Omaha daily bee., 1905-10-07
DOUCHERTY In DEEP
Thirteen Indistusnts Returned. Against
Peoria School Superintendent.
FORTY MORE IN COURSE OF PREPARATION
Indication that Total Number Will Reach
Two Hundred.
CHARGES FORGERY AND EMBEZZLEMENT
Committee Appointed By School Board
Will Continue Investigation.
,HAReEs FORGERY AND EMBEzzLEMENT
BANK CLERK EXPLAINS THE OPERATIONS
queer Methods of DOugherty brought
to Attention of Authorities and
clerk Discharged from
Bank for Doing So.

PEORIA Ill, Oct. a total Of thirteen
indictments have thus tar been returned
against Newton c. Dougherty, city super
intendent of schools and president of the
Peoria National bank. Ten of them are for
embezzlement and three for forgery
Forty more are being drawn by the states
attorneys office. 1t is announced from that
office to-day, that the total would redch
more than 700 The bail required tUr
Dougherty thus far returned is S52,'Oo
Mr.. Dougherty is In receipt Of messages
from all over the country, many OF
them expressing sympathy and a belief
In his innocence. According TO statement
made by a member of the grand jury to-
day the hundreds OF pieces OF school scrip
which, it Is alleged to have been changed
after being signed by the president OF the
school board are missing
A COMMITTEES appointed by the school
board TO continue the investigation after
the grand jury gets through, announced
through it's chairman, John 8. Stevens to-
day that they would go back over the
books Of the board for twenty years. In
some cases both stubs and couchers are
missing, representing according to the cash
book large amounts.
How Dougherty Was Detected.
Erwin j. SCnneDlY, ulSGoullN dAu tfANhesAAoS
clerk at the Peoria Nationel bank, the man
who first discovered Irregularities in Mr..
pougherty's method of handling school
funds, made statement today. He said:
took charge of the individual books at
the bank seven years ago and shortly there
after / began to notice the queer methods
Mr.. Dougherty had of handling the funds
OF the Peoria school board. He would make
checks payable to various local firms and
give his persoT al check for the smaller
amount. / called the attention OF the bank
oficidls TO this state of AFFAIRS and was
Informed that IL was none OF our business:
/ was then transferred to the discount and
exchange department
Mr.. Dougherty would bring in checks for
large amounts, payable in most instances TO
a school furniture firm in Chicago or a
plumbing firm in st. Louis. With these
checks he would purchase New YORK.
Chicago or st. Louis exchange. made pay
OF the endorsements on the drafts found
that in many Instances they had been used
n hs PFsyat,ea bushes Ss S,asrs In iS@s iSss
firms on the draft without their knowledge,
putting his own Initials under the signature.
laid the matter before Mr.. Cook. the
National bank examiner. for this district.
Upon his advice l laid the matter before
the attorney Eeneral at Springfield. He
of Peoria county, which j did. l also laid
the matter before S. o. Spring. cashier of
the bank, Transactions OF that kind then
Dougherty said that he kept three sets of
funds in New York. Chicago and st. Louis.
When was called before the grand jury
there were exhibited many changed checks
In one instance check charged to the
school fund had been raised from $24 to
So $50 The stub showed $24. In another
was drawn for 80 100. The stub which had
originally read S27 had been raised to 81
80 The last two figures on the stub were
in green ink. the first two I'm black.
was discharged from the bank only last
Saturday.
At the meeting OF the Peoria Clearins
House association at noon it was voted to
tender loan of $4,000 to the Peoria Ma
tional bank. II in the judgment of the d.
rectors it became necessary. owing to tbs
unsettled condition OF financial affairs OF
the hank, following the withdrawal OF
President Dougherty. under indictment.
bank Closes Its Doors.
AS direct result of the indictment OF
n, c. Dougherty for forgery yesterday tbs
directors of the Peoria National bank. o'
which he was president. announced shortly
after midnight this morning that they haC
decided to discontinue business and woulC
call in the comptroller of the currency tC
wind up the affairs of the institution. tn,
meeting of directors lasted all evening be
hind closed doors. II was admitted that
disastrous run would be inevitable today
and the only course was TO liquidate a
once. The loan Of 10000 by the Peoris
Clearing house was tied up in such wis,
that IL could not be accepted II wal
learned that quiet Withdrawals from m,
bank had been going on all day.