University Missourian. [volume] (Columbia, Mo.) 1908-1916, 1909-02-11
Sperry Pilson Breaks
Down and Tells
Whole Story.
0UAILS AND COVERS
Il Shall Go Nad," He Cries as
Nissourian Reporter
GrillS Him.

"We wanted the building for our
Selves" walled Sperry Pilson, secretary
of the NJ. A. C. Y, this morning, after
he had been arrested as the ring leader
in the, greatest graft ever perpetrated
in the Middle West. 49,.
After four hours sweating he broke
down completely and confessed in full
and incriminated practically every
member of the staff.
''We wanted the building for our
Selves" he walled again and again.
"The citizens and students who contrib
uted the money for the building, in
tended it to be student building, but
we had the money in our own hands,
so we used it to put up an NJ. A. C. Y.
for ourselves"
;.''We thought We could make lots of
money by sticking the student organ
izations that rented sour rooms in the
building..' 81, : -
Covers Before Interviewer.
But the people got wise to lis, and
wouldn't give any more money for the
building, and then the students got
wise to us, too"
'They call us the champion grafters
and We are publicly insulted in the
streets"
20, 1 shall 90 mad" he exclaimed,
as he covered before his questioner.
The conspiracy was unearthed by
Sock and Dull, two reporters for the
University Nlissourian. Sock went to
Pittsburg, and learned that Andrew
Carnegie had offered to complete the
building, provided it was strictly a
student building, but Sperry Pilson, the
secretary, turned him down, with the
excuse that his money was tainted.
The real reason is contained in Pill
sons confession.
Dull, after much secret work in Co.
lumbia, and by paying a certain men,
ber of the staff the sum of % cents,
was given their letter file from which
he extracted enough evidence to send
the secretary to the FIJI Islands as
food for the cannibals.
He also found out that they had hir-
ed poor students to work for them,
and then hadn't paid them a cent.
He found out that they had swiped
blue print of the seats in the audi
torium from a needy Engineering stu
dent, who was earning a little money
to pay his way through school with
it.
"Reuben" a Victim.
He found that they had grated
Reuben" into paying for lecture
course that the students had turned
down. They had called the lecture
course "The University Lecture Course"
so that the students would not get
wise that it was another NJ. A. C. Y.
graft.
A card was found in Sperry's desk on
which was written, 81 promise to pay
to the Secretary of the NJ. A. c. Y.
for his salary this year, S.. Geo. A.
Needystudent."
With this clue they found out that
last fall the ladylike Sperry hired a
couple of professional book agents, who
got Freshmen and other persons not
acquainted with M. A. c. Y. methods,
to sign these cards and subscribe an
amount of money toward the unfinished
Student Building. Many students sign
ed these cards, without reading them,
and as a result instead of subscribing
toward the building they merely were
contributing to the salary of Sperry
Pilson, the ladylike secretary of the
NJ. A. C. Y.
Pilson has turned states evidence
and confessed, incriminating the entire
staff, and it is expected that he will be
sent to the FIJI Islands as food for the
Cannibals They want to disgust the
cannibals with their practice of eating
human flesh, for they think that after
they have eaten Sperry Pilson they will
mend their ways and cut out their can
nibalism.
I'm l1T6n M011fnl