The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-03-22
THE wooDHALL SISTERS CAUGHT.
The Story of Their Sharp Manipula-
ton of the Feeble Man Recalled.

THE WOODHALL SISTERS CAUGHT.
The Story of Their Sharp Manipula-
ton OF the Feeble Man Recalled.
From the Ne,0 York Sun.
The arrest at Birmingham, Eng, of the
notorious Woodhall sisters, whose strange
influence over the late John Gill, of this
city, was the means of procuring for them
the greater part of his fortune, is an
nounced in cable dispatch received from
London yesterday. The story is that Alice,
the younger of the sisters, resisted arrest,
and endeavored to throw lighted lamp at
the officer.
The Woodhall sisters were of humble pa
rentage, and came from England about
1870. Harriet was the elder, and the first
to arrive. She obtained employment as
cook in the household of John Gill, a
wealthy manufacturer of piano hardware,
who lived at l49 East Twenty-sixth street.
She was soon in high favor with her en-
ployer, and obtained permission to send for
her sister. Alice came and was installed as
chamoermaid. In 1871 Mrs Gill died. The
Woodhall girls were neither progressing of
countenance nor youthful, but fair educa-
ton had been added to their natural clever
ness, and they made the most of their OPP
portunities
Mrs Gill had not been long dead before
theinhuence of the two English girls over
MIR. Gill became very apparent. He gave
them presents of money, furniture and fine
clothes and lavished upon them apparently
more affection than he bestowed upon his
children. Indeed the latter were often ex-
cluded from his presence at the will of the
two favored servants. and it is said that
one Of the daughters, no longer able to
endure the arrogance and insults of her
fathers favoriteS, was forced to leave the
house.
The Woodhall girls were dutiful chill
dren, and frequently sent money home to
their parents In England. Once Harriet
wrote to her mother suggesting the pur-
chase OF q home for her parents. "Look
about you," she wrote in substance, land
select nice, comfortable place. Mr.. Gill
has been very kind to us, has given us
many presents, and INDUCES us in every
wish. So buy as fine house as you like.
Never mind the EXPENSE will see to that"
1t is estimated that these clever adventur-
ers had obtained from Mr.. Gill not less than
100000 when they attempted the final
stroke which made flight necessary and cul-
minated yesterday. in their arrest. That
was the famous bond transfer, effected, as is
alleged, partly by cajolery and partly by
forgery. Mr.. Gill had $50 500 in per cent
registered United States bonds. They were
sent to the Treasury Department at Wash
ington with letter signed, as it appeared,
by Mr.. Gill, requesting that they be can
celled and relsSued to Harriet and Alice
Woodhall. The transfer blank on the back
of each bond was properly filed out and
signed. The letter accompanying the bonds
asked that the new bonds be sent to Mr.
ellis address. The request was complied
with, the two servant girls secured the re-
issued bonds and disposed of them through
the firm of Fisk q Hatch. This was in May,
1888
About this time the courts, at the instance
of members of Mr.. Gill's family, declared
him incapable of managing his estate. The
conduct of the Woodhall sisters was inves-
tigated, and things began to look very
squally for them. Contest was made against
the validity of a deed transferring to Har-
riet Woodhall one of Mr. ellis houses in
East Twenty-sixth street. The deed was
declared void, but a mortgage given by
Harriet to an uptown bank to secure a
loan was held to be lien upon the property.
Then old MIR. Gill died and civil suit was
instituted to recover from the Woodhalls
$l50,000 alleged to have been fraudulently
obtained from Mr.. Gill. A Judgment for
$S1, 303 IL was rendered against them.
Threatened with arrest on a criminal
charge, the sisters got together all they
could take with them, and suddenly fed to
England Several thousand dollars were
left behind on deposit in various banks.
This money was seized to satisfy in part
the Judgment secured by the estate Old
Mr.. Gill was worth at one time quarter
of a million. The Woodhalls, it is said, left
him not more than $1l5,0 900
The two women disappeared about three
years ago. No trace of them was found
until last summer, when they were discov-
cred near London by Cecil Campbell Hig-
gins, attorney for Robert Gill. who is adj
ministrator of his fathers estate. They
were living quietly but sumptuously.
The proceedings, which resulted in the
arrest of the women yesterday, We're begun
before United States Commissioner Osborne
in February last Robert Gill was the COM
plainant In his affidavit he alleges that
the two servants prevailed upon mis- father
to transfer to them the bonds above refer.
red to. Mr.. Gill also testified that the sig
nature appended to the letter which accom-
panied the bonds to the Treasury Depart
ment, purporting to be the signature of his
father, was i'll the handwriting of Harriet
Woodhall. Two experts in chirography
confirmed Robert Gills judgment. Alice
was included in the charge as an accessory.
Extradition papers were prepared and
about Feb. p Mr.. Higgins took them to
England.