The morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1899-1930, 1907-08-09
A VERY SUSPICIOUS
MATTER
A NEWSPAPER SOLICITOR ARREST.
ED LAST NIGHT MAY DEVELOP
SOMETHING INTEREsTING--s0ME
PECULIAR TRANSACTIONS.

~ HfhshtlVnhl uIltsl WIS HlsinS ny
Chief Of Police Gammcl last night when
be placed In custody for solicitin with
ont license, man giving his name as
III. A. Gowdy, New York"
Gowdy has been in Astoria for some
time soliciting for orders for Labor Day
edition Of the Portland Labor Press Of
Portland In connection with which will
he published the Annual Labor Review.
Gowdy's plan was 10 call on the busi.
ness men OF this city and holding forth
inducements In the way Of write-ups,
to secure from them orders for certain
numbers Of copies at 5 cents per copy.
Strange as II may seem he found many
who placed orders with him and II is
said that he secured In the neighborhood
Of $500 worth Of orders signed by promi.
nent men Ia the business world.
The First National Bank. through Its
cashier, 3. s. Gordon, signed an order
for 200 copies at the regular cents per
copy. Mr.. Gordon marked the figures
5000 In ink In the lower corner and
the word deliver" was written In pencil
beneath. In the body Of the order the
900 copies originally written in pencil
has evidently been raised to 800 as
the order now reads for 500 copies On
the top border Of the printed order II is
claimed had been written that copies
oi the paper were TO be paid for when
delivered but this had been erased.
Across the face Of the receipt was writ
ten paid" in pencil. Evidently this
order was shown TO prospective victims
a. an inducement Tor them TO sign or.
ders. He collected on the orders at
once and when arrested had In his pos
session s222.35 in cash and u postal or.
der in his favor for $50.
Several business men hold Gowdy's
receipts for various sums ranging from
IS upwards the whole aggregating about
500 as mentioned above.
Gowdy's methods of intimidation led
TO his undoing II appears that when he
was refused an order he would threaten
the party refusing and one OF the parties
so threatened was Albert Dunbar. Mr..
Dunbar not liking these methods tele-
glaphed to the Portland Labor Press re.
garding Gowdy and the following was
received at the telegraph Office at 4,46
y nj;
PORTLAND, Aug, s, 1907.
Albert Dunbar, Astoria.
Ill. A. Gowdy has no authority to
solicit In Astoria.
PORTLAND LABOR PRESS"
On receipt of this reply Chief Gammel
was consulted with the result that
Gowdy was taken in charge shortly be-
fore o'clock,
Chief Of Police Grtzmacher oi Port.
land was telephoned to and asked to as
certain ii Gowdy was in any way con.
nected with the paper which he claimed
to represent, An answer was received
that he was working for another party
who had contract with the paper.
II Is reported tht very few business
men of the city escaped the wiles of
the accused and it is a sad commen-
tary on the loyalty to Astoria and the
business acumen oi some who in other
matters aln known to be good business
men. But while there are several good
men on the list there are many who
have always decried advertising and
have used the old saw "it is throwing
money away"
Ii the list of victims We're published,
md it is long one, it would be found
that it contained many whose subscrip,
ton to any local scheme TO advertise
Astoria is small or nothing at all. Yet
they will bite at On outside proposition
That is only expected by the promoters
TO cate hthe gullible. Experience teaches
but it takes dained lot of it sometimes
with some people.
Do you hold receipt?