Hutchinson gazette. [volume] (Hutchinson, Kan.) 1895-1902, 1900-11-29
VOL. IL.
A Tnle With q Moral.

a Tale With a Moral.
From the west part of the county In
the neighborhood Of Sylvia comes a
tale of confidence game 80 bold and
yet 80 successfully worked that It's con
summation Ia Of much more than the
usual interest Tue story was pub
llshed IN part a week or more ago but
the details were then 30 meagre that
1t was little bepded.
The story Is about as follows; About
seven months ago u man OF very ordin'
arY appearance, seeming to be little
else than tramp in fuct applied fol
work and secured 1t. He seemed ia
have large fund Of information, was
affable and his taking manners soon
placed HIM on the confidential side Of
the young people OF lbe neiRhborhood
Finally only IA week or TWO ago he
was married to the daughter Off vel
TO do citizen who lives only about q
nile from Sylvia who Is everywhere
respected and esteemed, Mr. Housin
ger. After that he stayed only a week
and left going as II was supposed Ia
Wichita, Then 1t was discovered that
there we're apparently few citizens In
the neighborhood whom he had not
heeced. AS his favorLte graft he
would warm up tn some young man
and becoming confidential would say
that be was only out there In the guise
of workingman to recuperate hit
health. that he was connected with Il
new street car line In st. Louis which
was being built by his uncle. That he
was to be manager and had the hiring
of the employees. Then he would tell
bis victim that he had formed liking
for him aud would like to give bum a
good job at slxty.ave dollars per month
but did not want him to say anything
about 1t rs he would be overwhelmt d
with applications for work That IN
order to secure the job 1t would be nee
essary to put up 800 90 TO paw for u uni
form, key locker, etc. 1t IL stated on
good authority that he trapped nearly
twenty men In this way. From Others
he,borrowed, sometimes In quite large
amounts, securing 800. from bis wife
He even got the last dollar that some
men had and about all the money that
some Of the girls working on q ranch
near there bad earned in all summer
Some Of the victims went to Wichita
where he was to meet them but OF
course they were not met,
About the time this story became
known another, stranger, calling
himself Harry s. Shsrpley, which was
the name he gave here, 1oated into the
neighborhood Of Ellsworth, Kansas and
in q short time had neeced several men
there. One of them was a foreman on
o large ranch, With two Of them he
had made an appointment to meet
them at certain place in the suburbs
Of st. Louis. They were not met
Then they started ont to hunt him
down. Buy consulting directory
they found Mrs. Harry s. Sharpely
and hunted her up. They found a
wife Of their man who with her two
children had been deserted by him sew
eral months before. A letter setting
forth these facts by the ranch foreman
has been in the possession Of the Off
GERS here. There are still otherreports
that he has couple of wives beside
the one in ST. Louis and the one re-
Gently married here. Some of the Of
ticers are urging the county commits
sioners to offer reward for his arrest
and he will be prosecuted for bigamy
and on several charges of obtaining
money under false pretenses. One
thing is sure this fellow deserves all
the law will allow.
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