The Morgan City daily review. (Morgan City, La.) 1916-1920, 1918-01-02
She Beat the
Detectives
b. RICHARD MARKEDLY


. Alec Winfield had been married ant
was on his wedding tour with hi
bride. The couple We're at dinner al
Il hotel n Albany when Il policeman
entered the diningroom and arrested
; Winfield. Mrs. Winfield was much
nsitated, but her husband assured hel
that q mistake had been made and he
would easily prove his innocence OF
any charge that might be brought
against him.
Winfield was taken before q Judge,
who asked him many questions, one of
to the prisoner. 1t was, What was
his business? Winfield said that he
was a patent lawyer, and had his Of
flee in certain building in Buffalo.
Whereupon the judge made out pa
oers enabling the police to send him
to New York, where the accusation
against him had been made.
Winfield had been charged with hav-
ing obtained money under false pre-
tenses-that he would give checks just
before holiday, on bank in a diff
ferent city, forging the name of some
1epositor Of the bank.
! Winfield's arrest had occurred in
this wise: The scoundrel had been in
Albany on the third of July and had
! perpetrated his usual swindles there,
pretending to hail from Buffalo, where
he had an office for securing patents
and stating that he was stopping while
/ In Albany at the same hotel as Win
field. The latter being the only recent
arrival registered from Buffalo, the
police arrested him on suspicion. His
| story Of his business and residence
confirmed the charge.
Winfield was taken to New York,
where he was identified by certain
persons as the man who had given
forged checks signed William Spang-
Ter. He began now to be much trOu-
bled. The identification of these per-
sons was q very serious matter. Evil
lently the forger must resemble him.
dowever, he had no difficulty in pro-.
curing bail, and went home to his
ride.
Fortunately, Winfield was man Of
means and he employed the best de-
tectives he could find to get on the
track of Spangler. The detective went
to Buffalo and made inquiries at the
building in which Winfield had his
office for a man who resembled the
patent lawyer. He did not succeed
In getting a trace of any such person.
He also visited persons whom Spang-
Ter had operated upon in different
cities, but met with no success in get
ting on the track Of the real swindler.
He had Winfeld's likeness with HIM,
which he showed the swindled parties,
some Of them identifying Winfield by
It as the person who had passed the
forged checks. !:
Winfield was spending good deal
Of money to clear himself Of the
charge against him; his trial was
coming on, and the matter looked very
serious. His wife bore up we'll under
the strain and took considerable inter-
est in the efforts to find Spangler. But
1t was evident to her as we'll as the,
others that they were as far of the,
track as when they began the search.
The day before the trial was to
come off she took up the photograph
her husband had given the detective
and which had been pronounced a
likeness of the swindler. While look
ing at it she noticed that one foot,
being in an advanced position, ap-
peared very large.
"Alec," she said to her husband,
ANYONE looking at this photograph
would think that you have an enor-'
nous foot"
Winfield was noted for having
very small and remarkably narrow
foot.
That's because of the position.
was sitting with my legs crossed and
that foot was nearer the camera than
the rest of me. Consequently it was
taken on larger SCALE"
Mrs. Winfield made no reply. She:
was still intent on the photograph.
"A penny for your thoughts, DEAR"
said her husband. i
II was thinking that maybe the:
swindler didn't have your narrow foot
Did he buy any shoes with forged
check?' 4
Winfield ran to his wife and gave
her bear hug. =
sweetheart" he exclaimed, you've
beaten the detectives and all the rest
Of us. One of the swindler's victims
Is New York shoemaker. We can
get the size of his foot frem this
party"
The next day at the trial Arthur
Packard, a clerk in an expensive shoe
store, was called as q witness. He
Identified Winfield as the man to,
whom he had sold several pairs Of
shoes and had received a check
to thirty-two dollars, on a
bank In Chicago. The transaction Oc-
Cured on the day before Labor day.
do you remember" asked Win
aeld's attorney, 1.-THE size of the shoes
you sold the defendent"
II don't remember the size, but
IN remember that II was a yerV large !