The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, April 27, 1905, Page 1

THE WEATHER. Forecast made at San Francisco for | | thirty hours ending midnight. April 37: | San Francisco and vicinity—Fair | Thursday: light north winds, changing | THE THEATERS. ALCAZAR—‘When Knighthood Was CHUTES—Vaudeville. GRAND—"Granstark." 10 fregh west A. G. MeADIE, ‘ ORPHEUM—Vaudeville. Matinee to- 2/ District Forecaster. | aay. TIVOLI—Comie Opera. — s B - -+ + : ) 150, SAN FRANCISCO, THURSDAY, APRIL 27, 1905. s PRICE FIVE CENTS. ThL COLLECTOR SNITH ABSCONDS WITH ITY OIS Steals Om*omp%z‘ed 1 ousands /07/ Wonen, Races and Sz‘Oc,és 5 . s TR, bl : Tax Co]lector Edward J. Smith has absconded with over 8,4,000 of the city’s money. More shortages may be uncovered. year ago he was short 8165,000, but the shortage was made good by his brother. Smith was known to have spent large sums on L 1Hrm seslie, a vaudeville actress. She has also fled and it is thought they planned to join each other. SR et : iR - lm;atuzmmn for MIS\ L|ll|an Leslie, For- merly on Vaudeville Stage, Chiefly Responsible. ‘ A PACE THAT IS WRECKING| LEADS Sai d to Have Given Actress Large Sum Before Her Flight From City Two Weeks Ago * MAKES HAUL AND FOLLOWS! AL Enormous Defalcation a Year Ago Nadel : Good by Brother, but Close Watch Is Un ing atcn IS 1avai:il | S found that the sus- d )0 true John Smith | who notified the | not lose anything by | The shortages are $100,000 bond fur-| WiLL PAY UP SHORTAGE. Manager of Surety Company Will Abide by Report of Experis, 2 F. H nager of the Na-| " S ny. whien is o ax Coll official bond, t at he had nho uju} nount of .7'“'“[‘1'3‘ | v officially the ;mnum,‘ 3 id Gilbert, H-; . it n placed at y he shortage will 3 was asked of Gil- ag £30,0 ke good bert GAMBLED IN STOCKS got K 1 ke | 5 : 8 : o . it o ¢ been notitied_that - 3 . but will be guided » £ e reports of our experts in the er r liability, The de- 1 $165,000 last year was P | never brought to our notice and we knew nothing.of it until to-day.” some foreign - -4 w\rh\j‘: ik BROTHER TOOK CONTROL. Thursday., He told | 70h™ Smith Says Tax Collector Did | that he was going Not Handle Collections. siness and gave | John Smith, who has been handling ends. The po- | the money paid for taxes since last this time he is | October, stated to Mayor Schmitz that South | he was sent'to the tax office to take the position as cashier by his brother, James B. Smitlh who had made good Edward Smith's previous defalcation ng at the She rai- | oney | of $165,000. “After the shortage of $165,000 was settled,” said John Smith, “my brother { | | % el | James had me act as cashier so that I | | | | | | might have full and complete control over all the funds that came into the | tax office. I did that in order that no more funds should paks through Ed- ward's hands. 1 was under the im- pression that I handled all the moneys d made daily settlements with the ty Treasurer. The manner in which Edward manipulated the checks wag the only way in which he could have ted over brother falcation ment came it of a clear sky. | taken any of the city’s money, taat is AT WORK | by going outside of the office.” 'My own g | accounts are straight. I cannot but the de- | think that my brother was demented he ex- 1o act as he did.” ing the { e ——— omprten thi Resents Insult to Sister. William Ziegler, a plumber on Fine street, near Powell, was arrested yes- terday on a warrant charging him with an assault with a deadly weapon. The complaining witness is J. B. Am- iot, who alleges that on Monday night Ziegler attacked him with brass knuckles in a saloon at ‘Bush” and Powell streets. Ziegler says that Am- iot has been annoving his sister with his professions of love and making in- sulting remarks about her. When they met in the saloon Amiot wanted to speak to him and because Ziegler re- fused Amiot struck at him. Zfegler retaliated and says that the cuts on Amiot's face were made by a ring he wore on his finger. defalcations a . hern Pacific check from er Devoto out of treasury, $15 $2000 or $3000 secured from the 1. ~ense department. Poseibly $14,735 obtained by manipu- la:ing money of the United Railroads. heck for $30,200 from the United Reilroads unaccounted for and may have been taken by Smith. mith's infamy was discovered by his brother John. James McCabe told John Smith that he was certain that something was wrong. The Tax Col- EFALLTERS | — + | METTS LILLIAN IDSLIE TURNISHES A PUAT TOR T1ER- PLANS WELL THOUGHT 00T Detalls 01' Blg Steal Planned With Skill, Swindler’s Previous Shortages Come to Light. Information was brought to Mayor Schmitz yesterday that Tax Collector Edward J. Smith had absconded, leav- ing a known shortage in his accounts of $39,113 28. The actual amount of Smith's defalcation will not be known, however, until the experts who have been put to work on the tax records file their report, but the deficit appears to be growing and will probably be far in excess of the sum named. It is said the money was spent on women, betting on race horses and in specula- tion in stocks. Smith has fled from the city, not having been seen since last Thursday ~SPECUVATES / - INT WHEAT & COPFERL LI ‘Iné‘él,]}/\ j Mszmcwr " e To IATLIAN TESIAE wWaTH $19.000 | afternodn, when he left his ostensibly to take a trip to Los Ange- les. The discovery that Smith had stolen money from the city also brought to | light the fact that in April, 1904, he was short $165,000 in his accounts, which was made good by his brother, James B. Smith, vice president of the Western Fuel Company and member of the Grand Jury, who pledged $250,000 worth of his personal securi- ties to raise the money to save the family from dishonor. The shortage was hushed up at the time, although rumors on the subject were rife. On learning the facts the Mayor sus- pended Smith from office and ap- pointed James W. McCahe, a civil ser- vice deputy in the Tax Office, Tax Collector, pending an investigation to be held by the Board of Supervisors, which has been called in session by the Mayor for this afternoon at 2 o'clock. 2 The news that'Tax Collector Smith is a -defaulter was brought to the Mayor by the Collector’s brother, John R. Smith, who has been handling the funds of the Tax Office ever since the $165,000 defalcation of last year. GETS CHECKS FOR TAXES. John Smith informed the Mayor that his brother had on April 4 re- ceived two checks, one for $17,683 76 and one for $6694 56, from E. Black Ryan, tax agent of the Southern Pa- cific Company, as part payment of the second installment of the taxes of the office,’ ‘ “How did you know that the Tax Collector was a defaulter?” asked the | When I was informed by Deputy | McCabe that the Southern Pacific Company had allowed its second in- 1 ntnnment to become delinquent I grew ,” said John Smith. “The al delinquency for the last tem i ¢ e has been $60,000, whereas this i £ it was about $99,000. T diffe IITTLE WINE of $39,000 represents the tax: T SUPPER.S o oo 'by the Southern Pacific Company. MAKES PECULATION GOOD. puty James W. McCabe substan- g ABSCOND)\G OMAN SIQLE P‘OR HIS LNDOINQ P corporation. Again on Apr! took Smith to Treasurer N. the company, who turned g $ Tax Cellector two more ¢ for $9424 12 and one for final payment on the ment of taxes. The mon 3 ing $39,113 28, was not wma.m o th eity freasury, John Smil -flx ¥ John Smith stated usual for a Tax Collector t son to collect axes, and o it the transaction showe intent. Edward Smith the Southern Pacific Comp 7 OFF!Lh\L = jated the money paid for taxes Sharone estate, amounting to 9000, on January 10, 1903. tened to expose him at that d McCabe, “and I kept after March.” ‘as Mayor' Schmitz was sat- At a shortage existed he noti- Attorney Long to institute -‘against the National Sure- y of New York, which is s bond for $190,000. It- is it“that this amount will cover shortage. F. H. Gilbert, man- DUE 0 WILES OF WOMAN Lillian Lesl g ls Cause of His Downfall. Smith Squanders Coinon Stage Star. Lillian Leslie for the past two years has been the favorite of E. J. Smith, the defaulting Tax Collector. She iz a well-known character in San Fran- cisco. Her beauty, which was en~ hanced by the magnificence of her apparel, caused comment wherever she appeared. When she left the city on April 9 it is reported she took with her $25,000 in ,od hard gold ecoin The last seen of her here was In a new yellow automobile, dashing down Third street to the Townsend street depot. Her auto was filled with dress suit cases and handbags. She sat in the back seat, attired in a tallor-made gown, and carried in her arms a great bunch of violets. Her career in San Francisco has Continued on Page 2, Column 1.