Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1890-08-23
A FAMOUS coNsp1RAroR DEAD.
Charles L. Lawrence Passes Away in
nhscurity.
New York Cor. Boston Herald

Obscur1ty.
New York Cor. Boston Herald
On Tuesday last, Charles l.. Lawrence,
unnoticed and unknown, died at an OBJ
scnre residence at 63S West End avenue.
lawrence was the leading spirit In the
most systematic, far-reaching and success
full conspiracy ever organized to DER aud
Uncle Sans Custom-house. He w9A the
chief figure in a conspiracy which cost the
United States Government near " 81, 500,-
600. which involved scores Of people on
both sides of the Atlantic. and which, for
a time. threatened to involve this country
and England in serious complications.
Charles l.. Lawrence was Jew, and
was born in Lond.on. His surname was
Lazarus, but several years after he cameto
this country he took the more American
name of Law renee, by permission of either
the Courts or the Legislature, and married
a daughter of Mordecai NJ. Noah, the
founder of Nodh's Sunday Times the Cour-
Ter and Inquirer, and other less known New
York papers. Lawrence got control OF
the Sunday Times, and for time
edited it. Later on he established HIM
self as a Custom house broker, made
money, and began to dabble in politics.
He became acquainted with William NJ.
Tweed, Joined the famous Americas Club,
and became its Secretary. So well was he
thought of by Tweed that he is supposed
to have been the man to whom Tweed was
said to have given 100000 for the purchase
of one or members of the jury which
tried the author of the "What-are-you-
going-to-do-abou ii" remark. About this
time Lawrence invested heavily in real
estate, and rumor has always had it that
Tweed's 100000 went for the purchase OF
real estate for Lawrence instead of the
purchase of jurymen for Tweed. However
that may have been, Lawrence continued
to make money as Custom-house broker,
dressed well, lived high and altogether
was regarded as a prosperous citizen. He
maintained two establishments-one a
fine residence for his wife and children on
West twenty street and the other
house no less pretentious, on the same
street, occupied by a woman who was not
his wife.
In February, 1875, there came an ex-
plosion. The real explosion must have
been preceded by premature, though
noiseless, explosion, for when United
States secret service agents went with a
warrant to look for Mr.. Lawrence he was
not there, having started hurriedly for
Canada For six months or year pre-
ceding this winter juant over the border
the silk importers of New York had been
ANNOYED by mysterious competition,
whereby they were undersold. They found
out that somebody or other = nobody
seemed TO know just who, had been before
them to their customers, offered goods Of
unquestioned value at reduced prices, and
cut them out. The secret service men
after some three months investigation, hi
upon the fact that the consignees named
in certain invoices did not exist. They
seized eight cases of merchandise imported
from Et;sane, France, and consigned tC
all passed as "hosiery," seven of them
really contained valuable silks
1t was found that in the preceding two
years Just eighty cases, consigned to ic
titious persons and invoiced as hosiery
buttons, corsets, burlaps, etc, had escaped
the watchfulness of the Deputy Collector
though they had really contained silks
alpacas, mohairs, laces and other good
subject to high duties. All these cases hac
been handled by Lawrence, who had rep
resented the fictitious consignees by virtue
of alleged powers of attorney which he hac
produced. Lawrence was hunted up il
Canada and escaped from there to Queens
town, Ireland. The United States Gov
eminent got extradition papers and hac
him brought back on the charges of for
gerry. After good deal of trouble anc
much correspondence with the British
Government, the District Attorney de-
cided that he would either have to try
Lawrence for forgery or let him GO. II
was impossible to secure conviction on a
forgery charge, so, after a long confne-
ment, Lawrence was released. In the
meantime civil suit had been brought
against him by the Government for the
recovery of 81, 1886, 400, out of which he
was alleged to have defrauded the Treas
ury. When the officers went to levy on
his property they found nothing to levy