The weekly register. [volume] (Point Pleasant, Va. [W. Va.]) 1862-1909, 1905-02-01
GOLD RRICK
Was Genuine, But Han Was Ar
rested For IRVING to Sell It.

The appearance in town yes
terday of Charles Jennings Up
ham, alias, California Charlie, 2
after an absence of 1S years from
the Twin Cities, was noted with
surprise by several of his old ac-
quaintances who knew him in
the days when he was q rising
young attorney of Milwaukee
with connections in this city.
Upham, who appeared to be
prosperous, made no attempt at
concealing his identity, and went
about as if he never had been the
object of profound police aolicita=
ton.
One of his former friends told
the following story of one of the
things charged against uphan
iiathe old but which was
never alleged against him in any
court.
"Gharlie was always a schem-
er," said the friend, "and he is SO
smart that he never willingly
breaks the law-at least in its
letter.
"Out in a South Dakota city,
not far from the Black Hills.
Charlie found himself number
of years ago. He had some
money, but no employment, and
those of US who knew him best
threw the keys of our safety de-
post boxes in the river and, sat
down to watch the humping some
other fellow was going to get.
eHe never did thing for near
ly month, and then onefne day
he emerged from his room with
a mysterious look on his face and
a heavy package under his arm.
"He slid out of the side door
and took a back street toward
the business center of the city.
Finally he reached the First Ma
tional Bank, and with visible
effort at self-control strolled in
and asked for the President.
"The official was in and Char.
lie was ushered in the sanctum
after being carefully inspected by
of the underlings. He
found the President all alone.
CATER carefully closing the
Office door, Charlie told the bank
er that his name was Upham
Charles Jennings Upham, of Mil
waukee, aud that he had a gold
brick worth $4,000 that he wish
ed to sell to the banker. He in
that he wanted the money
in a hurry and would take 3d.
500 IN order to complete the
TRANSACTION.
"The banker reached under
the edge of the desk and gave al
signal to his clerks to call the
police, and then sat back in his
chair and did the best he could
to entertain his visitor until the
officers arrived.
"They did not have to wait
long, and such war of outraged
down trodden innocence you
never heard in your life as Char
ley let out of him.
The police however, were OBJ
durate, and Charlie was rather
roughly handled and thrown in
to the common jail. He pro-
tested that his name was Upham
and that the transaction was per-
fectly legitimate, but they would
not listen to him and for six days
he was kept in prison.
"Finaliy the officers came to
him with an apology that was
fairly a cringe and released him
from the jail, begged his pardon
and tried in a dozen different
ways to square themselves with
their late prisoner.
,sUphram was very independ-
ent at this stage of the game for
the investigation of the police
had proved beyond a shadow of
doubt that the brick was per-
fectly genuine gold all the way
through; that it belonged to him
by absolute right and was worth
all of $4,000.
Cali the town got out of the
affair was suit for $4,000 and
the banker one for a similar
amount. Both matters were