The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1917-06-19
LADY TRILLS FLORENCE
Female Check FOrger Gives Police.
men and Others hace.
Wilmiu ugton Star.

men and others a mace.
Wilmington Star.
Mrs. O. o. Grant, or Mrs. C. @
Whitney, who is held here in thu
county Jail on the charge of passingy
worthless checks on Wilmington bu-
siness men, and who made such
sensational escape from the jail in
Florence before being brought here,
stirred that South Carolina town to-
quite a pitch of excitement, according
to a story in the Florence Times Of
the day she attempted escape. The
GtorJ follows:
Florence was treated to a rich and
novel sensation this morning, young
woman dressed in mans clothing.
fleeing from a pursuing crowd of men
and children, jumping fences with the
agility of an acrobat, and finally run
down and sent to where her orfenses
apparently began Nobody knows the
woman or if they do know her they
will not tell. She Is ABOUT 20 years
of age and is supposed to be a Mrs.
Whitney, or Whitney, as the telegram
read, said to be the wife OF an engi-
neer in Wilmington, or by others who
claim to know, well known Wo-
man of the demimonde of that town.
She has been, passing worthless checks
Her plan was to take a check to a
furniture store, buy half or two thirds
it's value and get the rest in cash. She
got off the train at WinOna yesterday
morning, got car to FLORENCE. went
in at the front door of a boarding;
house and out the back, got anothelM
car and went to Lake City, giving the
driver the slip there, also, ct is said
and was finally arrested by the chief
of police OF that town on order from
the sheriff here.
"She was brought to Florence and
delivered to the jailer, but as she was
so lady like in her appearance Mr.
and Mrs. Bryant gave up one of their
rooms in the jail to her. Mr. Bryant
anxious about her, sat up all night
on the piazza of the jail watching the
exit to the room. At dawn she got
him to call Lake City for her on the
long distance telephone, and talked Oh
breakfast and returning to Wilmington
without trouble, but when Mr.. Bryant,
the jailer, went to answer the phcne
from Lake City she dressed in the jail
| er's Sunday suit. hat and necktie. slip
ped out of the back door and jumped
! the high fence in the back of the jail
{! and made her way to. Palmetto street
where she stopped some negro COOKS
going to service and asked for a car.
/ While talking with these Mr.. J. e.
! Justice suspected something wrong
and saw that it was woman dressed
in mans clothes and arrested her,
but she broke from him and fed.
! He thought he had German spy
| and started in pursuit. She leapeI
over fence that was one rail too high
for Mr.. Justice but the pursuit YES t.
ken up by others on the other side,
and after begging through recently
drowned gardens and flying like bird
over fences and around corners she
was finally taken, ingloriously taken,
and then, like men, every one who
had caught her, wanted to help her
run away some more, and not catch
her, or catching her, keep ner away
from the florrid sheriff for she was
young and pretty; but the sheriff was
! right there in the crowd and he is
a mighty soft hearted sheriff, cut he
does his duty, and. his duty was to take
/ her back to jail and he did so, where
she was again properly attired and
sent to Wilmington on the morning
train.
! In connection with the, q letter
sent out from Charlotte to mayors
| in various towns indicates that pos
sibly there is a widespread CAM
! paign of check flashing. The letter
; follows:
There is a swindling game going
on over this state, and I am using
every means I can to catch the guilty
parties. The game is this: A lady
goes into a, store to make purchase,
, and usually makes it suit to make
, this purchase after banking hours
OF. Saturday afternoon; and after she
makes the purchase she remarks that
the bank is closed and that she has
check for thirty or forty dollars, as
the case might be; she gets the mer-
chant to pay the difference in cash
above what the goods cost, and al
ways gives her residence number in
the city she operates in, and when the
goods are delivered they find that no
such party lives there. She usually
| has the goods delivered about two days
later in oredr to give her time to leave
the city before they are delivered.
"She played her game here with
the Wake County Savings bank OF Ra-
leigh, n c., and presume she Sc
cured a supply of checks here ilE
Charlotte to work the next city sae
| may happen to visit. ii
"This woman is apparently about
26 years old, neatly dressed, and very
modest. She wore glasses, and was
medium build and medium brunette.
Feints and Faints.
An Irish recruit vas being drilled
:, +ho ,,,votor;oc oP cTord-n1oy