Evening journal., 1892-09-02
STOLEN SECURITIES.
HOW THEY ARE DISPOSED or IN
LONDON WITH IMMUNITY.


LONDON, Aug. 25.-London enjoys the
uneuviable reputation Of being the great,
and indeed ! may add the only, market
in the world for the disposal Of stolen
bonds, share certificates and scrip Of
every description. Incredible though it
may appear, the transactions in this par
ticular class Of plumber are carried on
with the utmost publicity and without
any danger of Interference on the part
of the English authorities. This strange
immunity is due to the peculiar and
fortunately unique regulations of the
London Stock exchange and to the Eng
lish law on the subject Of stolen scrip,
which permits q thief TO give q good and
legal title TO bonds which he has OBJ
tanned by crime, and to the ownership
Of which lie has therefore no legal title
himself. According to this statute, the
stolen bonds Gun be recovered by the po-
lice only if the actual thief is captured
with-them in his possession. But from
the moment that he has transferred
them to amy third party, then recovery
by law becomes impossible.
Few people save the police, the bank
robbers and the members of the London
Stock exchange are aware Of these facts
BUTT seems to me that the matter should
be made more widely known, in order
that public pressure from every quarter
Of the civilized world may be brought to
bear upon the British government with
the object Of inducing the latter 10 amend
n its laws in accordance with the dictates
. Of commercial honor and probity
1t was but last year that a British
court Of justice, presided over by the lord
chief Justice Of England, affirmed once
4 moro the existence IF this extraordinary
4 law, according to which stolen bonds
constitute a valid exchange and ne
f gotiable instrument On the London
stock market. They remain so even if
qualified by public notification sf es-
TOPPED by the government or concern
which has originally issued them. Ac-
cording to the sworn testimony Of tho
president Of tho London Stock exchange,
given during the course Of the trial in
question, it is beyond the power Of that
institution to take cognizance Of any es-
TOPPED Of bond.
If the latter is genuine-that is, not a
! forgery-and if it il not nominal, but
negotiable by transfer to bearer, the
London Stock exchange does not con
slider itself to be at liberty to step into
the place q the issuing government o.
concern and TO alter its character. Il
does rot even consider it to be necessary
that the vender Of stolen and stopped
bond should inform the purchaser Of It's
true character. Nor has the party who,
having given an order to a broker for
the purchase of bonds, receives scrip
which has been stolen and stopped any
legal right to refuse delivery thereof.
1t IS easy to understand that with
ethics such as these prevailing in the
greatest commercial center OF the uni
verse, and tolerated by the law of the
land, new and powerful impetus
has been given to the profession Of bond
robbery. In former days. before the Brit
ish tribunals had affirmed this state Of af
fairs bank burglars never stole anything
in tho nature Of bonds, securities, stock.
and shares. They wero Seterred by tn,
difficulty OF 6isposing Of them, and re
gardod them not only rs useless, bu
even as dangerous. Their entire atten
ton was devoted TO the specie and banl
notes. Nowadays, however, the bank bur
glar makes point Of carrying on ever,
scrap Of paper on which he is able to la,
hands. and the entire package is at ouc'
conveyed to London either by the thieve
themselves or else by the resident agent
OF the London dealers in rogue bonds,
as stolen paper is denominated in Thread
needle street.
These agents arc stationed in almos
every important city Of the continent 0
Europe and Of America. At Paris the
mostly haunt the cafes In the neighbor
hood Of the Elysee Montmartre. i
New York they frequent certain wei
known puTlieus Of Fulton street. TIL
London principals, for whom they &C
and in whose employ they all stand, ar
either outsido-that is. curbstone-brob
ers. money changers OF lawyers Man
of the latter affect to belong to the oil
school OF family solicitors, wear whit
cravats, swaIowtail coats, and transac
their business in stolen bonds wit
much JUNCTION and outward semblanc
Of respectability. Ono Of them is know
10 hare had 10 much as 100000 wort
Of stolen bonds pass through his hand
last year during the space u one month
Whenever any bond robbery take
place nowadays-and they have enoi
mously increased in number and in
portance Of late-the victims Of tn
theft and the police commence by d.
voting all their energies toward pr
venting the stolen scrip from leavin
the country and from reaching Londor
Failing this they endeavor to arrest tn
actual thief with tho plumber in his POI
session before he has had time to di
pose Of it to his dealer. There az
thieves who have been captured, {,
gether with their booty, while in the a,
Of entering the door Of the dealer. Wel
the police to have awaited FOR them I
emerge before making the arrest the
would have been unable to recover I'll
stolen property, for from the momel
that it has been transferred by tn
thieves to a third party it is placed b
You'd the reach Of the law and II
police.
e. 4r-----r.T.- l.. A., LID. -. II