The daily gazette., 1880-02-14
From the New York star.
swlndled by Landsharks.

L
CLEVER RAscALs PLAYING ON A wo
MANS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS III
WATER LOTS. h r
A very peculiar case was up before
Justice Wandeu at the Yorkville
Court yesterday, wherein simple
minded German widow was made the
vi ;tim of !and sharks and bogus real
estate agents, and lost through their
machinations all the savings she had
in bank, receiving in exchange num-
Der of worthless lots in New Jersey.
The case was first brought to the no
tice of the magistrate few days ago.
Mrs. ,Catharine Britinger, the widow
in question, is about 60 years of age,
and kept lager beer saloon at No.
266 First avenue, in '7S and TO.
When her husband died he left her the
business. BY her industry and econo-
my she saved $3.50, which she put into
the Germania Savings Bank. Her
daughter also deposited $166 in the
q stranger sauntered into the saloon
and sat down at a table. After drink
ing a couple of glasses of beer he said
he was an agent at No. 618 East Six
teenth street, and that his name was
Philip Lame. He remarked in an Off
hand way that it was bad time to
have money in the bank, as they We're
all bursting, He asked Mrs. Britinger
If she had any money in bank, and she
replied that she had but she never felt
that it was secure.
I 81 IL II
draw the money out. She put ON her
hat and dress, and was accompanied
by Lame to the Germania Bank,
where she withdrew her $3.50, and her
daug hit rat the same time took out
her $3.50.
Upon returning to the saloon two men
we're found playing cards at a table.
LauZs recognized them AZ friends, and
lntroduced them 10 Mrs, Brttinger as
Louis FL igs, of No. SO East 129th
street. a real estate agent, aud Henry B.
Gourley. They all talked bust mess for "a
few moments, aud agreed that the
mel borhood was not good one for
wo nan TO keep "A saloon in. The man
GJurley asked Mrs. Biittinger how much
sle would sell out for, aud she replied
$50. Guurley offered her mortgage
GU forty -eiPbt lots at Tolns River. N. j.,
worth S14 900, for the saloon, and $500
cash. She AZ first refused, but was rs
snred that the mortgage was good aud
could be foreclosed on January /, 1880.
Lame said iI was all right, but to make
sure he would, visit he Registers Office
next day aud tibd out If the mortgage
was recorded. He reported next day
thai all was right, and that same after
noon the saloon and the $500 were
handed over 70 GOLrley. g
Mrs Ii ittinger and her daughter took
rooms at No. 6l8 E st s x eenth street.
A few week n ter this Lame prop u ed
u Mrs. ,Brittlnger to purchase C SALOON
Y hen for sale at No. 2i2 Rivington street,
a vi she handed over to Lapze $500 TO
IN ,be the purchase. Mrs. Briiunger
avs that Lange paid $2l2 for the saloon
. nj pocketed the balance. Size pro-
eded tU take possession of the saloon,
Jtt Louis Fleise, IN whose name IL hau
been bought, refused to let her enter the
p ace. This strange acnon was the first
liiDaiiOn she had that she was being
swindleu ont of her money. decided
to wait unul the LIST. o: January, 1880
when she Intended 10 foreclose the mort
gage she held, and she employed Mr..
John q. Frazsr, lawyer, of No. 2l7
tue lois at Toms River. They were
found to be swamp lands, under water
three months of the year, and totally
worthless. Hes lawyer met the County
CLERK and Mr.. A. z. Iron, a lawyer, who
laid out the lots some months previous,
and they told him that the 10 3 had been
extensively operated on by b gus real
state agents in New York, Philadelphia
aud Brooklyn.
Lance and Fleige were both arrested
On a civil suit for damages. They were
sach held in 500 in the Marine Court,