The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-03-09
FORGERY IN WILSON
Once Esteemed Citizen faIsi-
fies His Accounts.
r. F. Dawson, BoOkkeeper For Hackney Broth
ers Charged With $4,000
Chnp4ama
Shortage.

Especial to the News and Observer
Wilson, N. c., March There is
much surprise and regret here at the
sad news following on the assignment of
a man who had won much esteem mere,
land who had been prominent in the
church work of the place
The assignment was that of the firm
of F. F. Dawson & Co, which dealt
largely in sewing machines. III. G..
Conner, Jr., was named as the trustee
and all the personal property of F. F.
Dawson was transferred, this bein2 in
sewing machines, office furniture, pa
Ipers, a diamond ring, horses. wagons,
etc. The creditors are the State Bank,
of Richmond, Va, and Hackney Broth
ers, of this place, for about $5,OO0 while
the Standard Sewing Machine Company
claim 81 ,537.
The Wilson Times has the following
concerning the matter:
1.-THE news of the assignment came as
"a shock to the many friends of Mr..
Dawson, but the news that came later
proved much worse.
"Mr. Dawson has ever comported HIM
self so as to gain the respect and esteem
of the people of Wilson, his adopted
home For two years Mr.. Dawson had
been the bookkeeper and trusted en-
ploye of the Hackney Buggy Company,
and when they We're told by him that he
could not be with them after January
1st they expressed their regrets, as they
had found him useful man.
"About January 1St, in taking their
annual inventory. they found that their
stock and proceeds from the years
business did not come up to the amount
(which their books showed, AMI lie
amount of business done and open ac-
counts largely exceeded the profits plus
expenses. This led to an Investigation,
and after a good deal of labor it was
found that Mr. Dawson had falsified the
hooks to the amount of over $1,000.
THE method of procedure was as
follows:
"A lot of buggies were sold, for in
stance, to Mr.. B. of Greensboro-the bill
to be due in six months. Mr. b. would
send check in a few days, taking ad-
vantage of the discount. Mr.. Dawson
would open the letters-he having ac
cess to the firms maitland takin" the
check would endorse it with Hackney
Brothers endorsement and send it to.
the State Bank of Virginia at Richmond
for deposit Just before the six months
were up, before Mr. BIS account was
due Mr. Dawson would turn back to
some date Immediately after the goods
were shipped and rubbing out some in
significant entry, would credit cash with
Mr.. BIS account and charge cash with
bank deposit for the firm. Thus was
Mr. Dawson's account with the State
Bank of Virginia swelled to large pro-
iportions.
1.-THE fact that this bank accepted
these checks with Mr.. Dawson's forged,
endorsement of Hackney Brothers Dro-.
tects the latter with the amount of these
forged checks, which they can produce.
lOf course these are scattered over the
country and have all been written for,
and while a good many will soon be in
the hands of Hackney Brothers, yet
some have been burned and otherwise
destroyed. The deposit in the Richmond
bank began about a year ago and a large
number of business houses destroy their
old checks at the end of each year. So
the loss to the Richmond bank will be
the amount of those checks which will
come into Hackney Brothers hands, less
what can be realized from the assign
ment
| ''Messrs. Hackney Brothers will lose
the amount of the destroyed checks, also
other amounts in addition.
"Mr. Elliott, president of the State
Bank of Virginia, was here Monday in
,vestigating the matter, and, presumably,
the assignment was the result
1.-THE assets of the firm will amount
to about $4,000
| "Mr. Dawson win not be prosecuted
! by either the bank or Hackney Brothers,
as he has given up everything"