Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1922-03-08
True
Detective Stories
ROLAND, ALIAS
GARDNER
copyright by The Wheeler Syndicate, /


copyright by The Wheeler Syndicate, Inc
W. HEN Lyman and Hess, dealers
w in cloaks and suits on State
street, Albany, N. Y, sent a
check for $38.77 to Refs and Blum.
garment manufacturers in New York
city, they didn't have the slightest
IDEA that they were starting a chain
OF evidence which would land one of
the cleverest crooks in America behind
the bars. 49, 5 g. =.
A few days later, before the New
York firm had had time to report the
snonarrlval Of the check and thus per.
init Lyman and Hess to look into the
matter, young man came into the
National Commercial bank in Albany
and presented check for $3.50, made
out to Bearer" The date on the
check, filled in with rubber stamp,
correspondent to the day on which it
was presented, and the man who hand
ed 1t to the paying teller mentioned
casually that the check twas to cover
an option and that he had to hurry
pack to New York in order to complete
the transaction. The paying teller,
feeling certain that the signature was
genuine. cashed the check, and the
man who had presented it walked out
Of the bank with $3.50 in his pocket.
When Hyman and Hess had their ac-
count balanced they found that they
ere exactly $3.50 short-for the orig
al check had never reached it's New
DIRK destination, but had been lifted
''pt OF the mail box by one of gang
or clever criminals, the body Of the
check erased with an ink eradicator
and the date and amount filled in on
top OF the original signature.
"Only one man in the country could
have done that and gotten away with
1t, growled George A. Fuller, assistant
superintendent of the Pinkerton Detec-
tive agency, when the bank called the
details Of the case to his attention.
tits Bolands work !"
eyes, Boland," replied Fuller. "Or
Gardner, as he sometimes calls him.
self. He's got regular organization
for this sort Of thing. Trains boys to
loot the mail boxes, washes the checks
with an acid preparation of his own
invention, writes in a higher amount,
makes them. payable to Bearer and
then another of his tools cashes
them"
IF you know so much about the
man." asked the amazed banker, ''why
hasn't he been arrested long before
this?"s
Its easy enough to arrest a man."
was Fullers reply, 'but it is sometimes
very difficult to convict him. So far as
the actual check-raising goes, 1Boland
plays lone hand. What's more, he
pays his men well, and takes, care Of
them if they happen to get caught. So
far, none of 'em has turned states evil
dence, and until they door until we
catch Boland Observation-Disclosures moth
ing to do but be careful. We've got
our eyes on him. He can't move with
out our knowing it.
Warned by Hyman and Hess check
that the Boland outfit was once more
conducting operations in New York
state, the Pinkerton man kept close
watch on all persons suspected of be-
longing to the organizations, with the
result that three men were arrested
and sentenced to terms in prison. But
all of them steadfastly refused to i'm
plicate the "man higher up"
Finally Boland and three of his as
sociates were arrested in Boston, aft
err Fuller had Swallowed boy whom
he suspected Of robbing mail box.
Dano, the boy, and Devine, another
Of the organization, drew short terms
for petty larceny, but Boland escaped
on account Of a technicality, and
moved to New York where he tried
to continue his operations. But the
New York police and particularly Com
missioner George S. Dougherty, made
things so difficult, that he was soon re-
duced to the expedient of securing
checks wherever he could-a neces.
sity which led to the fatal slip which
Fuller had predicted.
Out Of the mail box of an uptown
apartment house, one of Boland's APP
prentices secured check for $50, made
out to real estate company in pay
ment Of the rental for one of the apart
ments. 1t was child's play for Boland
to wash off the original name and
amount and to write in the words
Bearer" and ''Two Hundred and
Eleven Dollars" Once tkd< was done,
he had perfectly good check Zap
parently) and he sent one of his men
down to the bank on which the check
was drawn, with minute instructions
as to the cashing of it. But the cashier.
being suspicious Of a check Of that
size being made out to Bearer par.
ticularly as he knew that the woman
whose signature appeared upon it was
very careful in her financial dealings
declined to cash it, and Boland's
man returned with a story of having
been watched and therefore very fear
full to approach the paying window. 4
Boland, in spirit Of bravado, again
altered the check, this time making
It out in the name Of William Hath
and set forth to cash the check him.
self, something which he had never
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