The Disappearing Clerk
A Seattle businessman discovers that his missing clerk hasn't just gone quiet—he's vanished with the company's property and left a trail of financial chaos.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Arthur P. Kent, who was reported missing December 11, appeared in the city last Friday, thus clearing the mystery surrounding his disappearance and also revealing an employe's dishonesty. At the time of Kent's disappearance, it was stated that C. B. Fisher, a Railroad Avenue saloonkeeper, had a certificate of deposit on the Bank of British Columbia drawn in favor of Kent for $50. On this draft as security, Fisher loaned a man he thought to be Kent $40. Several weeks after, while trying to locate Kent and straighten out the matter, it was found that Kent had not been seen for a long time. Attorney W. W. Stewart made a search for the missing man, but nothing was learned until last Friday, when Kent himself and Attorney C. A. Riddle called upon Stewart regarding the matter. On comparing notes, it was found that Kent had a man named Bond in his employ, and that he not only disappeared, as did the certificate in question, but also a gold watch and chain. Kent proved his identity, and Stewart surrendered the certificate. The loser by the transaction appears to be Fisher, who loaned $40 to a man, presumably Bond, under the impression that it was Kent. The matter has been reported to the police, and an effort will be made to locate the criminal.
“The loser by the transaction appears to be Fisher, who loaned $40 to a man, presumably Bond, under the impression that it was Kent.”
Identity theft and employment fraud were just as complex in 1893 as they are in the digital age. This story highlights the reliance on personal recognition and physical tokens like certificates of deposit in a growing city where the population was increasingly transient.
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