The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1909-10-18


bureau drawers on every hand-most
of them forgotten; hundreds of letters
to prospective sharers In mythical es-
tateg In the east and abroad have
been received in this part OF the coun-
try, and some gullible persons have
contributed to funds intended to pay
lawyers for settling these claims-all
to no purpose; there even have been
cases Of purchases hereabout of the
green goods"-supposed counterfeit
money, purporting to be as good as the
genuine, and easy to pass anywhere
But there have not been many big
deals" pulled off by swindlers In the
northwest-big ones like those to
which glllible fasteners have fallen
victims. Possibly this is because the
cleverest confidence men haven't oper-
ated here. They like the thickly set
tied east, where they can find quick
transportation from one big city to an
other, the easier to hide when they
nave turned a trick. And possibly 1t
is due to the fact that northwesterners
are more charry Of such business pro-
jects as "get rich quick" artists pro-
pose.
Difficult and Dangerous Business.
All swindling games are difficult and
dangerous to work nowadays. The
means of prevention are SO efficient
and the punishment, In case of appre-
hension, SO severe. that the element of
risk Is very large.
This increases the interest in swim
dlers. The average person reads ayidly
good detective story-and as much
for the close touch into which it brings
him with somber and exciting world
from which he is removed as because
of the skill SHOWN in catching the
rogue; the gentle woman who would
weep over the sufferings OF fly tan
gled up in fiypaper, will laugh glee-
fully over a safe getaway of a clever
defaulter; the casual, well-dressed
group at sociable or in a club will
listen closely to any ordinary tale of
the underworld.
The Crooks View Of His Trade.
Perhaps not all of these would be-
lieve what those who know the crimi-
nal classes say-that robbers of all
kinds, from the garrotter and slugger
to the ICON man" with his subtle ways,
look upon their profession as being as
legitimate as any other. A crook may
have strong sense OF right and wrong
in all other matters, and still see no
harm in his special business-thi has
been demonstrated time and again.
1t seems that Kleschna's view of
crime is the generally accepted one
among persons Of his class. Doing
your neighfbor," he says, els the great
est game in life" "AN the world plays
It," he tells his daughter Leah Some
go at 1t roundabout and call it bust
ness principles. We fancy fellows go
the straight course, that's ALL"
Classifying the Gold Brick Dealer.
Now, with this definition and dis
tinction, 1t would be interesting to
know whether jamie Bates, or "Arm-
strong, or whoever 1t was that got
Fl. F. Chaffee's SIS, 900 in Minneapolis
the other day, should be classed as
one of those VINO Ego at it roundabout
and call it business principles" or one
Of those who, like Kleschna, the great
Austrian burglar, "go the straight
| course"
The man in the street" having had
no experience in buying or selling gold
bricks, or in pursuing ICON men," is
apt to come to a mixed decision on this
point-that the man who beat the
wealthy North Dakotan went at II
roundabout" but went roundabout
deucedly quick. He is apt to consider
that such a criminal is not above
Kleschna's class; yet there is the other
class of Kleschana's own describing
the one that "calls 1t business prin-
ciples"-and Bates, or Armstrong, put
this thing up to Mr.. Chaffee as g
strictly business proposition.
Thus 1t appears that a gold bricl
dealer Is a hybrid-a cross between {
business man Of certain "principles'
and an ordinary thief. That's on,
reason why he made such a clean get
away A veteran st. Paul thief catch
er says so.
Why II is Hard to Catch Him.
"You see," this policeman said OF
the day after the gold brick deal
"'taint likely the policeIl ever catcl
him. They think IT'S Bates-but when
ever a mans robbed and looks owe
the mugs in the gallery he's sure t
pick out some one of them and say
Yes, that's him.. But nine chances T.
ten he don't know.
when an ordinary strong-arm ma
does a job-just chokes a man an
'frisks' him-we know about who :
go after. Them fellers are all of
certain class, and we've got em a.
spotted-unless they're brand new q
the work, and If they are that usual
shows in the way they. do the jol
But these con men-why, faint likel
we ever saw or heard of 'em before
this part OF the country. Them fel
lers don't pull of jobs like that ever
: week. A $4,000 haul, easy like thi
one was in Minneapolis, ought to kee
'em living in style for years; an
they've just got sense enough not I
try to do another job of that kind un
. til this ones forgotten. Then they
do 1t I'm another part of the country