The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1871-06-29

A case has lately come under our observa-
tion, says the Chicago Post, in which an ap-
parently respectable woman sought in the
bodest way to swindle leading business
house III this city, and by the very boldness
with which an entirely worthless claim was
urged, succeeded in imposing to her own
great advantage, on number of her friends.
Several months since the well known firm,
Lyon & Healy, heavy dealers in music and
musical instruments, had in their store a
handsome organ valued at 81 200, which was
built for the Paris Exposition. One morning,
not long ago, a lady, moderately dressed, call
ed at the store, and having examined the in
strument, determined to become its purchas-
er. She remarked that she would receive a
draft for the amount on the succeeding day.
She promised to pay the proceeds for the in
strument, and at once reduce it 10 possession.
The day came, but the woman was not so
punctual. Time slipped by, and as nothing
more was seen of the party of the second part
who had so readily broken her bargain, the
incident was forgotten and the organ offered
for sale. month or two had passed by
when the same lady again called, this time in
the company of gentleman. She showed
him the organ, descanted upon the beauty of
its exterior, and the purity of its tone, fellci-
tated herself upon its possession, and then
blandly remarked to Messrs. Lyon & Healy
that she would now have her property remov-
ed to her home. The gentlemen of the firm
recalled to the lady's mind a trifling circum-
stance, which seemed to have slipped her
recollection. The lady was unknown to the
gentlemen, and their cashier had not yet en-
tered upon the debit of his cash that little
Gil nf G1 0n1 Tho latu far ,;aI,
ment, and having done with that part of her
play, simulated anger. The swelling tone of
the instrument in dispute, when exerted to
its fullest power, was not louder than the
lady's expOstulatiOns. Would the gentlemen
deny her right to her own property! Would
they dare to maintain, in the presence of her
friend that the piano she claimed was not
hers! The gentlemen softly replied that if
they had any properly in the store that was
not their own, they he'd yet to know it,
They had lingering conviction that the
plaything in question was bit of personal
property, the right 20 which was vested in
them; that they had neither bartered, sold,
assigned, loaned, exchanged or given away the
gold P-oro-ty,- aud if tho lady would EXCUSE
them, they would decline to comply with her
demand, unless she could back her claim with
something more convincing (again they beg
ged to be excused) then her unsupported
statement. Thus challenged the lady stoutly
maintained that she had purchased the organ
of Messrs. Lyon & Healy's agent in Detroit,
and that she had paid him for it. This wes
absolutely false, and the firm persisted in their
refusal to part with their property. The lady
protested that she would appeal to the law,
and then let the store. ...'
The next day solemn gentleman, who
looked as though he lived in the basement of
the Court House, called on Messrs Lyon &
In Nl,<.r
House basement. He was in fact, Deputy
Sheriff, who in his official hand, 10 close prox-
unity to his official nose, fearful little paper
called a precipe-a mandatory letter from a
court of record, sealed with the great seal,
and directing the dearly beloved Sheriff of
Cock county, to ask Messrs. Lyon t& Healy,
not as firm, but in their individual capacities
to drop in some afternoon and let the court
know about little dispute between lady
and themselves, and to tell them that she had
instituted a suit in trover, or something of
that knd-fOr particulars call on the sheriff.
The defendants accepted service, bowed the
dearly beloved Sheriff out, and called their
lawyer in. He took the proper steps in the
matter, but from that day to this nothing has
been done in the suit, nor has the party of
the second part put in an appearance.
1t seems incredible to suppose that the wo-
man thought te swindie the music firm. The
only rational explanation of the extraordina-
ry incident is that she intended, by the asser.
tiOn of the Claim 10 make it serve as collater-
al for small loans; and an examination into
the affair shows that this explanation is cor
rect. For some months she actually lived on
that organ.
The firm learned that the woman came
Kalamazoo, Mlch., and that she was unmar-
ried. They also ascertained that on hel
statement that they had an organ of hers in
store, she succeeded in several swindles. Hel
board was paid out Of that organ; the jewels
which adorned her person were purchased
with that organ for security; her clothing wa:
from that lawsuit. She lived on music. o
| an insinuating address, she attracted the at
| tention of South Water street merchant
whose companionship she possessed for som'
means of living, are unknown to the firm.