The record-union., 1897-05-23

swindler and his real name is Jerry
wilkins
Very good said I. Now, l want
you to send for Jerry to come to
this office. You find out the names of
his father and grandfather, and then
your are to tell him that his grand
fathers brother, Thomas G. Wilkins,
has died in Sydney, Australia, and left
him an estate worth over S0,O0O.OoO- n
firm of lawyers in Sydney by the name
of Jones & Barlow has written to you
to find Jerry Wilkins and send him on
| to Sydney to take possession OF the
| property. They have sent you 5000,
with which you are to pay his passage.
and what is left over you are to give
him for spending money on the voyage.
Do you take this all IMP
| Il hear what you say said the
lawyer, and, of course. I'm prepared to
carry out your instructions. l should
like to know what your little game is.
but, of course, that isn't my business
Right you are, said 1. You just
follow out my instructions, and let me
sit at that desk yonder when YOU in
| terview Jerry. I'll let on to be your
confidential clerk. for 1 want to see
how the fellow takes your communica-
; tion.'
| THE next day at IL o'clock 1 was at
| the lawyers office by appointment, and
| in comes the Rev. Richardson. and n
mighty sneaky, broken down yagabond
he looked. The lawyer treated him
! with tremendous respect, and l could
| see that the man was astonished, and
| couldn't make out what it meant.
4 . ,~I-
you, Mr. wilkins, to tell me the names
of your father and grandfather, and
where they We're born. Be very care
| full not to make any mistake, for IL
you are the man 1 believe you to be.
you have fallen heir to one of the big
gest properties in Australia Answer
| my questions first, and then I will tell
you all about it,
Jerry was woke up by this time, and
he answered the lawyers questions as
glib as possible. The lawyer compared
| his answers with what looked like q
| letter from Sydney, then he says:
| That is sufficient Mr.. wilkins: !
| congratulate you, There are $4,000, GOO
waiting for you in Sydney, according
| to Messrs. Jones & Barlow, who are
among the first lawyers there. They
| want you to start for Australia at
once, and have instructed me to pay
your passage. and hand you 5000 for
your personal expenses on the way.
Here are the 5000. The railway ticket
to San Francisco and the steamer ticket
| to Sydney 1 Will have ready for you
! tomorrow. / trust Mr. wilkins. that
you will put your immense wealth to
| some good use, and in case you should
| happen to remember that my fee for
| defending you last time was a very
small one, why, l shan't at all object
to receive a small check from you.
wilkins went all to pieces when he
| found, as he thought. that he was
worth five millions. He got up and
shook the lawyers hand. and bursted
| into tears. He cried like child, and
| the lawyer had to send out for some
whisky in order to brace the fellow
UP SO that he could get home Though
| Wilkins had swindled me the worst
| way, L Will say that 1 was sorry for
him, but l had my duty to perform as
one of the directors of the Amalga-
mated Dukes, Limited, and so l said
nothing, except to tell the lawyer. after
| Wilkins had gone, to send me his bill,
and l would pay it on the spot
Il saw wilkins the day he started
| Il
lawyers office demonstrating about the
size of his bill, when Wilkins came in
! to say good-by He was dressed in
| first-class style, and was as happy as
| a jaybird He told the lawyer that he
would never forget him, and that he
and other people would find out that
| Jerry Wilkins would turn out to be a
blessing to his fellow-men. now that he
was a rich man. l saw him leave in
| cab for the railroad depot, and then l
| went back to the hotel and told my
| fellowdirectOrs what had happened
| and took measures then and there for
winding up our company.
| I've often thought of that poor
devils journey to Australia. How ever
| lasting happy he must have been over
| his good fortune, I'll bet that he
drank champagne every day and Law
| ished money on the stewards. Prob
ably he used up all his spending money
| and borrowed of everybody who had
money to lend. allowing to pay when
| he arrived at Sydney. And when he got
| there, he found that there weren't no
! such lawyers as Jones & Barlow, nor
| no such deceased as Thomas G. Will
! kins and no estate of any kind coming
to him. and he stone broke and unable
| to get meal in Sydney or to get back
| to New York Well. it probably served
| him right, considering what tre-
mendous big gang of Dukes of Middle
sex he had swindled and disappointed;
but, after all, it was pretty rough on
him, and sometimes i wish / had never
had any hand in it. Still / guess / did
about right, for things have smiled on
me ever since. / didn't go back into
the grocery business, but l speculated
with my money, and made a pile big
enough to keep me comfortable for the
rest of my life, and I've just been on
| a pleasure trip to the Continent that
has cost me more money than l ever
made in groceries. Now, my idea is
that if / had done wrong in serving out
the Rev. Charles Richardson, L
shouldn't have had the luck / have had
All the same. the thought of that poor
devils first day in Sydney sometimes
makes me feel like a horse thief, and
that's a fact"-New York Herald.
Profound Grief.
st never saw woman mourn her