The Sentinel=record., 1912-09-08
W. ]. ARGUS VICTIM
 OF A BAD DOUBLE
HAS BOGUS MEMBERSHIP CARD OF BUFFALO CHAMBER OF
 COMMERCE.
Presented Falsely Certified Check on Marine National Bank of Buffalo
 and Got Check for s75o.

bulldio, N. r., sept. 7--WhO is the mysterious man of business and bus tle' who represents himself as a mem Der of the Buffalo Chamber of Com merce and who uses the name of Will liam J. Argus and for whom the DO. lice of the country are looking. That IS what more than one rustic produce or stock man and more than one city merchant would like to know, for the fellow, according to complaints made to the police of various cities, has a penchant for going into cities and SUI burban towns and interesting the pros porous inhabitants in the sale of real estate and automobiles. He appears to have an unlimited desire for coun- try land, also an unlimited bang ac- count with which to buy it. Yet. when 1t comes to cashing his checks. so more than one complaint has charged. word comes back from the bank that the check is fraudulent.
 E. $. Wells, successful stock farm operator, of Glen Moore, Mercer coun- ty, N. J., is one of the latest victims whom he tackled but who failed to "materialize.' It was Wells Yankee shrewdness that has made him "in" $750 today instead of "out." MT. Wells has written to the Times to ascertain the identity of the gentleman, and at the same time to complain. Accord ing to the police officials, he will doubtless have considerable difficulty ascertaining, for they regard the mys- terious land buyer as professional bunco artist. There is but one man by the name of William J. Argus residing in Buffalo, and he is highly reputable business man. the president of the Joseph Argus Shoe Manufacturing Company.
 MT. Wells was enjoying the blissful sight of eggs turning into dollars each time an egg popped open and chick popped out in his hennery at Glen Moore on Friday last, when a suave man of five feet, six, inclined to stout ness, of dark complexion, partly bald with piercing black eyes, aquiline nose and the typical expression of sue cessful business man, called upon him with the request for the sale of some land. Mir. Wells was a willing seller when the stranger promptly offered him the first price that Mir. Wells asked The deal was closed in record time and the stranger who had ten dered a card indicating that he was connected with the Buffalo Chamber of Commerce, offered what supposed to be a certified check on the Marine National Bank of Buffalo for S2,S5O. Had the check been for the exact price of the farm, MT. Wells suspicion would not have been aroused, but the nh t., of |. $750 and it was apparent that the stranger was waiting for his change" when MT. Wells surprised him by of fering in return for the excessive check, his own check for the balance, $750. Then, too, MT. Wells dated his own check several days fahead, Sep tember 5. The stranger left with Mr. Wells check and Mir. Wells hurried with the strangers check to d tele- graph office and wired the Marine bank. He says that he got word back that "the certificate was forgery and the man was a fraud" He at once stopped payment on the check and thereby, today he is still in posses sion of his land and his seven hundred and fifty.
 The fellow. according to MT. W Wells letter has a slight lisp few front teeth missing and appears to be about 50 years old.
 Two days before the mysterious man had tried to pull down" s75O in New Jersey, he had appeared in New YoLrk City and had offered check for $1.S00 to the Wood-Harmon Company, real estate operators, for q piece of land in their possession. Again the check was in excess of the purchase price and again he got a check in return on which payment, it
 was said later, was stopped And
 before that, by few days, he was in Cleveland. where he presented a card of Mir. Argus and bought" an automo- bile for s4,500, offering check for S5 000 There, too, hard luck as it may seem, he got a check in return which failed to net him anything. With that check. which was on a New York
 bank, he went to big jewelry house and bought 1000 worth of dia- monds, offering the check as part pay ment and another check of his own to make up the difference. There he did not seek to get any change but simply to get the diamonds. But the diamond people telephoned MT Argus place of business in Buffalo. Mir. Ar. gus was on business trip in the east but his secretary telephoned back that it was impossible that he could be in Cleveland buying diamonds. Thus, again. the mysterious man lost out But, in Detroit he is said to have put one over' for $I00. He caught an au- tomohile firm there for the kind of change he had been seeking The name of the firm is not divuiged, the Detroit police refusing to disclose it.
 Who the scamp is, have no idea, said Mir Argus. He evidently got hold of one of my business cards and is representing himself as me. Why they did not arrest him when they had chance in Cleveland l cannot understand. He must have realized what was coming and kept away from the jewelry store when investigation was started. All l know of him is what I hear from all parts of the country. l have read his description, but 1t fails to tally with any man ever remember of meeting and his sig nature is not at all like mine, so doubt if he ever saw my handwriting