ney is at once sent to him.
As a rule, in selecting an attorney, one is employed who is known as a
good criminal lawyer. It is also preferred that he should be a lawyer
who has some political weight. The middleman employs the attorney, and
pays him out of the "fall money." The arrested man is strictly
instructed by the attorney to do no talking, and is usually encouraged
by the promise that they will have him out in a short time. In order
to keep him quiet, this promise is frequently renewed by the attorney
acting for the "middleman." This is done to prevent a confession being
made in case the arrested man should show signs of weakening. Finally,
when he is forced to stand trial, if the case is one certain of
conviction, the attorney will get him to plead guilty, with the
promise of a short sentence, and will then bargain to this end with
the court or prosecutor. Thus guided by the attorney selected and
acting for the "middleman" and his associates, the prisoner pleads
guilty, and frequently discovers, when it is too late, that he has
been tricked into keeping his mouth shut in the interests of his
associates. It is but fair to state, however, that if money can save
an arrested party, and if his associates have it, they will use it
freely among attorneys or "jury fixers," where the latter can be made
use of, and frequently it is paid to politicians who make a pretense
of having a "pull" with the prosecuting officers of the court.

In most instances when checks are sent out they are not seen again by
the maker for a period of days. As business houses of any considerable
magnitude always have a comfortable balance with their bankers, ample
time and an abundance of cash are thus placed at the disposal of the
check-raisers.

As to the best methods of raising checks so that the fraud will not be
readily detected, much depends upon the way in which they are written.
The style of handwriting, the texture and quality of the paper, and
the chemical properties of the inks, are points which are necessary to
be considered.

Many checks may be altered to a larger amount by the mere addition of
a stroke of the pen here or the erasure of a line, by means of
chemicals, in some other place. For instance, take a check of $100, no
matter how it may be written, there are five or six different ways in
which it may be altered to a much larger amount, and in such a manner
as to defy the scrutiny of the most careful bank teller. It may be