The Usk Station Forgery
A railroad operator's attempt to cash stolen money orders in Newport leads to a swift arrest and a multi-year sentence.
E. J. Stewart, formerly operator for the I. & W. N. at Usk, pleaded guilty to the charge of forgery at Colville last week. He was sentenced to an indeterminate term of from two to twelve years in the state reformatory. Stewart, while operator at Usk, stole several money orders from the office and came to Newport, where he attempted to cash one of the orders which he had filled out. Agent Gibbs did not like the looks of the order, so he telegraphed to the Usk agent and discovered that his suspicions were correct. Stewart had been over in Old Town taking in the sights and was apprehended there by Chester Bowers, one of the I. & W. N. employees.
“Agent Gibbs did not like the looks of the order, so telegraphed to the Usk agent and discovered that his suspicions were correct.”
This story highlights the vulnerability of early telegraphic and financial systems in small railroad towns, where a keen-eyed station agent could stop a crime before it fully unfolded.
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