenwich street
to No 270 West Eleventh street The
gang was Swallowed for months without
any results. Finally Inspector Byrnes
became impatient for results and con-
suited with Chief Drummond about ar
resting the trio on search warrants.
This course was decided upon, and on
November 10, 1882 the house in Lexing-
ton avenue was descended upon Fos-
ter and Martin were arrested here, and
BrockWay was caught at Houston street |
and the Bowery. A complete counter
feiting outfit was found at the Lexing- |
ton avenue house. Among the plumber |
seized by the officers were plates |
stamps and dies, and all the necessary
for forging and printing the
Morris and Essex railway bonds Some
of these bonds. which We're one thou
sand dollar seven per cent, construction |
bonds, were found all but finished.
There We're also plates for bonds
Among the counterfeit bonds was a
genuine document which could only be
from the Others by the aid
of microscope. The diverse side of
bonds was autographed Little was
found in the West Eleventh street
house, but in room in the st. James
hotel, where Martin had been living for
more than year were found twenty
one of the Morris and Essex bonds, fin
ished except the presidents and treas
urer's signatures Even the revenue