The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1916-06-08
Ben Mcintosh, Alias CurIey the
Crow, the Hero.
He Drifted Into Topeka Then
He Drifted Out.
MANY CITIZENS LEFT TO MOURN
Much Of Their Hard-Earned
Cash Went With Him.
Story One of the Cleverest
Swindles Ever Perpetrated.

He came to town unannounced, did
Ben Mcintosh, alias Curley the Crow,
and he made his departure in the same
unostentatious manner. But between
his coming and his going there is an
interval, the record of which reads like
a page from the Spanish Conquest.
Ben Mcintosh, alias Curley the
Crow, was some little conqueror, albeit
not a Spaniard With the spring thaw
he came to Topeka unknown and I'M
heralded. He brought only an engag-
ing personality, fund of personal
experiences" running all the way from
Clusters Last Fight down to the pres
ent. and an unanchored tongue.
In one short week, with those facili-
ties. he made himself a parsonage in
Topeka. The first night he was in
town he just happened" to bump into
a reporter and the result of the hap
pening was a thrilling story of Gus
ter'S Last Fight, more vivid than the
picture in Memorial hall smashed by
Blanche Bots. And in that story Cur
ley modestly admitted that he was the
last and only survivor of that historic
| battle.
| Beginning with the thriller Curley's
path was paved with asphalt to make
| progress easy. He was invited to adj
dress this meeting and that meeting.
He told his stories over and over. He
became a local hero for the time be-
| ing. Column after column of adver-
| Using was given him in the news col
umns. A meeting of a local lodge was
| held at the auditorium and Mcintosh
was given the platform. Curley
basked in Topeka's sunshine for two
! or three weeks and reluctantly babe
his friends and admirers goodbye.
Then He Departed.
He left He went away. He de-
parted. And almost Immediately fol-
| CrfI 90 So
quoting telegram from the chief of
police of Albuquerque. The local
| CHIEF, Harvey Parsons, did not know
| it then, but the publication of that
telegram sent blush of shame over
several score of prominent and well
known Topeka countenances. 1t is not
| pleasant for a Topekan to admit, even
| to himself, that he has been bilked.
They didn't talk.
The Topekans referred to are not
| talking voluntarily even now but a
representative of the federal depart
| ment of justice is doing all in his
power to make them talk. CurIey is
wanted by the federal department of
justice and by the department of the
Interior. according to government Of
/ ficials.
The department of justice wants
him for the alleged representation
that he is government agent. The
! department of the interior wants him
| for alleged land frauds. 1t has repre-
sentatives in Topeka today looking up
Curley's local record. But Curley is
| gone. He didn't leave his address
with any of his quickly acquired To
peka friends
A Dear Old Man,
The Ben Mcintosh, alias Curley the
Crow. who took Topeka by storm and
who is described by one Topeka wo-
man as "a dear old man anyway
isn't Curley the Crow at all. according
to the information federal officers
have. They say the real Curley the
Crow has not been off the Yellowstone
| reservation more than two weeks in
| twenty years. Besides that, the real
Curley is not endowed by nature with
the gifts of Topeka's late hero The
| real Cur1ey does not know anything
about Thirty-second degree Masons
the Red Men nor Clusters Last Fight.
Through John w. Fisher, superin-
tendent of Mt. Auburn cemetery, a
government officer today learned the
mode of Curiey's operations in Topeka
Here is the story as told to the gov
eminent official: &.
Curley, after becoming sufficiently
idolized, told a plausible story offer
ing a hook upon which dangled the
well known bait of something for
| nothing. 1t is told that he epreSent-
| ed he had leased from the govern
ment twenty-nine sections of land in
Yellowstone county, Montana, upon
/ WHICH he ndQ Z,uUO,UOU SnSep, IdGCn
houses and other improvements. The
hard hearted government was prepar-
| ing to sell the land in quarter section
1 lots July 10 of this year and Curley
stood to lose all of his improvements
and much of his stock. The price
fixed by the government was $4.25 an
acre.
A Bank Director, Too.
Curley represented himself. the
government found. as a director of the
| Yellowstone National bank and that
bank proposed to make a gift to all
those who assisted Curley and the
bank in holding the land. The plan
was for individuals to file on quarter
sections. the bank to pay the govern
ment $4.25 an acre for the land filed
on with the understanding that the
| land was to be purchased by the bank
from those individuals who filed at
l SO an acre-a clean profit of $5.75
an acre, or 1920 for each homesteader.
The only cash outlay was a trifle of
SIC as filing free and that, of course,
was to be paid to Curley by the indi-
vidual making the filing.
In most instances. the government
finds. the prospect was 30 alluring and
| $1.S40 profit looked SO much better
than 1920, that husband and wife were
easily persuaded to file on two quar-
ters half section. 1t is indicated
by the preliminary Investigations that
fully one hundred Topekans were per-
suaded to file on this government land
all the filing being done through
Curley at the rate of SIS cash per file.
Besides government officials, Chief
of Police Harvey Parsons and Sheriff
L. L. Kiene are looking for Ben Nc
Intosh, alias Curley the Crow
Every seat in the trolley was oc-
cupied- when a group of women got
in. Going through the car to collect
fares. the conductor noticed a man
who he thought was asleep
Wake upi shouted the conductor
Il wasn't asleep said the passen-
ger.
Not asleep" snapped the conduc-
tor. Then what did you have your