New-York tribune., 1915-10-15
NINE ROUNDED UP
In AUCTION RAIDS
Evidence Collected by
Tribune Bureau of In
vestigatiOnS.
SILVER SPOONS WERE
COPPER AND NICKEL
WalIstein's and Woods's Offices
Make Arrests Three Sales
Places Affected.

Charged with misrepreserting the
goods they auctioned. Two auctioneers
were arrested yesterday afternoon. as
the result Of the work Of c. +. La
Vigne, director OF The Tribune Bureau
OF Investigations, and his assistants.
Four other auctioueers and three addi-
tional men were served with subpPnas
calling upon them to appear before
Commissioner Leonard Wailstein. Of
the Department Of Accounts Men
from the Offices o.. Commits .onor Wall
stein and Police Commissioner Woods
aided in the work
Tho arrests wee made on warrants
issued By Che. Magistrate NcAdoo,
and the prisoners gao their names as
Charles T. SchaTcr. liS Atlantic Ave
nue. Brooklyn. and George Silvia. l0l
West 130th Street. silvia Is forty
seven wears old. and was arrested in
a store used as an auction room at
1871 Park Row. Schafer gave his age
as thirty-four. He was arrested al an
auction room az Pearl Street and Park
Row. The arrests were made by De
tectives Thomas A. Healy and ltalio
Cassetti. of the Central Office. The
prisoners were arraigned before Magis-
trate Ten Eyck. in rhe Tombs Police
Court, and were held in $500 bail for
examination on October 19.
While the two aucrioneers we're held
in the Tombs court prison waiting for
bondsmen TO appear Mr. LaNlgne, ac-
companied by John Kenny. chlet eX-
amincr of the Department of Accounts.
and Detectives Healy, Cassetti and
Joseph Pugisi, went 20 an auction
room in Fourteenth Street and served
subppnas on five. The result was an
immediate closing UP Of shop. and the
red nag Of the auctioneer was hauled
down and deposited in the store with
the stock
The complaining afFidavits on which
the warrants were issued against
ccha.rer and Silvia are similar. both
being based on an alleged violation of
Section 1854 of the Penal Code. In
his complaint against Schaifer. Mr..
LaViene alleged that on October II. ac-
ccmpanied by George Newell Moran,
ore Of his assistants, he visited the
rooms at Pearl Street and Park Row,
where Schaffer was auctioning OF
watches. fountain pens, opera glasses
and other articles represented al
silverware.
When Schairer offered for sale box
Of knives, forks and spoons, which. II
is alleged. he pronounced 10 be gen
uine Rogers silver, 1881, quadruple
plate Mr.. LaVigne bid on them, and
they were knocked down TO him at
S525.
These we're taken the next day 10
". II. Disch, the New York manager
for William A. Rogers, Limited, foi
appraisal Mr.. LaVigne alleges that
Mr. Disch declared the goods sold by
Schaffer to be nothing but Rogers
slver-nickel and not genuine Rogers
silver. They did not contain bit OF
silver. They were made of compost
ton Of copper, spelter. tin and nickel
known in the trade as silver nickel.
The high polish on them was obtained
bv bufing. Wholesale they were worth
$3.50, and also. according 10 the state
mcnt attributed TO Mr.. Disch. retail for
not more than S..
Mr. Silvia was arrested on the all
dav:t Of Mr.. Moran. He alleged that
Silvia. on October II. represented a
boy OF Rogers silver nickel as Rogers
siiverware, guaranteed not for five or
zen wears. but FOX twenty-five years,
and would last a lifetime quadruple
plate upon white metal. and twelve
pennyweight Of silver 70 knife For
this box OF silver nickel Mr.. Moran
paid $3.50.