Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1903-09-04
ALL EASY FOR HIM
Wardens, Preachers and Bust
ness Men Ouped by
Fred A. Marson.r
HIS OPERATIONS AT MUsoAT1NB
Had PIanned Location Of a Big
Soap and Lotion Factory
There.

The Muscatine papers don't have to
GO far for their news these days. AZ
ter exploiting for week or two the
good times that were in store for the
town on account of the big soap and
lotion factory to be located there by
Promoter Myers" and telling of the
big reception he was preparing to
give the Congregational minister, they
are now devoting columns and all
kinds of big headlines to telling the
record and achievements of Fred y.
Marson, the champion CRATER, whom
Myers turned out to be.
Duped Prison Warden.
When Myers was sent from Daven-
port to Anamosa for two years, in
1898, for working the same game as
at Muscatine. only on smaller scale,
he became No. 1861. He proved the
SAME smooth CRATER in prison that he
was outside and the first thing he did
was to work Warden Hunter. So good
did he pretend to be and so polished
was his air Of innocence that he got
out of all the hard work that usually
falls to the lot of the striped clothes
men in durance vile. and was appoint
ed principal of the prison school. He
was well educated, Il graduated from
an Ohio college. and really made
very efficient teacher. He also taught
a Sunday school class in the prison.;
he was one of the most ardent work
ers in the Christian Endeavor society
and his prayers and songs moved the
convicts to tears in the meetings and
many were converted.
Buncoed "a Preacher.
Rev. Douglas, pastor of the Meth
od:st church at Independence, eX-
changed pulpits one day with the
prison chaplain. He heard Marson in
a meeting and immediately fell in love
with him. He listened to his story of
how he had been wronged; how he
was suffering the ignominious shame
Of being kept behind prison bars for
a crime he had never committed. The
ministers soft heart was touched and
he talked with the warden about the
poor. abused criminal. Warden Hun
ter was of the same opinion, as he
liked Marson very much. 1t was ar
ranged that when his time should eX-
Pire Rev. Douglas should be inform
las met him at the prison gate with
OutStretched arms. He took him to
independence. into his home. and he
met the best people of the town. The
first Sunday he was there he taught a
class in the Sunday school. In his
nice. new clothes. with his polished
manners, the sincerity with which he
entered into the christian work, and
his tender, sympathetic voice, he was
lit with an upper case -
AtItAgaIn.
Marson liked Independence. He
thought the town just suited him and
he would like to make it his home,
Rev. Douglas would like to have him
stay. too, and his house was open to
him as long as he cared to share it
with the owner. 1t was but ~ few
days until Marson decided to stay.
He had been appointed general agent
for a large publishing house of Chi
cago. promoting literary clubs, and
his principal business was to estab-
lsh agencies To make a long story
short. he had fieeced scores of young
people of several So bills apiece, for
sample cases. when one of his victims
refused TO believe that his sample
cases had been sent to St. Paul by
mistake, and got an officer to help
get his money back. MarsOn was ar
rested, but was taken. sick in a few
minutes, and Rev. Douglas went secur-
ity for his appearance. That night
the sick man got well enough to make
a hop, skip and jump out of lndepend-
ence.
Back in Anamosa.
He was soon at it in Dubuque, was
caught, out pleaded SO elOquently be-
fore the court that he only got nine
months in Anamosa this time, with
his three months in Jail counted on
the sentence.
When he was recommitted Warden