Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1905-10-06
STEAL|NCS CROW
Indicted Peoria School Superin-
tendent Probably Took $780,.
900 to $500, 900.
BEARS NATIONAL REPUTATION
Shown to Have Underpaid Teachers
and Raised the Value of
Script.

Peoria, ILL.,. Oct. "a total of 13 in
dictments have thus far been returned
against Newton c. Dougherty, city su-
perintendent of schools and president
of the Peoria National bank. Ten of
them were for embeZzlement and three
for forgery Forty more are being
drawn by the states attorneys Office
1t is announced from that Office today
the total would reach more than 200.
According TO statements made by a
member of the grand jury today, hun
dreds of pieces of school scrip which
it is alleged have been changed after
being signed by the president of the
school board. are missing.
At a meeting. the Peoria Clearing
House association today voted TO ten
der a loan of 100000 to the Peoria
National bank if in the judgment of
the directors it became necessary. ow-
ing to the unsettled condition of finan-
cial affairs of the bank, following the
withdrawal of President Dougherty.
Amount Taken Grows.
Peoria. Oct additional light on
the peculations of y. c. Dougherty, for
% years superintendent of the Peoria
schools. who was arrested yesterday on
charges of forgery, are that the
amounts taken will total from $500 ,OOG
to 100000
The return of the indictments and
the subsequent arrest of Mr.. Dougherty
caused a sensation. His career has
been more than local. For over quar-
ter of a century he has been promi-
nently identified with state and ma
tiOnal educational organizations, his
prominence leading to his election in
1896 as president OF the National Edu-
cational association at the Buffalo con-
vention He has been president of the
Illinois Teachers association, and in
1901 served as Illinois commissioner at
the Paris exposition.
Immensely Wealthy.
Mr.. DOugherty has been accounted
an immensely wealthy man. His
known interests in this city and else
where seem to bear out this state
ment. He is president of the Peoria
National bank and one of the heavy
stockholders in that institution. He
is heavily interested in and has for
years been one of the moving spirits
in the Title & Trust company. He is
interested in the Peoria Livery COM
pany and the Colean Manufacturing
company. He owns the Arcade build
ing several thousand acres of land in
Wisconsin, vast tracts of land in Ar
kansas and other western states, and,
so it is said, owns building at Wash
ingtOn and Pine streets in St. Louis
which has a rent roll of $4,000 per
year His friends estimate his wealth
as at least 100000.
Friends in High Places.
His prominence in pedagogical cir
cles has brought him the close friend
ship of educators like Nicholas Murray
Butler, president of Columbia univer-
sity. and DR.. William Raney Harper.
president of the University of Chicago.
AT present he is one of the three trus-
tees in charge of the reserve fund of
$147 900 held by the National Educa-
tional association.
The indictment alleges that during
the investigation it was revealed that
Mr.. Dougherty had been paying school
teachers in money, giving some teach
ers so per month less than was al
lowed them by the board. The teach
ers had not been told of their raise in
salary and supposed they were getting
what the board allowed them
Raises Value of Script.
In one case school script for SI10
was raised by Dougherty to $1.110. ana
in another case a bill for S37 was rails
ed to S3,1O0, Mr.. Dougherty manipu-
lating the funds, paying the $37 and
placing the remainder of the s3,700 to
his own credit. In this manner, it is
charged, he misappropriated the most
of the money. A great deal of the
amount taken has been invested in
real estate and business ventures.