The Tipton advertiser. [volume] (Tipton, Cedar Co., Iowa) 1856-1962, 1873-03-27


nothing but simple due bills.
She went on advertising, and money
began pouring into her Golfers st
rapidly Increasing rate. She invested
her funds without dinlculty In making
loans to temporarily embarrassed
members of the Munich aristocracy.-
She lent them money upon valuable
pledges at the most exorbitant inter-
est, with 'parols Of honor" notes a
collaterals. The business hourished.
The losses were small, and tho depos-
Its constantly made by larger and
larger circle OF customers enabled
Mile. Spitzeder to meet her liabilities
With invarlabls promptness.
A year from her above mentioned
start in business Adele Spitzeder was
able to buy two very nne buildings In
the Bsvarian capital-the palatial res
idence No. 3 Schoedfeld Street, and
the large "Wiliiam Tell" tavern op-
posite. For these two houses she paid
the handsome sum of three hundred
and fifty thousand dorins. No 8 was
fitted up in the most sumptuous style,
the ground door as bank, and the
upper stories for Mile. Spitzeder's resi-
dence. The William Telr tavern
was transformed into q gorgeous %.
loon, and it became the rendezvous Of
all of those who did business with the
banker. It was crowded day and
| night with customers, and In the year
1868 its net profits amounted 90 the
enormous sum of Que hundred and fif-
ty thousand fiorins.
Meanwhile Mile. .Spitzeder conceived
another idea. which eventually proved
exceedingly advantageous to her.
Noticing that not few Of her deposit
tors were peasants from the intensely
Catholic districts Of Old Bavaria, she
thought II she should devote her at
tention little to Church matters she
might greatly extend her business
For this purpose she began to dress In
. semi-ciericai costume. She sent
thousands Of forins, under the guise
Of subscriptions, to certain Church
newspapers; she became regular At
tendent at Church solemnities; and
she built over the grave Of her father,
who is buried at the Munich cemetery,
q gorgeous monument, which was in
augurated amidst imposing ceremo-
mics. She proclaimed even her inten-
ton to organize pilgrimage Of the
believers, at her expense, to the sacred
shrine ut Olt-O Oettingen, but the au-
thorities prohibited it, because they
were afraid that the i've thousand
persons who had signified their intsn-
ton to participate in ii might act riot
ously.
At the same time Mile. Spitzedsr an
nounced in the pnblic newspapers
that, owing to the enormous increase
IN her business, she was desirous Of
sharing her profits with her custo-
naa.a. anA that IN ordAr N do 40 sha
would henceforth pay her depositors
no less than ten per cent. interest .
month, every deposition to receive
three months interest in advance up
on paying in his money. This an
nouncement added enormously to her
business, and In 1871 she was able to
announce that she had nearly nine
million dorins on deposit.
It may seem strange that the author
titles Of Bavaria did not take steps to
interfere with these extraordinary f.
nancial operations, which seemed to
upset all previous theories upon sound
banking principles. It is true, few
brave journalists began to caution their
readers against intrusting their money
to Mile. Spitxeder. but the latter ST.
fenced them by libel suits. She show
Cd that she paid every cent she owed
promptly and she challenged the most
rigorous examination Of her affair."
She went still further. She founded
. daily newspaper Of her own; and to
increase her popularity she was not
only u,ost lavish in her charities, but
established twelve soup-houses for the
poor of Munich.
In 1872 she was at the height Of her
prosperity. Shs was considered the
weaithiast woman In Bavaria, and
nu merous offers OF marriage were made
to her from the most aristocrstic quar-
ters, ali II which she sternly rejected.
however. The extent Of her business
may be imagined from the fact that
she had in her Lsnk forty.nve clerks
and book-keepers; and her residence
contained works of art valued at mill
lions Of florins.
The collapse Of her pr, sperity, how
ever, came as suddenly rs It had origt-
mated. On the 18th of November.
1872. Adele 6pitzeder was uddeoiv
arrested on q charge Of fraud, 40 q. not
withstanding her protestations, sken
to cell in the city Jail. It was found
that her assets were less than two
million forms, while her liabilities
five times that amount. On
the day after her arrest people Of Mu-
mich alone presented to the authori-
ties promisory notes with her sigma
ture amounting to over three million
At the same time . number
of prominent men who had been on
intimate terms with her and received
loans from her deemed 1t prudent to
absent themselves from Bavaria for .
time. Among them was even one Of
the princes of the royal house. Dur
ing the next few days excited people
from al parts Of Bavaria focked to
Munich, complaining of having been
defrauded Of their all by the female
banker.
A great many people in Munich be-
lieve that Mile. Spitzeder will eventu-
ally not be tried ut oil, and that her
aristocratic customers will enable her
to escape from Bavaria with impuni-
ty. Her transactions certainly form
an exceedingly curious page in the f.
nancial history Of modern times
Ha,pers Weekly.
The maddest woman In the United
States Of America is one who lives In
Jackson, Me-, and recently lent her
In oOnsaa3nt.