Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1880-04-14
How q Gypsy Woman Obtained
Ten Thousand Dollars from a
SuperStitiouS Virginian,

4CA AhouooAo 0VllolS lIVm q
Superstitious Virginian.
David 5. Trout Is rich planter of
Roanoke county, Virginia, q strict
church member and one of the most
successful men in his county. He has
several farms aud lives on one on the
line of the Virginia and Tenneses Rail-
road, close to the Salem Post Ofise
and near the Roanoke river. Yesterday,
accompanied by Detective John Ween,
of Richmond, and Chief of Police Don
ovan, of Newark, he visited Brooklyn
and identified Matilda Wor;on, the
gypsy fortune teller, who is in Ray
mond street Jail on charge of robbing
William Jessop, of Princeton, Indiana,
of $3.50, as the woman who, three
years ago, robbed him of q package
containing $4,000 in greenbacks,
leaving in its stead a similar package
that contained strips Of newspaper cut
into the shape of bank notes. Mr.. Trout
says that in February 1875, be receiv-
ed a note, sigued ID. T Wartou, saying
that there was q patural deposit Of sill
yer on his farm. In 1876 Mrs. Worton
the gypsy woman called On him. '.Sbe
said, continued Mr.. Trout. THAT close
to my house there was deposite Of
silver containing about q million dol
lars that the mass OF it was in q crude
state, but that large amount of the
metal bad already been mined The
silver, she said, was first discovered
many years ago, by two Indiau ,hisfs
named Curry and Mesh, who, on shift
ing their habitation, buried their for
tunes there and put = spell over the
mine, which it required superbumau
gitr to break The hiding place was
sealed by secret, and she alone could
charm It away and open the mine for
my benefit. | told her il she would
show me where the mine was | would
give her one half of the proceeds, but
she said that she needed q package of
Sl2, 900 to handle, always in my pres
ence, SD that she could work out the Sc
cre, | die not have 80 much money at
hand, and told her that could not ge,
it. Sbe,eame to See me humber Of times,
aud at length she said that she could
extract the secret of the hiding place
Of the mine If she could handle SIC, 900
but she promised that the money should
never 60 out of NV sight. At length
| got the $4,000 together in bank
notes and the gypsy began her incanta
tions. She counted the money, sprink-
led it with earth, mutered over it and
said prayers without number. When
she had flushed she went away leaving
the money in my hands tied up in
brown paper, AMI as she cautioned NE
no, to touch it for fear | would undo
her work | put it up aid kept it intact
until she returned again. She paid me
several visits, aud each time took out
the money, examined it carefully and
praye ed over it. l held it for a time
while she prayed and then she held it
and prayed. This was done several
times. A, length on May I, 1877, she
said that all of her plans were working
so we'll that In one more visit she would
charm away the spell that bound the
secret of the mine, and would, she
thought, be able to lead me directly to
it. She again took the money, prayed
over it and asked me to count it. so
that | could see that it vas all there.
Il don't want you to think, she said to
me, 'thst | would want to steal auy of
it, said {: s1f you took that money,
or fooled me, | would kill you saw
that all my money was in the package,
just as l had given it to her, and then
she carefully tied 1t up and put string
about it. Now she said, .the spell
is broken, and in one more visit will be
cast aside But she added, 'no one
must touch this package | promised
to lock it up, but she said she wanted
me to swear to it upon the Bible. l
turned TO get the Bible, and the mon-
ey was hardly out of my sight a mo-
ment. | turned again. and she had the
package extended toward me. l swore
upon the Bible that would not open
1t or allow any one else to do SO, and
took the package lwrote d. ID. Trout
upon the back and made marks upon 1t
wherever there was fold of the paper,
SO that l could tell If any one disturb
ed it. Then l put it away. As she
dId no. return and as my time was up
when | was obi ged to return the mon
ey to the bank where | had obtained it,
l opened the package and found that
it contained strips of newspaper cut TO
the size of bank notes. aud that there
wasn't a penny Of my $40, 600 left"
Mr.. Trout will begin a suit in Hud-
son county, New jersey, where the
gypsies have property, to recover his
noney-.NeU York Sun.
A late dispatch says; Timothy and
Matilda Worton, gypsies, arrested in
Brooklyn, N Y, for obtaining money
under false pretenses, on Wednesday
handed over to a deputy sheriff of In-
diana. AR. Traut, of Virginia whom
they swludled out of $4,000, was in
court with a requisi'ion from tbe Gov
ernor of that State, and was much dis
appointed when he learned that Indiana
had precedence.
Ad,spatch from Poughkeepsie, N. Y,
a-. ii. III -. .olr