The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-03-22
HOTEL CLERK FACES NUMEROUS CRIMES COMM|TTEDIN IN PAST Bradley Is Identified As We'll
 Known Criminal In
 Chicago REFUSES TO TALK ABOUT HIS PREVIOUS 0FFENSES Elmer Hoyt of Chicago Charges Young Man In Bessemer With Causing
 Mother To Lose Her

Bessemer, March 21-(special) )-At last the case that has been creating such sensation for the past few days has been settled and the man that has been acting as day clerk at the Grand hotel in this city and posing as Harry F. Bradley, has been positively identified as Erie c. Grlf- fnburg of Chicago, and he is wanted on charges ranging all the way from petty larceny to forgery
 Special Detective M. P. Dugan of the Chicago police force arrived in this city this evening at o'clock, accompanied by MT. Elmer Hoyt, also of Chicago. MT. Hoyt is the man that started out some time ago to find Griffinburg after he had found out that Griffinburg had forged his name to a note amounting to S60. The scene at the city jail when the officer and Mir Hoyt arrived was indeed a most dramatic one. The news had spread that the officer was on his way from Birming- ham, and owing to the widespread public ity given the case, about 50 citizens were on hand to see that the prisoner was properly identified, and offer such advice as might be of any benefit to Detective Dugan.
 The gentlemen were taken to the war den's office. and Griffinburg was brought out for inspection The first man to speak was MT. Hoyt, and it was evident that he was very much affected. He prefaced his remarks by calling Grifflnburg by name-Erle-and telling him that he thought he might be very lonesome way down in the southland, and for that req son he had decided to come down and look him over. MT. Hoyt then told him that he was indeed sorry to be called upon to meet him in any such fix, and he was tempted to slap his face right then and there. He told him that he had betrayed every imaginable trust, and that he had sent his mother to an insane asylum by his acts, and in that place she had died forgotten by him after she had done everything that a mother could possibly do for a boy. He told him that there was one thing that he would have to ac- count for at another time, and that thing was a broken heart, because he said there was no doubt but that Griffinburg had
 
 heart Hoyt then said he could not stand to talk with him any more because he had known him when he was wee bit of a lad and he had known his mother before he was born. With these remarks he got up and walked from the room.
 Detective Dugan then produced a picture of Griffnburg and asked him if he knew who it was. Griffinburg would answer nothing. Mir. Dugan then read the charges that he had brought along with him, which read as follows:
 Record of Erie c. Griffinburg: October 2S 1905, passed worthless check for $25 at the Douglas cafe, Thirty-ffth street and Cottage Grove avenue, Chicago.
 November, 19O5 passed worthless check on MT. Hoyt at Marshall Field & Go. for SG0. Same month stole three oriental rugs, valued at $400 from H. s. Wye, 4SOl Lake avenue, Chicago, who later moved to 442 East Forty-second street Later on went to Milwaukee where he stole diamonds and jewelry valued at SLIGO, the property of Mrs. Esther Runyon, then liv- ing at the Schlitz hotel, by means of forged order on the clerk, while Mrs. Runyon was in a hospital. Her present address is 641S Stewart avenue, Chicago. Also passed forged check for $500 on the Bankers National bank of Chicago, drawn against the account of Won Herman Dru-- company, at Thirty-first street and h. diana avenue, where Griffinburg was en- ployed as cashier. His father, however, saved him from prosecution in that casa Ey signing notes to make good this loss.
 After MT. Dugan had read these charges he asked Griffinburg if he had anything to say. Griffinburg simply made answer that If he (Dugan) would show him the papers necessary to take him away, he was willing to go. Dugan informed him that the papers would be In this city III good style on Monday.
 Dugan then told him that he was want ed in number of places. He was wanted in Texas on charge of forgery; ne was wanted in Courtland county, Cali fornia on a charge of like nature and he believed that there were several other charges pending against him in different states He said, however, that he had only presented the Chicago charges. Grif- fiinburg was indeed a pitiful sight, sur rounded as he was by the officers, the citizens and the different newspaper men. He was an entirely different man from the seemingly light-hearted and accom- modatings hotel clerk of only few days before He absolutely refused to talk and after MT, Dugan had talked to him about five minutes he was led back to his cell, where he is destined to spend the most miserable Sunday of his entire life.
 The case is most certainly pathetic one from several standpoints. Griffenburg is quite a young man, possibly 25 years of age. He is refined and has an ex- tremey pleasing address, and 1t has been