The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1896-03-20

persons VINO Will forward a guinea on
the chance, particularly when it is stat
ed that ''ifby any chance name should
not be connected with money are prop
erty the fees are at once returned"
The unscrupulous agent not only does
not waste any time in investigating the
claim after the guinea is received, but
from time to time sends in a bill of
charges for sums professedly expended
in searches and legal proceedings, and
pleads delays and obstacles of all kinds
i'll getting possession of the estate
sought for. 1t would be interesting to
know how many guinea fees are ever
returned. There are doubtless some
bona ,fde cases Of claims to estates be-
ing brought to trial, though no success
ful ones are known.
Claims of this class, which generally
are entirely imaginary and delusive,
differ in this respect from the celebra-
ted Tichborne case, which occurred in
England in 1874, where there was an
actual estate and really lost heir, and
where the claimant was the only fraud
ulent feature Whether the idea of
personitying the lost Roger Tichborne
originated in the claimants own brain,
was suggested to him by designing per-
sons who hoped to live on him when he
came into possession, will probably
never be known. 1t is stated that the
claimant, after serving out his sentence
of Imprisonment at hard labor, confess
ed that he was butcher of the name
of Orton, and that his whole claim was
fraudulent, as had been conclusively
proved at the trial. The costs to the
rightful owners were enormous, and
hampered the estate for some years,
though, fortunately, the affair happened
during the minority of the heir. 1t was
astonishing that large number of in
telligent persons could be found to sub
scribe to the fund in aid of the false
claimant Had he been successful, he
would have been the counterpart Of
Tittlebat Titmouse, the claimant in the
well-known story "Ten Thousand a
Year which was written many years
before the Tichborne case occurred.
The Department of State at Wash
ington and our legations and embassies
abroad are inundated with inquiries
concerning ''unclaimed estates," indi-
eating in every case that there is a
fraudulent estate agent in the back
ground as prime mover in the matter.
In reply to the writer's the Department
of State has prepared printed circulars,
based on the reports Of our diplomatic
officials in Europe, exposing the de-
signs of claim agents, and indicating
lle cOTTtCl lnctHOuS VI StstlCullIS lol
estates, though at the same time point
ING out the futility of doing so. AS
far as our officials are aware, after the
most careful inquiries, not single so
called ''unclaimed estate" has ever been
found, nor has any occupant ola known
estate ever been dispossessed in favor
of a new claimant. In some eases
where the fraud was palpable, our di-
plomatic agents have taken measures
to have legal proceedings instituted,
and with success, against several fraud
ulent agents. These have resulted in
the closing Of the agencies, and the con-
viction and punishment Of the guilty
parties.
Such is the general view of the sub
ect. but few instances and particu-
lars may be Of interest and Advantage
to the public, and may deter credulous
persons from wasting time and good
money on fraudulent agents and ufound-
ed claims 1t is also well for claim
agents and claimants to know at the
start that the transmission through
the mail of letters containing schemes
for the purpose of obtaining money
or property under false pretenses is
forbidden by law, and that the govern
ments of the United States and Great
Britain are in accord to intercept such
letters and bring the sanders, fpossible,
to trial and punishment. The only
case in this county which has been
prosecuted with the result of convict
ing and furnishing the estate agent was
under the provisions Of the law against
using the mails for the purpose OF
/ swindling the public. The English
convictions were for obtaining money
under false prctenses
The principal claims brought to the
notice of our embassy in England are
I those against the Jennens, or Jennings,
the Hedges, the Bradford, the Hyde,
the Horne, and Townley estates, to
say nothing Of the many claims to un-
told sums of money said to be lying in
the Bank of England, or in Chanccry
or in the public funds Of England or
! India.
! The Jennings claimants have the be-