Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-01-17
HE BROKE THE BANK.
Monte Carlo Wells" in Bow Street
Court for Swindling.
ANOTHER GRADE CROSSING HORROR.
The West Virginia Senatorship
Fight Settled.
OTHER TELEGRAPHIC NEWS.
MONTE CARLO WELLS.
He is Famed the Original Breaker of the
Bank.

He is Famed rs the Original Breaker Of the
| Bank.
| LONDON Jan. 17.-Charles Wells commonly
known as monte Carlo wells," arrived from
France today in the custody Of detectives and
was arraigned at the Bow street police court on
twelve charges Of fraud, amounting to E45. 0O0
Wells is famed in music hall lore as the man
who broke the bank at Monte Carlo" Wells
| is fifty years of age. His London address is
No. 154 Great Portland street. His profession
was supposed TO be that Of a civil engineer and
patent agent.
London has heard a good deal recently about
| Mr.. Wells. His Monte Carlo exploits brought
him into public prominence. He claimed that
he had broken the bank through working an
| infallible system. He published pamphlet
| setting forth the details of it, He asked for a
partner with heaps Of money, promising a
| golden reward at the expense Of the administers
| tors of the great gambling casino. He believed.
or affected to believe, in the run OF sequences
/ at roulette.
But so far as is known Wells did not get his
partner. He overlooked one point which doubt
less prevented partner from coming forward.
If by following the sequences of the table it
became possible 10 acquire great wealth, what
need was there for great capital to start the OPP
erations?
Some time after Monte Carlo had made Wells
an object of common talk he began to figure
rather unpleasant!y in law court reports. He
was repeatedly sued for money which, it was
alleged he had obtained by shady practices.
For instance, under an agreement dated
March of last year he was proceeded against by
lady named Miss Catherine Mary Philimore
for the sum of ELL 900. She had paid to him
900 on condition that she received f100, 900
out of the first moneys obtained from an in
vention diminishing the consumption Of fuel in
furnaces. There was q clause IN the agreement
that in the event of her not receiving at least
eli 900 out of the profits before the beginning
of April. 1892, that sum should become payable
by the defendant.
The defense set up that certain shares Of the
nominal value of f22. 500 were accepted by the
plaintiff in part payment of the 100000, and
that therefore there could be no action. But
the plaintiffs counsel urged that these shares
were worth nothing.
He said: these shares are in C. Wells 4 Co.
The offices Of the company are in Paris and
with difficulty they have been found out"
The learned counsel added that. although they
had been taken two years before, no furniture
had been put in, nobody occupied them and no
rent had been paid. The action was sent for
trial by the judges, the lord chief justice re-
marking that it was a singular and curious
agreement and required looking into.
On November 16 Wells was again heard of in
the law courts. There were two claims urged
by a gentleman named Harris to recover f24O
received BY the defendant for the plain
in the pleadings.
Wells. through his counsel, consented to judg-
ment. but Mr.. Reid, Q. c.. who appeared for
the plaintiff. made q statement in court which
is Of special interest now in view Of the arrest.
Mr.. Reid said that the f240 were OBJ
tanned from the plaintiff for a supposed patent
The defendant took out provisional specitica-
tion, but did not complete and make the patent
q success.
After he got the money he did nothing fur
Their. They found that this was a regular prac-
tice. The defendant would get E5 from some
one. He would then spend 81 in getting a
provisional specification, and without COM
pleting the patent he would get various sums.
in one instance much 200, from per-
sons, some of them women. for which they got
nothing at all.
In 1888 he took out forty-two provisional
specifications; in 1889, forty-five; in 1880, if
teen. and in 1891, five, nearly all of which were
abandoned without his taking out patent at
all. There was multitude Of persons in court
who were the victims Of this system.
Mr.. Justice Wright pointed out that if such
allegations were true the public prosecutor
ought to be communicated WITH and it is the
result of this being done that Wells has been
arrested. 1t is stated that on the day following
the hearing of the ease Wells sailed from Ply
mouth in his sumptuously furnished yacht. the
Palais ROYAL, a vessel of 400 or 500 tons.
1t is stated that Wells sailed with the inten-
ton of reaching Portugal He touched at
Cherbourg and then went on to Havre. only to
find that his movements had been followed and
that the police were on his track.
On instructions from London Wells was ar
rested at Hsvre and his yacht was seized by
the authorities On board the yacht the French
police found beautiful young woman named
Jane Pernaud, who had accompanied Wells on
his career of adventure. She wrote TO Wells
from on board the yacht that, as she was now
completely without resources, she intended to
XII herself. The letter was Intercepted by the
public prosecutor, who summoned Jane Per-
maud to his Office. He soon convinced,
however. that the young woman knew nothing
about the misdeeds Of which her lover is ac-
cused, so he handed her sufficient money to re-
a,nr.. a.. L L..