The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1910-11-17
BY FALSE PRfTtNStS
MARY MCMAHON ALLEGED TO
HAVE OBTAINED GOODS AT
SEVERAL STORES.

Gave Fictitious Names II Is Claimed
in Order to Secure Articles Of Cloth
ing and Later Left City For Several
Days--Arrested by Chief Durkee
Yesterday.
Mary Mcmahon, 10 years old, who
apparently has enough aliases to fill
a book, and who secured wearing APP
parel from four dry goods stores in
Montpelier under alleged false pre-
fences, is in custody of the police as
the result of a very clever piece of
work on the part of Chief of Police
Durkee.
The charge against her is obtaining
goods under false pretences and is
punishable by fine of $1,000 or 10
years Imprisonment, or both.
The girl has been in this city sew
eral months and boarded at the home
of Mrs. James Condor on East State
street, where it is claimed she owed
several weeks board. She lived in
Barre until three years ago and since
that time has staid in various PAGES.
Her mothers name is Webster and
she lives in Cabot.
Mrs. Condor was told by the girl
that she was studying music at the
Seminary and that she worked in the
telephone office nights. On investi-
cation it was found she did work at
the telephone office, but the nights
she claimed to have worked there she
passed in Barre.
Bought Children's Coat.
A lew weeks ago she went into the
dry goods store of Mather e Temple
and bought child's coat and had it
charged to Mrs Bixby, 81 First av-
enue. On investigation it was found
there was no such number on First
avenue.
At the Gleason store she secured
a waist and had it charged to Mrs.
Frank Wheaton, to whom she had APP
piled for work, no doubt thinking that
by having a waist charged she would
be able to get it.
At the McCuen store she got dress
and had it charged, giving her name
as Ada Gleason, Spring street which
is the home of Grand Juror Fred e.
Gleason, who is prosecuting the case
At the Perley e. Pope store she got
dress and gave her name as Miss
Dillon, So Fullerton avenue. 1t was
found no such person lived at the ad-
dress given.
The value of the waist, which was
of silk, secured at the Gleason store
Of g
was marked at $3.50, the dress she
got at McCuen's was marked $11, and
the dress from the Pope store was
marked at $3.50.
Howard Smithers, an employee of
the Temple store, WHO has charge of
the collections, was the first to be-
come suspicious of the girl and he
threatened her with arrest if she did
not settle the bill, after learning she
had given false address.
Would Make Promises.
Each time the girl would promise
to go to the store and pay at a certain
time, but each time would telephone
she was unable to pay that day, but
would name another date on which
she would settle. She did this sew
eral times when Smithers learned in
some way that a girl had obtained {
waist at the Gleason store under cir
cumstances similar to those by which
the coat was secured at the Temple
store and he went to the management
of the store anr made inquiries. i
was decided that the same person haC
pulled off both deals. They soon com
municated with the managers of tn,
Perley E. Pope and the McCuen stores
and in both places it was learned ;
girl of the same description had OBJ
tanned articles and had them charged
A week ago yesterday the managers
of the stores got together and callec
in Chief Durkee. In the evening the.
all went to the girls room at the Con
don home and as the result of a searcl
found the dress she had secured a
the M"""en store, and it is the secur
ing OF this dress under false preten
ces tnat is the basis of the charg
against her
Had Left City.
1t was then learned that the Mon
ahon girl had left the city in com
pany with young man, with WHOM
she had been keeping company, an
had gone to the home of an aunt il
Moretown. AS all of her clothes wer
in her room Chief Durkee decided tn
girl intended to return to Montpelier
He located her, and had watch ker
on her movements. He then starte
in keeping a close watch on the in
coming trains and this was exceed
ingly hard as he had nothing but tn
description of the girl given him 6
the various stores and it was so vagu
that it was nothing more than
thread TO- work upon.
Yesterday morning, however, HI
efforts were rewarded, as the gil
alighted from the southbound trai
that arrived shortly before o'clocl