Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1902-05-15
FOOLED SEVERAL FARMERS.
A Smooth Swindler Secures Farmers
Signatures to Notes.
HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS IN 1T.
But all Recovered and The Trickster
Landed in County Jail.

| ToI illltt VI loul WtthS. up W luSt
Friday, II fat and ford individual
said to be a civil war veteran call
ing himself a. w. Sholes, and claim
ing his home to b. at Morrison, ILL.,.
had been displaying on the Mineral
Point city hall square, machine for
building wire fences, said to be
manufactured by the Climax Fence
Machine Co, of Lincoln, Nebraska.
His special business was to establish
town agencies, and for these he
sought mainly To secure farmers.
He was frequent caller at the local
banks, where he inquired as to The
the financial responsibility of far
mers whose names he had listed.
Early last week he presented at the
Iowa County bank notes signed by
Robert Hawke, of Linden, for $40
and by the Geo. and Melvin Terrell,
of Mineral Point and Waldwick
towns, for Sl30 eacn, payable III SIX
months, and offered to discount them
| literally for cash. In this he was
Accommodated, being given Chicago
draft for $500 and balance in cur
rency. A day or two later he pre-
sented at the same bank another
note for $430, signed by Robert
| Hawke, for discount. The bank Off
cials became suspicious. Instead OF
cashing the note put him off on some
excuse, and telephcned to Mr.
| HAWKE that he was wanted at the
| bank on business ut once. SHOES
saw some of Hawkes. family Grive
| into town, and "smelt mouse" He
took his little grip and walked
| down to Gerlach's livery near the
depot, said he wanted IA team and
driver right off, that he bad to make
Il trip into the country eastward; he
would walk alorg, the team could
| overtake him and pick him up on
| the road. This was Friday afternoon.
was wanted" and the foregoing
| disclosed. The telephone lines Were
| kept hot for an hour or two, but no
trace of the missing man found.
Among Others Sheriff James was
notified at Dodgeville, and it was ar
ranged for him to come here ana
with Deputy Sheriff Terrill start out
on the trail of the fugitive. AS Mr.
James was about leaving Dodgeville
that place. To the sheritf'5 enquiry
as to what had become of his passen-
ger the driver said he had left him
at Ridgeway. Taking the livery
driver with him the sheriff droveaat
once to Ridgeway, arrived there
about 10 o'clock and found his man
in bed at the hotel.
SholeS made no resistance. was
taken at once to Dodgeville, thence
the next morning brought here He
turned over to the sheriff the Chica-
go draft and money received from
that they had been wrong fully OBJ
tanned, and begging to be let OIL
Saturday afternoon he was brought
before Justice Hawkins, on advice of
his attorney, Hon. Calvert Spensley,
waived examination, and was taken
to the county jail to await action by
the county court.
The farmers signatures to the
notes are admittedly genuine. AS to
| how they were secured different
stories are atioat, One is that "a con-
| tract to act as agent was laid before
the farmer for signature, which in
volved no money payment except as
| machines were sold; that IN some
manner IA straight note, payable in
six months without conditions, was
substituted for the supposed contract
and the signature appended thereto.
| Had Sholes not tried to work Mr..
| Hawke for IA second note he might
| have gone away unsuspected, as the
/ bank, hetug satisfied a. .to the re-
spousibility OF the signers, would
probably have said nothing about
the transaction until the notes be-
came due, six months hence. BY
that time Sholes could have been far
from reach, and the fraudulent char
acter of the notes might have been
difficult to establish. II was another
case of failure Of well laid scheme
by being over-worked.
Frank Jeuck and bride arrived
home Monday evening. They will
enter upon the duties Of house keep
ing at once.
Reductions of So to IS on Tailor
made Suits by Mrs. Alice Cape, agent
for Chas. A Stevens Bros. At Hotel
Royal next Wednesday, May q.