The San Francisco call., 1909-01-12
.E.B.SIGNOR MAY Be
INDICTED NINE TIMES
Forger Faces Many Counts
When Alameda Grand
jury Meets Today

OaAL<A4ND, Jan. 1l.-Ereder1Ck b.
Signor will be indicted upon seven to
nine counts of forgery by the grand
jury tomorrow, if the plans of District
Attorney w. H. Donahue do not go
awry- Surface indications are strong
that the evidence which will be placed
before that body will call for the con-
fessed forger's Indictment upon sep
arate counts, including one for each
of the four 100000 notes bearing
James A. Murray's fictitious signature,
one for the $4,000 sight draft, one
for the $4,000 sight draft and one for
the 100000 sight draft, which were
used by Signor at various stages of his
dealings with Tyler Henshaw and his
brother, William G. Henshaw
OTHER INDICTMENTS
Indictments will also in all nkeli-
hood be asked against Signor for the
forgery of Murrays name to the power
or attorney, which played a part in
the negotiations as we'll as the pur-
ported agreement by which Murray
was supposed to have obligated him.
self to buy 100000 worth of cement
company bonds.
With this record confronting Signor,
based upon an idea that no crime was
committed because no money actually
passed, the theory is strong in official
circles that Signor will save the county
the cost of a trial by pleading guilty
and trusting to a prayer for clemency
TO save himself from the extreme PEN
atty of the law, a IA years sentence
10 Imprisonment in a state peniten-
tiary
The police have learned that a short
time prior to his arrest Signor made
several visits to George Earl Kelly,
cashier of the Mutual life insurance
company in San Francisco, represent
Ing himself as an agent of Tyler Hen
shaw. During his first visit Signor told
Kelly that Henshaw was expecting to
receive large sum of money from
the east through the Mutual life insur-
ance company, and that he was going
to invest the money in real estate for
Henshaw. A few days later Signor
called upon Kelly again and asked
whether the money for Henshaw had
been received Upon being told that
1t had not be went away again, but
returned few days afterward with a
similar query.
This time Kelly told him that he
had not been notified that the eastern
agencies of the Mutual life insurance
company had been instructed to for
ward any money to Henshaw, and that
II any such transaction were contem-
plated he would surely have been in
formed about it. Signor persisted that
the money was due to arrive soon.
whereupon Kelly told him fatty that
he did not believe him. In spite of
this assertion, Signor paid several more
visits to Kelly, but finally said that
ne must have made a mistake in the
name of the company through which
the money was coming and that he
would ask Henshaw to investigate.
Kelly saw him no more after that.
KELLY TELLS STORY
When Signor's arrest was made pub
lie Cashier Kelly called upon Captain
of Detectives Petersen and told the
story of Signor's visits to his office. de-
claring that he believed the accused
forger was merely trying to hoodwink
him and work his way into his conf
dence. For a time the local authorities
considered the proposition of calling
Kelly before the grand jury as a wit
ness to show the character of Signor's S
operations, but it was decided that
there were already enough witnesses to
insure the Indictment of the young
speculator for forgery
Carl Eisenschimmel. the handwriting
expert will testify before the grand
jury tomorrow that the signatures of
James A. Murray to the notes and drafts
were forgeries of the crudest character
by Signor. Eisenschimmei presented
the results of his examination of the
papers to District Attorney Donahue to-
day. The expert said that all of the
Murray signatures to the notes and
drafts. to the power of attorney and
to the purported agreement to pur-
chase cement company bonds, were
wretchedly weak attempts to simulate
cial stress upon the weakness of the
effort to initiate the trembling pen of
an aged and i'll person.
Besides the testimony of Eisenschim-
mel, District Attorney Donahue. who
will have personal charge of the hear
ing before the grand jury, will call
William G. Henshaw, president of the
Union Bank of Savings; Tyler Henshaw:
Cecil T. Walker, the Henshaws' priyat e
secretary; Murray and his attorney.
Harry T. Creswell; Captain of Detec-
tives Petersen and Chief of Police Will
son, and a newspaperman to whom Sig
nor is said to have confessed that he
forged Murray's name to the various
documents. Donahue expects to get the
complete story of Signor's dealings
with the Henshaws in the extraordinarv
negotiations which were carried on
with the bankers brother at the outset
over the supposed prospective purchase
of the cement plants securities in
which the Henshaws were interested
WILL>FOLLOw TRAIL
The trail of the forgeries will be fol-
lowed from the time the proposition
was first broached by Signor to Tyler
Henshaw as to Signor's ability to find
a, ra1rr.pf1 for the hopdS
In spite of Signors confessions to
Murray and his tacit admissions to the
police officials, District Attorney Dona-
hue is taking no chances. He is franz
ing his case against Signor so that #
will be complete record. It is Dona-
hue's purpose to present evidence that
will convince the grand jury of Signor's
guilt Independently of any statements
which the confessed forger might have
made. This is being done as a matter
of legal precaution.