The Monmouth inquirer., 1924-12-04
GENTLEMAN CROOK
is CRIME ENIGMA
Despite Veneer, Chapman Is
Incorporating Foe
of Society.

always caught popular fancy. Law
lessness, for some strange reason, has
ever been surrounded by a curious and
certainly undeserved glamour. Train
robbers have been made into heroes.
Criminals of all sorts and degrees
have been somehow elevated, some
times envied, often admired, particu-
larly If they had the suave Background
of a Mr.. Raffles.
Public interest has once again been
aroused in Gerald Chapman, d8Aper-
ate and incorporating ener 90
ciety. an escaped convict. IL mo
ought now to be serving the tgi1er
years of a 25-year sentence. at the, Fed
eral penitentiary in MS been
sought as the murderer Of pCzee-
man In New Britzan-
A Trace Of Sympathy.
Somehow, there Is trAce of SYM
pathy for the nEA. Why? Bsatlte
he started with small rUD6eEHgf Be
cause he planned and executed the no
torious $1,5OOOO0 mail robbery here
three years ago almost to this datef
Because he was sentenced to Atlanta
for a long term? Because he escaped
thrice, the third time never to be seen
again until he was seen to shoot down
the New Britain policeman?
Why? Because he fought against
great odds? Because he took what
wasn't his just because he wanted lit
{ Or is it because the public realizes
chat Chapman's inspiration Is not that
as courage and daring, not that of
maSaer mind, but that of criminal
who would let nothing stand In his
way3
Gerald Chapman is a curious man.
His manner is that of a gentleman.
He seems to have more than veneer
of breeding. Some character, some
gentility, must have been born in him.
It has been noticeable every time he
mas been under close scrutiny.
AS he appears, Gerald Chapman is
name that suits him. He seems
gentle and dignifed. He is well-man-
nered. He is polite and considerate
to women and not overmuch so as one
might expect from one who acts. He
is invariably well attired. He spends.
He lives luxtriously.
Whether his name Is Gerald Chap
man or not few know. He has for
aliases George Charters, Edward
Bryce and Maxwell Winters, If not
more. Where he came from no one
knows, although he has stated repeat
edly his family is one Of excellent
character.
Chapman is about 8 feet inches
tall and weighs around 140 pounds
His features are thin and he has high
cheek bones. He has a long, sloping
!, forehead and looks like mild fire.
quenteT Of public libraries. His chin
slopes back sharply. He seems rather
spare on the whole and is now about
thirty-fve years old He is not d.
tractive In full face, but his profile
seems very much like that of stu
dent, particularly when he wears
glasses.
At any rate, Chapman first came to
public attention in 1912, when he was
sentenced to Sing Sing prison for ten
years for grand larceny. The crime
was a common one and the name of
Gerald Chapman went unheralded.
He himself went from Sing Sing to
| Clinton and then to Auburn, where,
on March 20, 1919, he was parO3ed.
Astounding Mail Robbery.
The astounding mail robbery he en-
| gineered occurred October "A, 1921.
For 20 days he had thought the rob-
berry out, outlining his plans to two
accomplices he had picked up-George
Brown and Charles Lambert-in an
uptown cafe They induced a plat
form man at the post Office to tip them
off when an unprotected driver went
out and to make sure that his truck
was filled with valuable mail.
They were tipped off. A truck left
| with registered pouches containing ST.
454, 12e in cash, jewelry and securi-
| ties. The three stole an automobile
and attacked the truck, held up the
driver, tied mail bag over his head
and escaped. They went for few
] udyS ll1lO AllG1uS at AdhC AhOnAOAA-
koma, far out on Long Island, beau
tiful but sparsely settled spot.
! Chapman couldn't stand such quiet
life and within few days he came to
New York, bought high-priced auto
mobile and began to live at the rate of
81, 900 a day. He wasn't caught be-
, cause few people knew him. He mist
have passed hundred Of detectives on
the lookou for hiG, but not one
/ spatten him because he didn't look the
part. A gentlemanly man, with eye
gla@es, or at times monocle, man
who was later nicknamed 'The Count"
and 1.-THE Professor" was hardly one
to pick up as a holdup suspect.
Sought New Crimes.
He might well have been, for busy
| EN-