VOL. XXVII. YADKINVILLE, YADKIN CO., N. C., THURSDAY, JUNE 9, 1921 NO. 22 SK3LERS MET RR MtLDOM iANat^^ng Mecca for Siippery Gang of Crooks, Starts a C!eanup. MUROER !S PART OF GAME jankers and Business Men Among the { Victims Lured From Many States —Raid Reveais Bogus Broker age Offices—Po!ice Accused. Atlanta, Qa.-^Kalt a dupe is bom )ry minute and that no scheme is so taatic that it does not And some ard headed business tman in cases—to fall for it, has been wed to** the satisfaction of every in Atlanta through revelations de during the hearing by a council tttee of the activities here of a ion dollar bunco gang, who oper it is charged, either with the nivanee or through the colossal ig of the police department. ! The hearing also has proved that no section or locality iB exempt from its wop of dupes. Men with money to contribute to the support of the gang t operated in Atlanta have come to ts city to be fleeced from Reading id Philadelphia, from Maryland, fississippi, Georgia, Tennessee, Louis na, Florida, Ohio, Indiana and Tex Indeed, Texas was very good to Atjanta seekers for easy money. }ly was one W. R. Manning, a PP<^ young man of Dallas, Tex., tMndly disposed to the con men. { And it has been shown that when [money is at stake even murder is not !too high a price to pay in order to [heap it and retain liberty. Here is The death roil of Atlanta's bunco Hang: Doctor Blanchard, son of a former [governor of Louisiana, who committed wuicide in Memphis after losing Ms troll. W. C. Dukes, banker of Milan, Ga., Who came to Atlanta to confer with *ihe gang on an easy money proposal XBd mysteriously disappeared. Ed Mills, member of the gang, roommate of Floyd P. Woodward, al leged leader, who was shot and killed thy Woodward because, it Is alleged, Hills was tipping the police off to the operations of the gang. (Carles Dorsey, taxicab driver, who, bt is said, knew too much about ^the [Hills killing. Ruth Gobel, another witness, was TMsposed of when Woodward married Her. Left Their Rosy Hopes Behind. Here is a partial list of the men who came to Atlanta with roseatn Hopes and who left—If th y were Able to get away—heartbrolica and pockets empty: W. D. * Hill, an aged Confederate [Veteran, former ordinary of his conn tty at Clarkesvllle, Ga., who lost about $2,000. ^J. A. Nations of Asworth. Ga.. who ^ost ^3,SQ0 at the Cecil hotel here in a Hame that was framed by Mark Tii iwry, recently captured hi Tones, [brought back to Atlanta and tnrnod lo* co Solicitor Jc* ' ^ery was reputed boss of the iocnl [game at one time. i W, R. planning, frrm Dallas Tex., tost $7,000. ^ ; George W. Wiley of Whitehall, Vn., tost $10,000. D. R. and W. M. B'and of Drew, Hiss., who contributed $10,000 tactile !jgame. .money oilmen, a. W.,iOS!; $11,000 and would have lout more had he been able to got checks cashed. bat )B. banker friend t'upeil' him of? iust In time to keep him horn losing $10, b00 more. This was a stock deal, in Which bis supposed winnings laul run* Bp in the hundred thousands. C. T. Madeira of Heading Pa., who lost $27,000, at one time had a big Apparent winning, but i t the end ihc paper profit dlsnupt-nred attd he v.'.-nt &ack to Pen-sylvarda^ad lcr but may be wiser. In this c ..done of Atlan ta's hest-kn n citinens aided :.!;e op erating ^hng. , One C(frr"arnt:i b old mail ernae',.' Atlanta fr ;m Imliana. iost ids r.rouey andissti'lknia. Pi.'. :dorywn:;('iM' pf the m ny a!ready told d!.r.*i!rg. ihe. four weeks, of investigation cf -the easy ipouey syndicate of Atlanta. ! That) walpan hldo itanlmr who 'tcame^)^his city, fell in with snrooih talke^y^rrd attempted to get checks cashed for approximate'^ hut $1! t^Hbang got him fc- was $2,000 "Chicago Man In oived. Tl:er*e is the case f Albert H. Thompson of Chicago. Thompson is being sought on a law y charge and At is thought that he! in Cuba. So licitor John Hoykiu refuses to di vulge for the present the details. : Thompson's indictment was a sur prise, for his wife was known to he we.dthy. The Thompsons have a Sue ^hmuc-iiiAshevilie. _ ' The raids started as a result of the fleecing of Holley of Alikin out of $11,, (KM). He and a co&ipanion made a noise that ali Atlanta heard. OHlcers were sent to see him, and lie ahd his com panion laid a trap for Abe Powers, the alleged steerer in the game. The detec tives told them to go on out and meet Powers and they would follow. That was about the last they heard of the detectives, but they met Powers by agreement and seized bint. A passing policeman was bailed finally and Powers went to jail. Then started a search for the head quarters of the gang. The detectives the next day were piloted to the build ing in a downtown locality, where the South Carolinians said they had been roTbed. &ut se^rci) g.s gtey might, the ofhcers could not Rnd the rooEff Pajd Reveals Broker's Office. The next day they appealed to the Solicitor and he led a personal raid of the building. The room was found at once and he seized all the parapher nalia. The place was fitted up with all the elaborateness of a stock broker's ofBee in New York. There were black boards, fake telegraph instruments, take money, and everything e!se needed. It looked like there was aii the money in the worid there, but in vestigation revealed that only the cover bibs were good. The rest was green paper. That was the beginning. Within! the next few days the solicitor raided three places operated by the gang, in one case using axes to break in. In this place were found all the instruments needed for marking cards, crooking dice; fake money, several hundred doi lars of real money in the safe; crap tables; and before the night was out many visitors, who had been taken into custody had to tell what they knew or go to jail. The raids were followed by many prosecutions. The gang bad seen that the jig was up and most of them had disappeared. Gradually they are being rounded up and brought back to Atlan ta. Abe Powers and eight of his con freres have been sent to the penitenti ary, but carelessnessattheprisonfarm was utilized by Abe Powers and he is at large again. Many others are under arrest and some have given bond. Among those indicted and soon to stand trial will be Ira Fort, who was mixed up, It Is said in th& Madeira swindle. A feature of this prosecution is found in the fact that the solicitor himself has offered bier rewards for the cap ture oir^fne various "con" men, and paid some of them. * The search continues the country over for Floyd P. Woodward. He is held up gs the "Master Mind" of the t gang. Since his escape he has written a letter hack to Atlanta in which he charges that he had paid out $2,000 as a bribe at one time to Solicitor Boykin; had paid large sums at other times, a cut in of his receipts to Joseph Ewing, a lawyer formerly con nected with Boykin's office before be became solicitor, and who. according Woodward was the go-between for Boykin. To "so charges by Woodward, the bail folio'.", who was friendly with every body in town, went bunting*with Chief Poole, rave diamond rings and phono gram hs to councllmen and dispensed : o' o/ wkh a liberal band, have given 'ho p-:Hce a club to lot Boykin. So they "k:u..o that Boykin knew as much of C.e i' :! \tions of the gang as they did. or mma. (hie f ' k **e of the Investigation has two *oo Ewing, lawyer, Ik " C. uncilmnn A! Martin a^d 'loyd 1'. Woodward ran one if the "dens" .together; Martin for whiskey and Wood '-"rd for gaming: and that ai ibif- place hundreds of gallons of liquor bad been delivered by a young man now In Birmingham. Another allegation wa;i that Aldlne Chambers, who ied the campaign in Georgia for Palmer when be wasseeking