The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-05-14
GREATEST or FoRGERs.
King of Confidence Men. Who Play
ed "A Game Lasting Quarter of II


ed Game Lasting a Quarter of
Century.
Correspondence % the Chicago Record.
Santa Fe, N. NJ, May 5.-James Add
son Rtavis, the king of forgors, the most
ingenious and audacious swiudler ever
known in the United States. wno played a
brilliant game with l250C0 acres of land
as the stake and lost, who fooled the ablest
lawyers and the shatpest hnanciers in the
country, more recently known as convict
No 9G IN the New Mexican penitenUary,
has lately been released from confinement.
He served the term OF Two years for which
he was sentenced for forgery, less his
good behavior" allowance, and has gone
20 Denver where his handsome Mexican
wife has been living-the daughter OF an
ordinary Arizona ranchero-who appear
ed in her husbands schemes as Her Elk
elenlissmo Dona Sofia Loretta Miceala de
/ Peralta Reavis, nee Maso Silva de pc
! rata de la Cordoba" etc. etc. Her real
| name was Sophia Maso and she was born
in 1862 on a ranch near the San Bernar-
dino mountains. Her mother was a COM
/ mon Mexican woman who could not read
! or write ana her father was quite as ig-
norant. Yet upon her beauty and natural
accomplishments Reavis built up q ro-
| nance that brought him more than a half
/ a milton dollars, but failed to carry
through the most audacious conspiracy
/ that has been conceived during the present
| generation at least
| He worked at il with extraordinary pa
tience and skill for more than twenty-five
years. He not only forged royal grant
/ bearing the signature of the King Of
/ Spain and his ministers, but also a series
| of wills, a large bunch of deeds records
of probate and other legal proceedings,
baptismal and marriage certificates and
what was much more difficult and daring
he invented a long line OF distinguished
ancestors for his peon wife. connected
them by ties of kinship with the royal
house Of Spain, secured a fun set of their
portraits, both in oil and on ivory minia-
lures, wrote their biographies, supplied
! from his own brain correspondence that
had passed between them and distinguish.
ed personages of their time, and surround
cd them with such complete and perfect
evidences of existence that men like Roscoe
COnkling ex-senator Edmunds. Thomas
f. Bayard, Robert g. Ingersol Bourk
Cochran and others were completely hum
plugged and accepted his ictions for facts.
John w. Mackay, c. p Hunting ION, the
late Leland Stanford. Charles Croker and
other famous financiers furnished HIM
money to carry on his crime, the cabinet
ministers of Spain and Mexico gave him
their sanction and assistance and eben
prelates Of the Catholic Church bore testi-
mony 20 the honesty and respec ability of
the swindler and his bogus wife.
In all the annals of crime there cannot
pe I'u''i a mo- ooii,pie'e anu Voilp' ei'eii
sNe 0o.iaPn dIS' anu ~ Cost 'he govern
l'Ie me- u tnO o'Ii'Vu 1'ate9 npaiis F-o'V'V
d'iu W. a. Sea' . VI iopoi ~ tlie uePatt,
lle"l ol ~ ee ene luauu ana
senu ReaNis 70 piisoh nor TWO years.
Reavis was the son of farmer in Henry
county, Missouri, who went into the Con-
leoerate army uuIlhs the clVh war ana
ine. eater ieu q "lS u iuFeiltu's ior seV-
.iai ye"iS III Noi W. Ceiltial anu Sou'h
Anlellea' .4S wac aaAo' ano soiuer'
q cieiA dnu poohAeepSi' street car con-
uuI an i'S", - "s,li,, q ~ uril'iei
anu HhaAy ieai e9la'e esen' III ~ i'ouis.
Ihere ne mace 'he acqualhthhce OF a man
haiheu VIKING, VINO h'reu hin 10 lnVestl-
gate the commences OF an ola spanish
grant ior sHlaH piece OF properly IN arr
iona III inns INJURY reaVis lsarneu .ne
methods anu tne laws ol the oih Spahlsh
occupauon' anu MS eNoe'lence WIN inc
Wllhng cialm seems 10 nave sugses'ea
the idea OF Settlhg up one TOT himself
whlch ne did on most magnificent scale
AFTER Ten or Twelve years q me most IN,
genious ana INDUSTRIOUS lapor ne asked
Congress 10 conhrm 10 ms WIe the tltle 70
a tract OF land VI New mexico ana ARIZONA
nearly twice as large as tne state OF Was
sachusetts' about lorty miies vice ana. Soo
mites long, ana containing Populatioh OF
3o,OO or 4V'OVo. Inc SANTA re haifoad
Company recognized 'he justice OF the
claim petore II was actea upon by con-
gress, ana pald MN Soo'oOo ior a flghl OF
way across MS Wlies properly me SOUTH
ern Pacihc company not ohiy pala great
er amount Tor + u NJ OF way put Ns cn'el
owners are sald TO nave luiiiislen LEWIS
from time to time not less tnan soOVVJV 70
pay The expense OF proving ms tit'e'
Several committees OF congress ,eporten
favorably on the clam, ana Il = had nor
been for me persistence WIN W i,, son Jpn.