The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-11-25
WAS A GLITTERING SWINDLE.
MANY RUSHED TO TURN IN THEIR
SMALL SAVINGS.

or go Per Cent. al Yenr-Hns Been
Doing Business ON Extensive scale,
and Has Taken In About $4,000
OOO-POIice Could Not Find Him,
but Seized $4,000 in Cash.
New York. Nov. 2i.-william f. Miller,
head of the Franklin syndicate, which
has accepted the deposits of thousands Of
persons in Brooklyn. under promise of
paying dividends of 10 per cent. a week,
or $50 per cent, per annum. and Cecil Les
lie, his secretary, were indicted by the
Kings county grand jury.
Bench warrants We're issued for the ar
rest of these two men. but up to quite a
late hour tonight, neither had been found,
the police saying that they had disappear
ed in the afternoon.
Tonight the police raided the premises
occupied by the franklin syndicate on
Floyd street. There was a great crowd
of people around the building, and the
police surrounded It, Inspector Brennan
arrested Louis Miller, brother of the head
of the syndicate and cashier of the con-
cern, and took possession OF $4,000 in
cash.
There were forty employees engaged at
work in the offices, and these were al
lowed to go.
1t was stated by Louis Miller to the po-
lice that the Offices were then in the hands
of ex+sheriff pally of Richmond to whom,
he said the concern had assigned.
The charge upon which Miller was in
dicted was that of conspirlng to defraud.
The district attorneys office in Brooklyn
has been at work on the case for some
weeks, so prominent have Miller's opera
lions become in that time.
Miller has been engaged for the past
two years in Offering his glitterlng induce
ments to The people to invest their money
with him to make use of, but it has been
only within the last month that by ex-
teusive advertising in one way or another
he has managed to attract to his office
hundreds of people daily who gathered in
a long line or fought with each other for
the opportunity to hand out their savings.
Even when the place was raided to-
might by the police number of those
around the Offices were waiting to deposit
money with the Franklin syndicate.
Police Took the Money.
The presence of the police caused great
excitement. When they entered the Of
flee they were Informed that at o'clock
tonight the concern had made an assign
ment in the borough Of Manhattan to
James Daily, ex-sherin of Richmond.
Chief of Detectives Reynolds said that the
police were the assgnees now and put
Daily off the premises Daily has been
in the employ of Miller for some time
past. OF the $4,000 taken possession Of by
the police, something more than 5000 in
cash was found In the syndicate Offices
From the record which the police had
Il, II IA fI,,aA
that a portion of the money had been re-
moved from the Offices, and Louis Miller,
the cashier, who was arrested, was called
upon to make an explanation. He at first
refused, but on being threatened by the
police, said that Miss Annie Cory, an em-
Ifoye of the concern who lived in a house
adjoining the offices, had been given the
posse esslon of a large sum of money in the
morning by the head Of the firm.
The police went to the adjoining house
where they placed Miss Cory under ar
rest and after an extended search they
found nearly 900 concealed In an old
lounge In her apartments
The woman then declared that she had
this money in her posse ssion for the pur-
pose of paying the employees of the syndi-
cate. The police, however, took possession
Of the money and gave Miss Cory her lib
erty.
Began II I'm Small Way.
William F, Miller began the Franklin
syndicate in a very small way, locating
his offices among the poorer classes of
Brooklyn and making one feature OF his
business the acceptance of very small
sums of money and the alleged investment
of them for the poor people. He claimed
that by inside tips on the stock market
he was able to to reap large and quick
profits, of which he was willing 10 pay
large percentage to his clients. He paid
the interest on the principal each week.
and his business increased.
Within the past few months he adver-
tised extensively and in all parts Of
tell wonderful stories Of the weekly divi-
dends. Then some financial concerns in
New York began to look into the business
of the Franklin syndicate, and not only
did many of the prominent financiers de-
nounce as prepos ferrous the offer of 10 per
cent. q week on money invested, but some
of the banks refused TO accept Miller'S 8
account or to do business with him.
II Is claimed that Miller was simply the
representative of a syndicate OF men, who
had been engaged in conducting blind
pools for years. The very fact that news-
papers and financial circles began to make
investigations, aroused the public inter-
est to such an extent, and at the same
time in some quarters the public cupidty,
that II Is said within the last week NIL
Ter has received deposits from hundreds
OF people, aggregating a daily amount Of
from 10000 TO $4,000. II is easy to see,
under these circumstances, how the
Franklin syndicate could readily pay 10
per cent. of this amount a week and still
make money.
Large Outside CIicntnge.
Not only were the people living within
the limits of Greater New York large de-
postors with the Franklin Syndicate, but
cities all over the country contributed the
earnings of scores Of their residents to
swell the wealth Of the syndicate.
The mail delivery daily at Mil
ler's office amounted to about
three wagon loads and most of the letters
contained money. Miller had a faculty OF
displaying a large amount of his wealth,
and the Offices on Floyd street were piled
high with greenbacks of all denomina tions
and heaps Of gold. This seemed 10 lend
confidence to those who came with their
subscriptions, and II Is impossible to even
estimate where the "endless chain" would
have ended. The principal Of the endless