The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-06-11
"SIR GEORGE" WlLKENS.
4 CRIMINAL WITH 4 MOST ROMAN
TIC CAREER.
Country, He Comes 10 the End Of
His Rope at Last, and Lies Dying
in Poverty, Deserted by Those Who
I..r...n-r.- l.nrr...r LII. l.I.I.a

From the Cincinnati Enquirer.

FOrEaerIy Called Him Chief
From the Cincinnati Enquirer.
New York. june Elm one OF the surgi-
cal wards of Bellevue Hospital lies the
wreck of the handsomest. best hammered.
shrewdest and most generally accomplish
ed rascal known 10 the police Of several
countries.
He is an American by birth. and has
confessed to planning the most audacious
burglaries committed during the past %
years in Pittsburg. ST. Louis Chicago.
Buffalo. Philadelphia. Boston. Cincinnati
Baltimore, Washington. Atlanta. Kansas
City and other prominent cities OF the old
and new worlds, which are described in
detail below.
His name is Sir George" Wilkcns. the
king of forgers, burglars, counterfelters
and confidence men. At one time ne had
gangs" of them under his ruling. and
they obeyed him as we'll trained dogs
obey the whistle Of their masters. But Sir
George is a ruler no more. His name now
merely tells his subjects. who alone knew
him as he was the tale of "a ruler I'm ex-
lie, and penniless sot.
This who remember this prince of dual
NE, who never dirtied his hands with
burglars tools or forged without avoiding
the law, and whose name has been an
nOunced at the receptions Of many of the
society leaders of New York. Paris. Len
don and other large cities, would stare to
see HIM now. emaciated, unshaven and
bruised, trembling in the first stages of
delirium tremens. Many have stared who
called at the hospital. and saw him
wreck Of the Sir George" NVflkene who
used to stroll along Broadway. the Strand
or the Boulevard des Italennes dignihed
Meli-groomed and courtly In his bearing.
lie was received as a peer travelling in
cog unless IN London, where he dropped
the Sir and called himself the son Of an
American millionaire. No one connected
MIN with William Henry Wilkens the
hustung ana diplomatic manager and ad-
ances.
As a man of the world. schooled in CON
ndehce games, Wilkens' own confession
goes 10 show that he certainly never had
rival, and the epidemic of safe cracking
which occurred about fifteen years ago,
When even banks were wiped out Of eX-
lstence, Is credited to his wits I'm this
criminal occupation. The police believe
ne invented many ingenious tools in use
IN recent operations.
The remainder of Wilkens' life-that is,
since ms daring professional triumphs
along in 1879 TO 1SS4-has been spent in
more plumber. Safes became harder to
crack, and enterprising inventors, with
electricity, played sad havoc with the
business; but though many times. when
ne found ii necessary 10 crack safes, his
gangs. were caught and sentenced, he
served but one term, which was at the
time of his downfall This was AT Milan
four years ago
.Wikens was always near by when the
JOBS were being executed, and not even
his minions knew it, until on one occasion
they tried to make way with the plumber
frequently when they were caught he
would DC waking up and down in front of
the place that was being robbed. They
never could observe him unless they at
tempted to fool him. when he always
caught them and seemed 70 know their
plans. on one occasion when the men
We're In the hands Of the detectives they
were, greatly surprised al seeing him
waking ahead. one Of them rebelled
and commenced to accuse him, but he had
that possibility all prearranged.
Wne1 ne saw the officers approaching
ne mad studied them all by sight and
walk, he ran up to them, claiming to be
private detective, and seeing no es-
cape for his men, urged them to hasten
AS result, when the safe-cracker tried
Ito impHcate his leader, as the latter ex-
pected, the detectives scoffed at him. and
surprised the three burglars by inform
ing them that the gentleman walking
ahead was the private detective OF the
bank they had been trying to burgarize
f51e,vera al, similar captures happening 20
klng Wilken,s different gangs" impress
ed the members that II would be use
less to try to drag him into the crimes.
They We're arrested. tried, sentenced and
on being released from prison, returned
to his flock.
But though for twenty years the leader
in the boldest schemes OF robbing through
out the world, Wllkens had always been
shining example Of honor ''among
thieves, but TO save himself further i'm
prisOnment when sentenced at Milan he
gave evidence against his minlons, whom
! he termed as his comrades" BY so do
ing he was released after serving three
| years.
Only three of his men We're caught
and each Is serving out a ten years term
on his evidence. the other Crooks of
his gang despised him after that re-
fusing 10 remain under his leadership
and tried to give evidence against him
| but discovered IN time to save themselves
that by so doing they would also be
imprisoned, ard decided to let him alone
Wilkens had been going down hill stead
lly for the last four years. and one night
last week a policeman found him lying
unconscious IN a vacant lot He had evil
IDENTITY been in fight and had been
knocked down and Kicked. Three Of his
eye was bruised and swollen TO the size
Of ones fist and his chin was cut in two
places. He was sent to Bellevue hospi-
tai as common Vagrant in a critical con-
ditIon and placed under DIR. Hubbard's
care In ward 49,
1t was feared at first that Wilkens had
also a fracture Of the base of the skull
1t is pretty certain now that he has not
According to the latest report however
ne IS still unconscious, and DR.. Hubbard
IS OF the opinion tnat ne stands no chance
of recovery. The physicians Identified
Walkens with George Wilkes. who had
passed the critical stage Of delirium tre-
Those who know the story of Wilken's
| betrayal Of his comrades in Italy in 1883
]
| friends Of the men he gave evidence
against but Capt Cross believes they are
simply the result Of a drunken brawI
Wilkens was in a comatose state when
put to bed and all the hospital people
could get out him the first two DAYS was
his name, his address and the address OF
an uncle, a highly respectable and well
to-do New Yorker, who has stood By him
and spent time and money IavisbIv In
the attempt to make him a decent man.
He called for a priest and made a con-
fession. which he did not object 10 be-
ing made public
From this uncle I learned the story of.
Wilkens criminal career ana especially
of his descent from the ranks Of swell
cracksman" TO the gutter
when George came back penniless from
Paris four years ago." said he "his
health was broken and his nerves so up-
set that he was unable to do anything
either honest or dishonest, for a living.
He had always been abstemious and
proud of his personal appearance, but ne
then began TO drink heavily and TO ap-
proach every one he knew for a loan
h got a good deal Of money at first and
caroused until he was stricken with par
alysis two years ago de was in bed for
six months and came very near dying
"He became more mOrose than ever
when he got out again. His clothes he
aTtr nd he g-sf