Evening journal., 1900-12-24
NWINDLBRS GET
HEAVY SBNTBACD
Of Railroad Passes
Get IRdeterminate Terms
Gilbert +. McierS and John u. Jones
Pleaded Guilty and a Few Min
uteS Later We're Sentenced

Two swndlcrs Of railroad companies
by means Of forged passes, anu one
swindler OF manufacturers by the USE
Of the mails, were sentenced to the
penitentiagy from Chicago yesterday.
Gilbert h. Meters and john Il. Jones
tho wholesale Iorgers Of railway passes,
who were arrested when about TO leayel
Chicago a few weeks ago, pleaded
guilty OF forgery before Judge Tuley,
and a few minutes later were sentenced
TO Joliet for an lndeterminate term.
Although the men were glad TO plead
guilty without troublig the prosecution
TO present its evidence, they were not
willing to tell the extent to which they
had defrauded the railroads
a few facts about their operations
were drawn from the men, but no con-
nected story was told by them. The
amounts Of which the railroads have
been defrauded by them run into the
thousands Of dollars, and railroads
thrOugout he country have been vic
timized, but no deflnde idea OF the eK-
tent of the operations can be secured.
In addition to the forging and selling
OF employees passes, for which the
men were arrested, they had another
method OF obtaining transportation
They would present to the passenger
agent Of a railroad q forged letter from
the head OF another road, asking for
"trip passes for two employees of the
foreign road When this letter was
honOred by the issuance OF the request
ed passes, the pastebOards would be
promptly sold to a scalper Meiers
told OF getting six return passes to i'm
pOrtant Western points i'm this manner.
They were sold to Bill Nye, a Chicago
scalpers for $21O, and were recovered
from him, after the arrest OF Meters
and Jones, by the railroads interested.
Meters and Jones worked in one city
after another through the country,
and II was due to the vigilance on Cen
tral Passenger Association officials,
who We're on the lookout for them,
that they were caught when they ap-
peared here They ordered bogus
autograph stamps from A. W. Martin
n Co.. makers of rubber stamps. who
reported the order to the Passenger
association. The forgers depended on
the possession Of false stamps and OF
paper and passes printed by themselves
for their success.
FIVE INDICTMENTS
There were five indictments agait 81
the men, but when they pleaded guilty
TO the charge OF forging a pass ovei
the Norfolk and Western the other in.
d.ctments were dropped
Since the arrest Of the pair IL has
been learned that Meters has a crimi
.ai record. His real name IS p. N
Van Sickel, his home IL in New Lex.
ington. Ohio and he was formerly O
wagner car conductor, He was con-
Nicted a year ago in Reading. Pa, o
obtaining employment by means n
Forged letters, and served a sentence o
ihree months in the BCrls county Jail
II He was also convicted last May in New
York City OF forging the nam of l.. e
tussiter president of the Brooklyn
Rapid Transit company for which hl
served q short term i'm the Kings ccun
ty jail. He was at the same time in
dicrcd for another forgery in New
: York but escaped through a leea
tcChnicahty
The men were prosecuted by r. L
lrudbelt special agent of the Centra
4 Passenger Association; Joseph j. Dor
aa Philadelphia, general solicitor q
the Norfolk and Western, and John n
Coulter, OF Chicago. were the attorney
for the railroads and Assistant State
Attorney Olsen apeared fer the state
The witnesses heard We're J.. T. John
son OF Roanoke. Va, general manage
Z of the Norfolk and Western. J. G. Moor
+ head, OF Cleveland. Ohio. general man
y ager OF the Erie. and A. l.. Bliss. Cleve
Z land Ohio chief clerk Of the Nicke
+, Plate.-From the Chicago Inter-Ocear
y November 2S. 1900.