New-York tribune., 1918-05-25
Swann on Alert
For Swindlers in
Red Cross Guise

District Attorney Swami sent two
detectives and a process server out
yesterday to get evidence against un-
authorized collectors for the Red
Cross. His men stopped forty girls VINO
were collecting in the neighborhoods
of Broadway and Fifth Avenue at
Forty-second Street. and up Broadway
as far as West 10th Street. The young
women were stopping automobiles and
asking the occupants to contribute.
mo arrests were made" said Mr.
checking up from any central source
in the Red Cross as to who was So
licitipg for the fund"
When the situation was brought to
the attention of the Red Cross, Walter
/. Stapler, chairman of the House to
House Canvass Committee, through j.
w. Murray, his assistant, asked the
District Attorney to give notice to the
public that all authorized collectors
in the streets and at the doors of
homes should have q round celluloid
addition they should have white,
square pasteboard box with small red
crosses on it.
Mr.. 'Swanns men also picked up a
sixteen-year-old drummer boy in uni
form Of the 9th Coast Artillery at Times
Square late Thursday night. Mr.. Swami
said he found that the boy was collect
ing for his mother, who was Red
Cross district captain in Corona, Long
Island, and also learned that the CO.
roma organization had stationed COL
lectors in the Grand Central Station.
He notified Mr.. Stabler, and the latter
sent Mr.. Murray to the Grand Central
to notify the women politely that they
should return to Corona and confne
their collections to that district
charge Hfshhs of tha onuna When he n0ws stated
the object ofthis visit Mr.. Howe be-
came angry and had Mr.. Murray arrest
ed. The affair attracted big crowd
IN the station concourse. and Mr.. Muir
ray decided to 60 to the East Fifty
first Street police station before at
tempting to prove his identity, which
he quickly did to the satisfaction Of
howe made profuse apologies to Mr..
! Murray.
! The case of the sixteen-year-o old
drummer boy aroused Mr.. Swami. He
said the boy admitted he had collected
| $25, but his mother said he had turned
/ IN only SlS.
"Ths boy in uniform was hand
some fellow" said Mr.. Swami. "IIe
admitted that on the advice of some
! soldiers at Fort Slocum he had picked
up considerable money by steering SOL
! diers to. men who prey on women in
/ the Tenderloin.
/ Mr.. Swami said he had just learned
! that the British and French govern
ments had issued orders forbidding
Canadian or French soldiers to collect
money directly or indirectly for Ameri-
can war charities He said he also
| learned that the Motion Picture and
| Allied Theatrical team of Red Cross
canvassers had been using New York
militiamen to 60 about with actresses
| collecting money in theatres and res
taurants.
Mr.. Swami asked William Fox, head
OF that team, to stop this practice.
Mr.. Fox said he had been advised by
James e. MacBride, Civil Service Com
missioner, that the practice was legal.
and he declined to comply.
Mr.. Swami then took the matter up
with William c. Breed, head of the
New York division of the Red Cross
war drive, declaring that the action Of
these actresses and militiamen tended
to offend good taste by their behavior
in some restaurants and that the idea
of using them to lead the public ia
believe the men in uniform were repu-
lar soldiers was. "acting lie" and
tended ito harm the cause"
Mr. Breed told Mr.. Swami that he
would Investigate.