Forgery and false pretences.
--Yesterday the
Mayor spent most of his morning session in the examination of
James M. D. Irvine and
E. J. Forbes, charged with forgery and obtaining money from the C. S. Government by false pretences.
The evidence in this case may be summed up thus: On the 26th of November young
Irvine called at the office of
Paymaster Wayt, on
Franklin, near 13th street, and presented the pay-roll of
George W. Finley for commutation of rations, amounting to $103.20. As the roll had the name of
Col. Lee Roy Brown, of the 44th Va. regiment, signed to it, and as
Irvine represented himself to be
George W. Finley,
Capt. Wayt paid the bill and took
Irvine's receipt, he signing it
Geo. W. Finley.
The papers were then regularly filed,
Capt. Wayt suspecting nothing wrong.
On the following day, the 27th,
Irvine again called on
Capt. Wayt, and presenting the pay-roll of
F. G. Bennett, with an order to pay the same to
Geo. W. Finley, desired to collect $228 claimed to be due
Bennett for commutation of rations.
The roll had the name of
Col. Lee Roy Brown signed to it; but the order being informal,
Capt. Wayt declined to pay the bill, and gave his reasons to
Irvine for so doing.
Irvine very promptly asked to be allowed to have the order corrected; but
Capt. Wayt, having his suspicious aroused, compared
Col. Brown's name with the genuine signature of that officer, then on file, and discovered that the signatures on
Bennett's and
Finley's pay-rolls were forged.
Inviting
Irvine into his office, and informing him that something was wrong about the papers,
Irvine promptly stated that he knew of no wrong, and that he had received the papers of
Forbes.
Capt. Wayt then started to
Col. Brown's office with
Irvine, and on the way
Irvine informed him of his reel name, stated that what he had done had been for the accommodation of
Forbes, and that he had intended no wrong.
A lad was introduced, who proved that he had seen the forged papers in the hands of
Forbes, that he had seen
Forbes in close conversation with
Irvine, and that
Forbes had endeavored to get him to appear as a witness against
Irvine.
F. M. Bennett, a member of
Col. Brown's command, testified that he knew no
F. G. Bennett, that he had seen writing executed by
Forbes, and that he believed the written order in Court, for money, was executed by him. He had never seen
Forbes use a pen, but had seen him have some poetry which he claimed to have written.
The
Mayor, after hearing all the witnesses, remanded both parties to an examining Court to answer for obtaining money by false pretences on the 26th of November, and for forgery on the 27th of November, and refused them ball.
