The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-10-16
NOT E OF RICB FORGERY
sVESsoNy PAYING r. Len THoUoHT
THE SEA, 900 HECK WAS QUEER.

Uos,d Hsv. Taken Riess werd That 10 was
Good -Puz-is for the Erperts Prepared In
Twelve Appsr,ut Rios n Gnassres which
Th.y Are - Divide Inte ooed aaa bad.
Albert 7. Patnok and Charles y. Jones were
before Magistrate Brann yesterday In the
Centre street oourt on the charge OF utterina
a forged s7o. 600 check purportins TO have been
signed by william N. Rice the day before his
death. II was John II. Wallace. paying teller
for 3. NJ. swenson A Sons. on whom the check
was drawn.
He said he had known Rice as q dopoGtor
for fifteen years and had known Jones three
or four years. He had seen Rioe's signature
ON thousands OF letters and cancelled checks.
lie told the familiar story OF the presentation
Of the $4,000 ohsck by Psttok's messenger.
Short, for oertinoaton. Whom the check was
presented he took 10 into the ONCE OF Walter
o. Wetherboe, another clerk, and submitted
IL TO him. The signatures on a number Of old
vouchers OF Rice we're compared with the sig
nature on the check and the witness then re-
turned the cheok TO Short with this statement;
There's an irregularty about this check.
There Ia a difference between the face and the
Endorsement"
Short then took the check away.
Did you have an opinion about the signature
az tnAt uIlef dhhcu hhblhltlAi JlsblCN hNNOiL'S
Osborne.
Not at that time. was the answer. Since
then, however, | have come to an indefinite
opinion that the signature is not Mr.. Rice's
usual signature"
Q. Did you tell Short anything else when
you gave the check back to Hmm A. / told
him that as It was for a large amount, drawn
TO Albert r. Patrick" and Endorsed Albert
r. Patrick. " he'd better get a new check for II.
In about forty minutes he came back with the
Endorsement changed to CORRESPOND with the
face. Mr., i. j SwensOn then examined, Ne
check aud told me to call ny Mr.. iLce'- nat. did
20 and Jones answered. | told Jones about The
check and he said If therc,- any mistake, ~,
mine. drew the check and all right.
q What did you then dor \ Reported
what Jones said ~ Mr.. Swen,on and lie told me
10 get MIR Rice 20 tho phone ! tried and
Jones answered., either that NJ. RE" was not
strong enough 10 conn" % the Telephone, or that
40 was not ahlo e. come then tod 4im MI
Down the receiver. | dill not hang IL NJ. expect
INK Jones 70 gll dp agaIn ANY n"meht wont
son told mo Mr. Rice wa dead HetHen crossed
out the b.tnh ag''I itneo SIAM WhlGh Nhh
put on the Glgok and be saygit 9sek to snort n.
House took the witness.
rho oheSE. Nr 'WSHacc. he difference between
the face ami the Endorsement; \. ! thought
the Signature wa. irregular
Y Do You consider 1t protecting depositors
70 WiUn ht' b. a 'Hfih Nl'N' ia AuNhlb YOU
consider irregular to the man who presented
MAGISTRATE Bmnn Answer yes or no. 4
We.
q Did YOU give the person a chance to alter
Il IN some other way; \ ! considered the
% Wien " YOU C@attIed up Jones did you say
any thing about any lrregularity IN the sigma
tur"' \ did not, because had heard
things rather uncouullmeutary TO Jons and |
wa naturally suspicious of him
q Had Rice cone To- the phone would you
q Now, Mr. Wallace. had you not known
on or before Sept "a, when you first saw this
check, that Rice was dead, would you have
q We'll viii you now take your solemn oath
that IL does not bear Moe's signature, A. /
will not Jones smiled and Patrick sat up as
. Did you ever question Rice's signature
before, A. ] think we have.
q Did inquiry show it was all right? A 1t
o. Did Swenson tell Short he hough the
Tlsnatate ~ai,Es genuine 4 re ted short
like the looks OF this check and We wont certify
9, Do you recall anything else swenson
y, When do YOU think you might be able to
recall some more o what ,Swenson saidP A.
the night, when Its quiet. Great laughter
@. And do you get up and put them down,
The witness was then asked TO look at sew
eral large manila envelopes. In the lower
riaht-hand corner Of each a piece had been cue
out, about two inches long and hall an inch
wide, Through this space n each envelope
showed a strip OF white paper, upon which was
n signature closely resembling the genuine
signature OF W. VI. Rice, There we're twelve
Of these envelopes and the witness was asked
TO examine each and say whether or not he
thought " showed R.ces genuine signature.
Mr.. Wallace h~esitated some time over each,
but finally concluded that eight OF the speci-
mems were the genuine signatures and four
were doubtful.
The examination will 60 on this morning at
10 o'clock.