Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1934-05-13

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GERS had surreptitiously opened all the
sea-cocks The reversed engines stopped
the ship with similar shock to the occu-
pants as though the vessel had run
into hidden rocks.
Capt. Johnny Murphy got all that was
due him-and it was not in the form
of rich insurance rewards, either. While
Bert Farrar, with another triumph to
his credit, returned to our National Cap
ital from Mobile. The Murphy case was
so remarkable-a well-mapped plot
which probably would have succeeded
were it not for the Intervention OF vigil
liant and resourceful Uncle Sam-that
certain popular writer OF sea tales uSed
it as the basis of a fiction story which
was published recently in a weekly
magazine.
To B. c. Farrar the Murphy case was
but one of many thousand forgereS
which he has aided in solving during his
some 40 years of service with the Treas
ury Department as handwriting author
ity. Even a brief summary of all the
exciting cases in which Mr.. Farrar has
participated is impossible because of
space limitations You, however, can
visualize their scope and variety by what
follows concerning a few of the spec
tacular experiences in the life of this
talented Federal handwriting Hawk
shaw"
CHIT the scenery set-up to Brooklyn
- for our next glimpse at Mr.. Farrar
engaged in field work. On the top floor
of the United States Court Building in
that city professional bondsmen waged
a profitable and expansive business. The
competition was keener than bidding
at a sheriff'S SALE Each bondSman was
intent on getting to the newcomer to
Jail before any rival could make such
contact. AS elsewhere, bootleggers pre-
dominated among those who preferred
to gaze at prison bars from the out
side, looking in
The Brooklyn bondsman collects an
incidental fee of $40 merely for getting
a judge to sign an appearance bond,
while he exacts an extra SIS for the
messenger who scurries to the judges
office and back, bringing along that
bond Those fees are in addition to the
regular toll which the man in trouble
pays for the actual bail money.
The Government representatives at
Brooklyn were disturbed because priS-
oners frequently would gain their free
dom in from 10 to Is minutes after
being sent to their cells. This was speed
even for the plutocratic bootleggers,
whose traditional boast was that Jail
could never hold them long if bail was
bondSmen were forging appearance
bonds, the Government men sent an
o S to Washington for sleuthing re-
Inducements.
The facts which Mr.. Farrar ferreted
about the illegal activities Of the Brook
Ign bondsmen brought to light new
species of moonshining, with the excep-
ton that this variety was practiced in
the sunlight. Probably you have never
heard of a radio bond Your writer
had to ask Mr.. Farrar for an explana-
ton when the Handwriting hawk" men
toned it. The bond bootleggers have
perfected a timely method of forging
a judges signature, using radios as
accessory appurtenances. A large plate
of glass is substituted for the top of the
radio. The powerful radio lights provide
satisfactory illumination for the forgery,
a judges signature being copied untold
times by the use of this glass-topped
Eight box"
Mr.. Farrar discovered that the bonds
men, in addition to producing radio