The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1911-08-11
FORGER BELLS STORY
Fergus Falls Prisoner Tried to Involve
Fargcan--Latter's Attorney Elk
plains Mahon's Innocence.


Farcoan--Latter's Attorney Elk.
plains Mahon's Innocence.
The Fergus Falls Journal OF Thurs
day afternoon contained an alleged
confession of one Bell in which
charges are made against g. w. Ma
hon of Fargo. Mr.. Mahons attention
was called to the article and he re-
ferred the reporter to his legal adj
wiser, Mr.. McEnroe, who stated that the
alleged confession was made at Brock
enridge, where dispositions were taken.
Bell had appeared in Mahon's office
and assumed the name OF Rose, though
his true name was Mccain. Mahon had
merely acknowledged the instrument
had received only notary fee and knew
nothing Of the matter till some time
afterwards when Mccain was arrested.
The latter wrote NOLAN demanding
money and threatening to make con-
fession if Mahon did not come across.
The latter paid no attention to the
case and the alleged forger made good
his threat. The attorney states Ma
hon was entirely innocent in the mat
ter and a hearing will quickly clear
up the case. The Journal article Is as
follows:
G. w. Frankberg was in Broken
ridge wednesday to take the affida-
Wit of D. B. Mccain. alias e. d. Bell,
who is in jail there for attempting
to sell a large tract of land that did
not belong to him.
Bell is the man who sold a tract
of land in Carlisle to Louis Peterson,
Of this city. for 1926, forging the
name of the owner, DIR, Rose of Cali
fornia, to the deed. This forged deed
was acknowledged before w. G..
Mahon. a Fargo notary, and as this
notary certified that he knew Bell
to be DIR. Rose, the owner of the land,
he is liable for the amount which
Mr.. Peterson lost and civil suit has
been begun against him to recover 1t.
The deposition Of Mr.. Bell was
wanted to be used in the trial OF this
civil suit. and he gave 1t freely and
voluntarily Wednesday.
Bell testifies that he signed the
deed and now claims that the Fargo
notary who witnessed 1t received
one half of the money.
His story is that he came up into this
country for the purpose OF clearing
up some money by forging the names
Of owners Of lands to deeds, and In
doing so he had to have some notary
who would witness his signature. He
sets forth that he was In Fargo along
about oct. i. 1910, and asked some-
one in the hotel there for the name Of
a notary and the party referred him
to Mahon Bros, who were conducting
an Office in the Huntington block IN
that city.
He relates that he went to their
offices and talked matters over with
them. and that they entered into an
agreement whereby he was to sign
deeds and they were to witness them,
and divide up the proceeds equally.
He then relates how he was in
Swanville and Halstad, and how he
occa sionally visited their offices in
January or February of 1911, w. g.
Mahon told him to hang around for
few DAYS and he would find some-
thing for him to do. His afhdavit
continues:
"He told me that that man Rose
was gone and that he could not get
me, and then he told me to go down
tn Fergus Falls and start a landofice
under some name, and did so and
picked the name Of Bell Bros, and OPP
Grated there in the land business I'M
der that name, and passed myself of
as one Of the Bell brothers, and
dickeredl around for few days and
got an attorney to draw up a deed
for the land and I forged the name
OF the owner, Rose. to the deed;
took the deed to the office Of the
Mahons in Fargo and w, NJ. Mahon
the elder brother. fixed out the ac-
acknowledgements and put his seal on It
and had 1t witnessed by himself and
some young fellow in there at the
time all according to out previous
agreement and understanding, and
took the same deed after it had been
acknowledged and witnessed back ia
Fergus Falls. then closed the deal
with that man Peterson at Fergus
Falls and he gave me the sum Of
$s25. which I took with me back to
Fargo and gave $3.50 of It to this same
w. g. Mahon. as his share Of the DEAL
| less SIS which figured for expenses.
He then goes on to tell about the
Breckenridge deal which he was just
about to pull off when he was sus-
pected and arrested, and states that he
was to have had $4,000 cash in this
deal. and that he would have given
Mahon $4,000 Of IT.