Charlevoix county herald., 1909-01-30


per. Amazing yarns, you newspaper
men write" he greeted me cheerily.
What gives you that thought?" I
queried, thinking how much more
amazing were the experiences in the
life of this man than anything he was
likely TO find in the paper which he
held crumpIed In his hands, and hoping
to get him started telling one OF his
adventures.
II was just reading about a green
goods swindie pulled off in New York
city yesterday. It is strange how men,
who have sense enough to accumulate
a sum OF money, can be so foolhardy
as to part with it on palpable swindle
like this one. And yet you know" ne
continued, there are some shrewd
business men roped in on this self.
same proposition-men who are re-
spected in their home community for
their business sense"
knew in moment there was a
story ready for me. so I quietly filled
my pipe, he pushed over the bottle of
favorite sherry, and this came from
him:
The king Of the greeIrgoods sharks.
was Hank Bonner, alias Red" Mad
fson," Shorty" and q hundred others.
He worked in New York city, and it
was my pleasure to make his acquaint-
ssbce in a picturesque manner.
Hank didn't do indiscriminate adj
vertising as do the green-goods sharks
OF the present time Not Hank. He
picked out his victims with care and
made tho selection of them a personal
matter. lie would make a tour
through the provinces" as he ex-
pressed it, and ore Of these tours that
failed TO land two or three victims was
the rankest sort Of failure. When
Hank had spotted his man he would
return to the city and write him a
personal letter, in which he hit out to
y dot the mans weakest point of
character, whether it was cupidity,
vanity, or downright criminality. Hank
wasn't taking chances in these letters,
for he had seen his victim, talked with
him, tried him out, and so studied
him at close range that Hank gen
orally knew more about the man than
the latter knew about himself.
He kept a close tab on the men
whom he had worked and never tried
to pull off two jobs in the same neigh
borhood. He would nab sucker from
Maine one week and one from Texas
the next. In making his tours he as
sumed different characters, sometimes
1f
of recreation, sometimes an itinerant
minister or book agent. Whatever
character he assumed he acted it to
perfection, and never made a false
play in all his record until he tangled
up with 4 lanky swamp-angel from
Louisiana.
Hank had been down there selling
patent churns, and at a county seat
some distance from the railroad he
had spotted a victim named Simon
Boggs. The sharp characteristic of
Boggs' nature was his suspicion of
everything and everybody. lie must
have been OF Missouri ancestry, if
there is anything in the slang express
sion that is current to-day A really
suspicious man is the easiest victim
of swindle in the world. He is so
careful To investigate every detail of a
proposition before he bites at it. that
If you can once satisfy him in this in
vestigation. he takes everything for
granted after that and you don't have
any further trouble with him.
Boggs had been written lust the
~fryINf uf,~.Gx &c Lat
piece. H. is over there in one of my
scrapbooks, and you can read it some.
time if you think it will interest YOU.
1t had the desired effect, for Boggs
answered with cautious letter. in
which he said that he would have to
be shown" before he would invest in
the money, but that he would take
small quantity If it was the real stuff.
Boggs had more ready money than
any man in his parish, and Hank knew
that If he could rope Boggs in he
would prove we'll worth the plucking.
An appointment was made with the
willy BOGgs and he came on to New
York to look the situation over. Hank
met him at the depot and took him TO
his rooms by n roundabout way in a
hooded carriage so that Boggs never
could have found It again. He was
carried iato a room where money
seemed to be the cheapest commodity
in the world. It lay about in piles on
tables and chairs and the bed and
floor were Uttered with It. His eyes
grew as big as saucers at this vulgar
disregard for Uncle Sans currency.
He was told the customary gag
about the stolen plates and the diff
flculty in working the money off in
too large quantities in New York city,
but was assured that every bill in the
room would pass at the government
treasury or any bank in the city
Boggs had TO be shown. lie was di.