The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1906-02-09
Auditor .Ashbrook Of
Canton Believes There
Was an Accomplice
and Prosecutor Says
He Will Take Action.
The Forged Bonds Have
Not Yet Been Turned
Over to the City-Were
Duplicated Five ] ines.
Ashbrook to Testify.

Cleveland, o., Feb. 5.-Leland w.
PTioT's forgeries amount to the stu
pendous sum of $1,2G0,000 instead of
$1,000, 900. An additional 100000 in
forged Canton water works extension
bonds have been discovered by City
Auditor A. A. Ashbrook, OF Canton.
The Canton forgeries now amount to
100000. Ashbrook now believes Pri-
or had an accomplice.
Auditor Ashbrook came to Cleve-
land Sunday and had conference
with Hayden & Miller and attorneys
nj. b. and II. III. johnson, represent
ing the holders of the spurious bonds.
At the conference, also, were several
Of the officers of institutions which
loaned Prior money on the forged
bonds.
When the Prior forgeries we're first
brought to light, Immediately after the
brokers' suicide, it was announced that
the issue Of 100000 worth of Canton
water works extension As had been
forged but once. Investigation in the
few days following showed that Pri-
or had forged the Canton issue three
times.
The 100000 thus gained, with Pri-
Or's other forgeries, brought the total
then known to the million mark At
torneys of bankers committee at that
time assured Auditor Ashbrook that
three Implications were definitely
known to be the extent of Prior's for
geries of the Canton issue.
When Ashbrook demanded the spur
ious bonds in order that the city
might avoid all risk of the payment
of interest on bogus coupons, the
Cleveland representatives promised to
collect the bonds as soon as possible
and turn them over to the city OF
Canton before the next payment OF
interest, Feb. Is.
This agreement led the Canton Of
fetal to abandon the contemplated
plan of suit for recovery of the forged
issues. The forged bonds have not
yet been turned over to Auditor Ash,
brook
Instead of getting the bonds" says
Ashbrook, 81 was met on this secont
trip with the announcement of the ex
istence of two more forged issues.
have brought back coupons of foul
of the five forged issues, A, B, ID anC
e. A epecimen coupon of bogus issue
e is to be sent to me.
THE genuine issue bore no letter
Prior added the letters to give tn,
forged issues the appearance of au
thorized Implications. l will send cou
s,f nh L4 src q.
Kountze Bros, New York, and tn,
fact that they all bear letters will
Insure Canton against payment of in
terest on bogus coupons. The bank
ers' committee has promised to turl
over TO me or to destroy in my pres
? ence all the forged bonds by the en'
Of the month.
prior forged all the issues. thinl
he had help. Cleveland people ex
pressed the same opinion to me. Is
sue A of the forged bonds was green
as were the bonds of the genuine is
sue, but slightly different i'm shape
Issues B, D and Il were brown or choc
Olate. Issue C, / am told is green
The forgery of my name and of tn
name of Mayor w. H. Smith on issu
A was pretty clumsy. The letters
in my name were too high above tn
line. The forgeries on series d shoy
\what practice will do. They were al
most perfect. l am sure that tn
same hand wrote all the forged sig
natures and l call it clever piec
of work"
Auditor Ashbrook's statement tina
he believed Prior had an accomplic
was read to County Procesutor Nc
Mahon Monday. He said:
1.-THE members of the bankers com
mittee will be called to testify befor
the grand jury So will Auditor Ash
brook, Of Canton, who will be aske
to tell why he believes that PTio
had an accomplice.
THE forgeries. believe, were don
by one man, whose work improved tn
more issues he forgot. | cannot sa
Just when the committee and Ash
brook will be called, but 1t will b
soon"
"The bankers committee ha
known for some times that the tota
of forgeries would run above $1,100
Geo." said a member Monday. "Ther
is no doubt that the Canton issue ha
been duplicated five times, but on
of the issues, SO far as we have dis
covered, was not put out in full. T
our knowledge, there have been float
ed $1,135,000 OF the forgeries, Anotf
er $4,000 is suspected, and there
NO assurance that the entire issue
not out somewhere"