The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1904-12-18
GRAFTERS
WORK MERCHANTS
Claim Relation TO Business
Men of Salt Lake.
HAVE GOODS CHARGED UP"
LOCAL FIRMS AND BANK OF RE-
PUBLIC SUFFER.


A bunch of grafters whose special
stunt is to represent themselves as rel
atives of well known Salt Lake BUSH
Less men and thus attempt 10 get
money and goods from local firms has
ctruck this city, and has already sue
ceeded in getting" the Auerbach Dry
Goods company for a pair of "a shoes,
tie Culmer Bros. company for several
dollars worth OF gilt and the National
Bank Of the Republic for ST.
That the crooks, of whom there seem
10 be TWO women and one man, did not
beat the Davis Shoe company out of
$40 and the Willes-HoFne Drug COM
rany out of a smaller amount of money
was due in the first instance 10 sus-
picion on the part of the shoeman, and
in the second to accident.
The men whom it was represented
would stand good for the purchases
and bank loan are Main street business
men. one well known restauranteur.
y peculiar fact of the matter is that
toth bear the same name.
Guardian" Racket Worked.
The men, while desiring to avoid
Publicity inlthe matter, desired the po-
Ice and local merchants TO know the
tactics along which the gang is work
irg in order that further swindlins may
DE prevented. The first operation of the
newcomers was conducted about ten
lays ago when d young woman. apper-
entity yet in her teens, obtained pair
Ct shoes at Auerbach's, telling them to
charge the bill, 81, to one of the BUSH
reSs men before mentioned.
The girl assured the clerk who made
the sale that she was a ward of the
man to whom the bill was to be sent.
she said that her parents were tempo
rarily in California, but that it would
be all right"
Not until the shoe bill was sent TO
The girls guardian" did the truth Of
the matter come to light.
Only few days after this, the same
man was presented with bill by Gull
rler Bros. for some gilt which a wo-
man claiming to De his wife had o.
tanned. Owing to the fact that the
husband" had run an account with
Culmer's. the latter firm did not hesi-
tate to let the woman have what she
wished.
Two Attempts Fail.
In the case of the otner Salt Laker,
whose name was used with less sue
cess, the same plans were followed out
by the swindlers. A young woman
called at the Davis Shoe company and
ordered two pairs of 50 shoes. These
were to be sent on certain car to the
address of the family with which she
said she was staying. The woman
vas to meet the delivery boy at the
house.
The clerk at Davis store became sus-
pIcious owing to the fact that the man
whose name the woman gave ran no
account with the shoe firm. He there
n 10 frty
The man at the other end of the line
denied having given any one author
lily TO get shoes. so this attempt failed.
The same woman after leaving the
ahoe store went to Willes-H Horne, or
dered some patent medicine and left
instructions TO have il sent out to the
same address as that given Davis. The
delivery boy missed the car, whereupon
the woman's guardian" to whose
house il was to go, was rung up and
asked If the next car would do. Think
ing that some member of his family
had ordered the medicine, the business
man said the next car would do. Sub
sequently. he learned that no one had
ordered the medicine, so he returned it
to the pharmacist.
Get Banks Money.
The masculine member OF the gang
got in his first work only a few days
ago when he rushed into the Bank of
The Republic and asked to be given 81
at once. He explained 10 the cashier
that he had been sent to the express
Office by his employer. giving the same
name as was given by the woman in
the last two instances, and found that
/ e lacked just 81 Of the express charges.
The cashier expressed doubt as TO the
advisability Of making the loan, but
the fellow clustered and said the bank
might ring up his employer if neces-
sary.
This convinced the cashier that the
man was straight. so he advanced him
the coin. The swindle was discovered
at the closing hour when, as the money
had not been returned, the mans "enl-
plOyer'' was called up.