El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-09-01
Two of Them Take Joy Ride
in the Valley and a Third
Goes to Juarez-All Are
Under Arrest.

Two infantrymen Of the 23rd infan-
try are in the guard house at Fort
Bliss, one in the Iuarez Jail and two
city ticket agents are temporarily out a
total Of s792.35 because of a bit of
high financing legally classified as
forgery Of government vouchers, ac-
cording TO the charges which, will be
preferred against the soldiers three.
Thursday afternoon privates Paul
c. Hit of company E, Clarence E. To-
bias of company G, and Walter II.
Crane of the machine gun platoon.
succeeded in having cashed four
vouchers at the Santa Fe and South
western city ticket offices, obtaining
a total of s7s2.35 from these two Of
fices Crane and Tobias left the post
at I o'clock Thursday afternoon, came
downtown and succeeded in having
three of the vouchers cashed by James
s. Morrison, city passenger agent of
the Santa Fe, through the First Ma
tfonal bank. Hit came downtown at
2:25 p m. Thursday and succeeded IN
getting voucher cashed at the South
western ticket office, p. O. Gardner
giving him s1S5.10 in cash and retain
ing Splits for the price of ticket to
Kansas City, which the soldier was to
have called for later. These vouchers,
It is charged, were rank forgeries.
Scheme Employed.
The scheme for forging the vouch-
ers or finals" according to adjutant
Frederick Young, was planned by the
three men who were connected with
the telephone service at the post.
Crane and Tobias had been company
clerks and were familiar with the
forms Of the final vouchers. which are
payable at the paymas ter's office and
which are used in issuing the final
discharges of the men. The three men
divided the work, one agreeing to get
the vouchers another to fill them
out and third to sign them, according
to the regimenta1 adjutant. AS far as
can be discovered at the post, no other
soldiers were in the scheme.
Went to the Bank.
When the three vouchers, calling for
s635 were presented to the Santa Fe
city passenger agent, there was not
sufficient funds in the cash drawer to
pay them Mr. Morrison took them
to the First National bank, one of the
soldiers accompanying him. Cashier
Edgar Kayser examined the vouchers,
. and, suspecting something wrong. tel
ephoned to the post. The telephone line
was busy and the Santa Fe city agent
agreed to guarantee the validity of the
vouchers if they were cashed. A ticket
to Kansas City, costing se7.75. was
bought as blind by the soldiers. AS
soon as cashier Kayser could get into
communication with the post 1T was
learned that the vouchers were for
geries and an investigation was start
| ed at once by adjutant Young
Southwestern "Stung"
In the meantime, private Hit had
succeeded in having a voucher cashed
at the Southwestern ticket office. The
voucher called for s212.S5. and to de-
ceive assistant ticket agent Gardner,
he bought a ticket for Kansas City.
the amount of which was taken from
the total sum, receiving s1S5.10 and
leaving the ticket to be called for later.
The signature of Lieut.. Crea, OF the
machine gun platoon, was forged to
the vouchers in each case, 1T is de-
c1ared, the forgeries being in ink In
crude imitation of the lieutenant's
signature.
Hit went to Juarez with his money
and proceeded to spend it in having
big time. He was discovered in the
Mexican town about o'clock and
placed under arrest Tobias and Crane
secured an automobile and went down
the valley with two women, who gave
their names as Mabel Leonard and
Madge Meadows. Returning about 8
o'clock, the men went back to Fort
Bliss, where they were placed under
arrest by the commander of the guard.
who had been searching for the miss
ing men. The women were also taken
into custody as being accessories.
When the men were arrested. they
succeeded in slipping $500 of the mon
ey they had obtained to the women,
and it was later found on their per-
sons, officers declare
Soldiers Start Search.
AS soon as 1t was learned at the
post that the forgeries had been COM
mitted. force of 40 soldiers in uni
form and carrying sidearms, and
number of soldiers and officers in plain
clothes were detailed to police the
town and Juarez in search Of the men.
Hit was located in Juarez by Lieuts.
C1agget and Morrow. Then the other
two men were arrested by the corporal
of the guard at the post and taken into
custody by the commander of the
guard, and locked up. L. L. Holland,