Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-03-06
LUMBER DEAL Is SWITCHED
First Interested cavanaugh in Big
Speculation and Then Turned TO
Fake Wrestling Match-Deposted
$4,000 With Crooks Which He
Hasn't Seen Since.
Special to Times. Republican.

detailed statement of the manner j,
which he was fleeced OF $4,000. MI
Cavanaugh says:
l wish thru your columns to make {
statement in regard to the swindle II
the wrestling bout wherein I was In
duced to 50 to New Orleans on TIL
Ipretense Of a timber deal by one Winr
S. Harris, Of Spokane, Wash, and OF
that pretexr got the letters of credi
to make showing to interest the tim.
Der owners there to do business.
Winn S. Harris who I met at Spo-
kane. Wash, on or about Aug. II
t 1904 with a letter of Introduction
from his father, A. B. Harris, of Nav
Hampton, Iowa, whom l had met In
Davenport. Iowa, he having been intro
duced to me by a boyhood friend
Richard Herman. some time before
selling the stock of the Chickinson
Mining Company of Idaho, of which
stock l purchased several hundred
shares, VITA other Davenporters, and
which now is worthless.
First Led to Spokane.
went to Spokane, Wash. to see
| Winn S.. Harris on his representations,
| by letters from time to time, OF TIM
Der he claimed to control and have for
sale and spent several days south Of
Hepner. Ore, about the Blue Noun
tains with a team accompanied by
'Farr!s and his party looking at the
Il her which did not Interest me ut
tie tfrae nw;ngs to various reasons.
ieft lahsls and proceeded to Port
land Orc. Be ere, returning to Daven-
port Iowa aaAin, and from there left
for my ~ ous section Of business
lgaint in stkaasas and Louisiana and
made Pine Buff, Ark, my headquar-
tiers.
l. Occasionally after my return
agar, recivea letters from Mr.. Har-
ris, stating that he he'd snaps in TIM
Der and s3ve brief statements as to
where the ZANE was locsted. etc. and
If I had a.y ready cash to let him
know, end the amount and to come
out again He would generally EN-
close newspaper clippings showing the
same, sometime afterward, had been
sold at q great profit. ! was gener-
ally in no position to 90 n 500 what
he he'd TO offer owing to tins fact
that l was intaresta' i southern TIM
Der AMI had no ready aeyh.
,TurneA Aasets 'rt;s Cash.
In the tall Of teHs N sold out
most Of my interest IN .,.'zansas and
Louisiana, and wr7te Harris that
about Jan. i, / wculi be ready TO
see SOME Of the Snaps III timber he
had been previously writing me about,
and that would have $50. 600 or $45,-
eoG in cash at that time. He i,nmed-s
ately answered me that he then had
men working and had control of a
big tract o. timber in Asotine county,
Washington, by option and otherwise.
in good shape to show me, when he
came past soon.
On Jan. 5, 1907 received the fol-
lowing telegram from Lincoln, Neb..
addressed TO Davenport, Iowa. "Just
arrived from Spokane on my way east
Wire your whereabouts and will meet
interest you. Winn S. Harris" This
telegram was forwarded to me at Pine.
Bluff, Ark. answered to Lincoln
Neb., that I was in Pine Bluff. In re-
ply to this got the following: Lin
coin, Neb., Jan. s. 1907. j. E. Cava-
naugh, care Trelock Hotel Wire me
where can see you Important bust
ness. Winn S. Harris"
i answered pine Bluff, Sunday,
Monday, Tues day, then Little Rock, then
timber investigation several days,
answer" Harris answered Jan. from
Lincoln. will be Gleason's Hotel, Lit
tie Rock, some time Tuesday,"
Again Met Harris.
Meanwhile I was attending to my
business and did not get to meet Har-
ris in Little Rock but got message
there he was in Pine Bluff and to come
there. which I did and met him next
day at Hotel Trulock He then told
me about the timber proposition he
had and exhibited the same with MAPS |
opinions, contracts, ETC., and a news
paper clipping that he represented was I
tut from the Portland Oregonian,
stating that the railroad commissioners
had granted a charter for the build
ngs of a railroad right thru this very
section OF timber where Mr.. Harris
lad the options and gave the prices
With descriptions and estimates of the
rarious tracts of timber, and what the
majority of the balance Of the same
vas. II
I Immediately became interested. it
,eing what / was looking for 1t was
What I had made most of my money
n and it appealed to me to be so good
hat 1 consented to go out and go in
With Harris, to purchase and round it
Up for speculation, when he learned
low was Fixed for ready cash.
Cot Letter of Credit.
] therefore consented and got let
ers of credit, written by my bankers
t Davenport, Iowa, and saw my Pine
bluff banks and got letters from them
H. Harris had left for New Orleans
feantime I had some business to at
end to before going to New Orleans,
4 Pine Bluff. Stopped at Monroe. La,
there I inquired about men investi-
ating timber there, which I had in
ended to buy later. for use or profit.
continued on to New Orleans, La,
here l was met at the depot about
80 a. m, by Harris and Marsh and
AIKEN to the Gruenwald Hotel. where
a suite of two rooms and bath were
n again going over the timber mat
ar which Marsh endorsed Harris prev
JUS stories about and being advised
: the delay In the party that owned
he timber land adjacent to the tim
err in Washington. that we were to
scure there the matter of the wrest.