The Portland daily press., 1900-09-11
vi Eek SWINDLERS.
ingenuity Of the Methods They
Use in Their Trade.

Worked to O7,+a5n -ee7's1 ''l-
'nlch We're Asto,,,,..,.. -, - -
70 Honey by thu, CIe~a, - p ? ~. cd m
tect fneck workers." said veteran do.
bonare are the busiest of ali tbe dc
tracl~ 90 N'"SS and the hardest to keen
roma - Iney are at it the whole wear
or ~ ba1 ana cause the police q lot Of bo+b
No. because they varv +bo;,. 49,, ~ - Do'n-
scheme Inese fellows get mn now
really n.y., Icy day. Some of them are
good tiT;n u genius who could make
tongues 80 - WIN their brains and their
carl 10 II almost any other line If +bo-
N' ..t9i to do so. 0'1'9h me II tney
this class o,o interesting perhaps Of all |
all 9S "re not really check workers o+
their b,, eiluue to the men who make II
to bona 6do TO get genuine signatures
ers W. ~ checks unknown to the sign
of tho y are the modern develonment
ers VIII -. most extinct class of sharn-
try colts oSeu TO drive through the coun-
macb;nor-7 iesponsible farmers to SIGN
ments ~. ~ racts, lightning rod agree
be torn in - ing, in fact, which might
note With and become a prOmissory
bank. In could be negotiated at a
farmer no,,r Sp1le of the fact that every
nino IN which these frauds 800 u Sollls
~ Sl,l'S are yet not hard to find
SOM - u scheme that was worked widalv
CHIEF 800 t'ls ago was very ingenious. The
drove ~ III the little financial comedy
farmer ~ ehe house Of a prosperous
circnit - ~ represented himself to be a
reoues+o1 80 ~ minister of the gospel. He
hosni+abI- liter for the night and was
tin,p p',aoiy received Just about retiring
farn,an couple drove up and asked the
to marr,, Ire 4t a minister could be found
ridor ~ ~ tueIn, and of course the circuit
the ST. e. Tue Job. At the conclusion of
posed - - words that made the sun
was do IioPels man and wife the farmer
ness ~ 'eu to sign his name as wit
which 49, eiaporate marriage certificate
little HI uinlster fshed up from his
siono+,111 80 grip. In the morning that
neigbbor; appeared at bank in the
for LIS town at the foot Of a check
'ut question. ana was cashed WITH
9illncate was printed on heavy
and wherever names Or -l da+os
ut ~ pe written in the cardboard was
vritinp WIN beveled edge and the
d Us was done on smooth paper past
bo1T,;,. 'ne pack Of the certificate and ~
1voo COS through the beYeled holes. Be =
ver . b1 Ivy sheets of pasteboard, how II
O tba+ ~; el''ilA check had been inserted, l.
err tbo a 80 s!gnature line came right I'M -
D coneo Icing left for the witness, and -
v 1u0nce the farmer was actual -
ood nlns check on his bank when he +,
ino ""'uredly witnessed the fake we'd u
"Extraordin. fc
rs 70 mary pains are taken by forg- -
-eo1tb secure the bona ide signatures Of -
$50 w. lnen' successful plan in one y;
eo1rou - present a petition relating
1d 80 Al the big mans own ward r.
BOD foi4k OF other names, given in -
an 80 were secured before the big ~
horo 40 approached He was caught -
I'd sia a-lle was no pen and ink handy - -
mt go, the petition with a hard. -
NOW go s;! mat was given him, unwit- -, ~
roTo6 49, at the same time a check, ~,
var GOO transfer paper underneath. ~
80 "a @'OV was secured on that triclx on
az rule however. the Signature 10
y 10. Is wanted. If one Of fbe agents pr
cir I 49, real check written by one of W.
r roi (Slueu victims, it is an occasion ~i I
7,l,aa sJ1iclng' One successful check Pr
nor+a e nau a method that puzzled the 1'o
tbo aLr =" iong time. The signatures -
ront1,, 1eOAS ne presented were so ap- ~ ~
nom genuine that even the men on ~, IN
MD ~ rne sWindles were perpetrated lie lie
1T 80 noe swear they were forgeries, ex. Ne
LIN '1ne fact that they could not II
aclls ever having signed such cor
! Eli u was at last discovered that INC
1i NV rfst secured a signature, had en-
,tr;S escnlns made from it, took mo lI
$ n,otDi- Tue zinc engraving and into s ,e
sit Hl@'ilA cast very hard rubber com oet
eiost;o Mllieh retained just enough of d
bo Ds'ir'ei'y not to show any traces of 1ne
Inf 49, On the paper receiving the i'm I'M
mn i ~ It, With the composition SIM