Los Angeles herald., 1908-03-02
LOOKS LIKE
LARGE FAKE
POLICE
FORTY MEN CLAIM TO HAVE
BEEN vlCTIMlZED
$1,000 TAKEN FROM POOR MEN, IT
is ALLEGED
Fellows Who opened Office Are Now
Missing and TWO Score of Needy
Men Look for Repa-
ration

A delegation Of abonlt forty men ol
all walks in life. from laborers to book
keepers. appeared at the police sta
tion yesterday afternoon and asked the
police to aid them to recover money
which they had paid out for fees te
what the police say appears to be
huge fake of an alleged employment
agency which has been conducted fol
some time in the Hellman building al
All South Main street.
According to the stories told by the
men a number of alluring advertise
nents have been printed in the want
columns of morning newspaper, ask
ing for timekeepers for a lumber COM
pany, and Offering wages OF Sf5 pei
month and expenses.
Last Tuesday other advertisements
appeared, asking for tally" men. lum-
ber graders, clerks and other employees
in and around lumber mill. Wages
ranging from $50 to $1e0 per month
were offered.
All of these advertisements requested
that application be made to the Em-
plovers' Clearing house" AL South
Main street On the door of the offlce
of this concern appeared the names OF
Andrews and MargraHe, managers.
Jobs Looked Tempting
All of these positions were tempting
ones to the scores of unemployed in the
city and the firm of Andrews & Mar
grave did d rushing business booking
applicants for the different places.
Each and every applicant, number
ing all told some 100 men, were en-
gagged if the necessary fee of SO TO
$40 was deposited by each.
They were informed their money
would be returned to them in case they
did not get the places.
All were told that the superintendent
of the big lumber firm was in san
Pedro, arranging for the handling OF
lumber shipments, and that he would
on Sunday meet all of the prospective
employees in the office of the EN-
plovers' Clearing house" and arrange
for their shipment north to the scene
of their duties.
Thursday one of the applicants for a
position as tallyman went to the office
to ascertain if he could have personal
interview with the superintendent of
the company and found that the names
of the managers on the office door had
been erased and the firm name Camp
bell & Co." substituted.
Explain 1t to Him
On inquiring about this he was in
formed that Mr. Campbell and Mr.
Margrave had bought out the interest
of Mr.. Andrews, but that all the ex-
listing contracts would be carried out.
Sunday morning at 10 o'clock was
appointed for nearly fifty of the men
to see the superintendent at the Of
flee, and the remainder We're to call at
o'clock in the afternoon.
All day yesterday the Railways of the
Hellman building were thronged with
men, and finally being asked by the
ianitor of the building what they
want d they answered that they We're
waiting to see the employment agents
and were informed in reply that the
men had vacated their offices on Fri
day and had not been around the plAce
since.
The men then went to the Police
station to seek such relief as was pos
sible under the circumstances, but were
told to appear this morning and see
the prosecuting attorney.
1t is thought by the police to be
highly probable that Campbell, An
a cruel swindle upon these men, and
that after clearing up more than $1,000
in about ten days they have left.
Warrants will probably be ISSUED for
their arrest today, but that they will
be arrested is doubtful
Earlier in the week the police re-
ceived other complaints of the same
concern, but when an investigation was
made it was found that the partner
who had sold out had done all the
hiring and collecting Of fees, and as he
was not around the office nothing
could be done