Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1880-08-25
A a1HvE'S END.
A MELANCHOLY DEATH IN
PRISON.
"CoLoNEL" RALPH ROLLINS, THE CHAM
BERsBURG BANK RoBBER, DIES WITHIN
THE COLD, GRAY WALLS OF CHERRY
HILL PRISON, WHICH HE FAILED
TO PENETRATE BY GUILE.

alias Colonel Palph Rollins, confidence
operator forger, swindler and attempt
ed bank robber, terminated on Satur
day last with his death in q narrow
cell of the Eastern Penitentiary, be-
hind tho walls whia, ho had vainly
attempted TO get outside Of by every
artiiice known to desperate convicts
within the three years during which
he was confined. The malady which
took hin off is set down by the doctors
as Bright's disease of the kidneys, but
disappointment and desperation at the
failure of all his schemes to obtain lib
erty had much and probably more to
do with his disease than the mere
bodily ills. He was one of the most
irsinuating, sSillful rogues of the age
and his career is like romance. lie
was forty years of ago when he died
and presented but few vestigcs of the
remarkable masculine beauty he pos
sessed when be first became tenant
of cell in Cherry Hill. He was the
son of Sheriff Clermont, of Scioto Co.,
Ohio, who afterwards removed to
Schoolcraft, Michigan. Young Lewis
started out in life with the advantages
OF handsome person, good educa-
tion and his fathers influence 10 back
him. He was q skilliul book.keeper
and penman, and when he enlisted in
an Illinois regiment at the outbreak
of the rebellion and reached Nashville,
his skilIiulness with the pen and &C.
counts obtained him first-cass posi-.
ton in the Quartermasters Depart
ment,
At the end of the war he saw money
in cotton speculation, and realized $50,
600, anyhow, at the expense of confd-
ing consiguees in New York, who
honored his drafts for cotton alleged
to be in transit. With this fund he
fed. He is next heard Of at st, Louis,
where he opened banking house,
with correspondents at Chicago and
San Francisco. The 81. Louis house
honored drafts from Chicago and San
Francisco until favorable day came
lor the sharper, and then he laid down
heavier drafts than usual in chicago,
which were cashed, and when present
ed at st. Louis the firm of Rollins q Co.
was non est, with about $4,000 or so
clear. With this "spoil" the swindler
took trip to Europe and the Holy
Land, taking his wife with him.
While in Germany he was the guest
of Baron Shindle, otherwise Maximil-
ian Shinburne, one OF the Northamp-
ton and Ocean bank robbers, who was
living q gilded existence on his baro'
NAL estate at Stuttgart, Wurtemburg,
Pinkerton's detectives, who got wind
of the real character Of Clcrmont, the
distinguished American, swooped down
upon him for the Chicago and st, Louis
forgeries. He hired the best legal
talent in all Germany and beat the
detectives on q technicality about the
extradition. He was afraid, however,
to return to the United States and
went down to South America, where
he had spent q short time subsequent
to the cotton escapade. firing OF
South America, he went to Chicago
again and then to New York, where
he bloomed out as Louis La Dezina, o
foreigner with bagiuls Of ducats, who
was going to astonish Wall street with
his stock jobbing operations. He was
coyertly associated with Walter Pat
terson and other expert forgers, who
had given him lessons at St. Louis and
Chicago, il is asserted. Most of the
securities he gave as collateral are
said to have been United States bonds
> which had been the produce Of big
bank robberies. One day lot oi
Wall street brokers discovered them
selves to be the victims OF gang o.
clever forgers, who had bagged about
sl50,000 as their spoil.
While in New York the scheme wal
matured to swindle the Philadelphia
brokers with raised certificates ol
Reading stock. The scheme was tC
purchase q "block" of shares and have
them split up into single share certlii
Gates. The statement was made tina
a wealthy person desired to have thu
stock in this form in order to max,
Christmas presents to friends. Soor
afterward some Of the single share
: certificates began to appear on ThirC
street altered to higher denominations
which was exactly the object OF th,
swlndlers in getting them. The plo
failed and Rollins and his wife No. 2
who had manipulated the affair." wer,
pursued to Now York Thoy were
not prosecuted.
. Rollins had two wives, one being o
= Chicago lady and the other a Phila
delphia lady, who is said to have bcol
the companion OF State Senator nov
= deceased. She was the possessor o
= magnificent diamonds, said to be wortl
$4,000, which the Senator conferred
upon her. Rollins, who met her a.
Long Branch, where he was playing
the part of a Brazilian diamond mer
chant, all bespangled with the prod
ucts Of his mines, is said to hav,
: married her with tho one idea of get
ting the Senator's gift. He ran away
with them and defeated the woman
; who had trusted him, in subsequen
lawsuit, on the technicality that I
wife was not a good witness agains
: her husband for theft. The advent
ures of these diamonds subsequently,
would be interesting reading, but it /
= believed they afterwards turned up IN
q startling way in prison,
Rollins for q number Of years existed
through confidence operations and for
geries until the attempt by himsel
and his brothor.in.law, A. b. Wicks o.
Weeks, alias Johnson, TO blind Cashie
Messorsmith, of the Chambersburl
bank, and plunder the bank vaults
, TO effect this, for months before th,
plot was ripe, Rollins was at Cham
bersburg with an invalid whom h
represented 70 he his brother. III
was playing Colonel Rollins of th
army at this time. He worked him
= self into the confidence Of the Cashie
' and his family through the assistanc
Of one of the Rollins wives. On Marcl
! 20, 1876, Rollins, who pretended tha
he wanted TO purchase Messorsmith'
farm, secured an interview at the banl
at night and asked permission TO dc
. posit 10000 for safe keeping
In the vault was over half a million
t dollars. The confding Cashier tool
, Rollins and Wicks 10 the vault and q
soon as the doors opened tho conspir
! ators sprang upon him. They ha'
! not the audacity and cold blood 0
professional bank robbers and did no
D disable the old man, who broke loose
/ Rollins snatchcd $4,000 and barrel,
4 .l..n. .,,L... a. .....l