Evening star., 1901-05-18
HE TOOK IN HONOLULU

uueuCc uen IMAM the 1nrernat1Onauy Ia
nous CRATER who is now doing time in
Sing Sing for his recent successful attempt
to bunco the presidents Of Columbia and
Yale colleges. but If there are I would
make a detour of many geographical
leagues to avoid meeting them" said
Washington man who spent a number of
years on the Hawaiian Islands. He put
1t on the residents of Honolulu in much the
same fashion that he got into the swell
population Of Calcutta in India. only on a
scale trifie smaller He hit Calcutta from
Paris. In Paris he had posed as the
courier-in-chief of the khedive of Egypt,
and he pretended to be arranging for
ceremonial visit of the khedive to Paris.
he rented a magnificent establishment and
scores of servants, fitted the place up orr
entaiiy without paying a sou down. and in
side of four months he had chiseled some
thing like 100000 francs out of the Paris
ians He effected his departure just about
the time his victims were becoming WISE
and hiked for Calcutta, where he didn't do
thing but rent vacant maharajah's pal
ace, hire literally hundreds Of servants, and
live like grand mogul without actually
laying out penny. He lasted much longer
were he not closely acquainted with Inc
facts, and then, with only few rupees in
MS clothing, he took ship for any old place,
and landed next in Honolulu.
was III flOAOiulu Nnen ne got there.
He arrived on an English bark that had
sailed from Bombay just at the time the
game began to get a bit warm Tor him in
Calcutta. The Honolulu folks never looked
Tor distinguished folks to arrive on sailing
vessels. Therefore. they were considerably
surprised when Sir James Ross debarked
from the English bark one fine summers
Gay, ciad IN spotless linen suit with pith
helmet to crown its whiteness, and swag-
gered, pretty fine figure of man,
through the streets.
Ills baggage, consisting of many trunks
was removed from the ship to the best ho-
tel In Honolulu, and Sir James dropped
around at the newspaper offices on the
evening or the day of his arrival in port
and vastly impressed the proprietors of
the sheets with his affability of manner
ana MS conversation anent sundry invest
nients on large scale which syndicate
ne mad formed meditated making in the
cohee-planting line all over the Hawaiian
Islands. On the following morning the
papers contained announcements of the
arrlVal or Sir James, and interviews en-
bodylng his views as to the possibilities OF
the South seas in general for English in
Vestors.
he Immediately took very beautiful
house out on the Waikiki road, few
miles from Honolulu; engaged some sew
eral scores Of kanaka servants: stocked
the plant with thousands of dollars worth
Oh glands and wines, which the tradesmen
OF honolulu were only too eager to fur
ntsh without any immediate compensation.
and got things to humming generally. He
quickly proved himself a society man from
away back He, Of course, posed as a
Observation-Disclosures he had wives scattered
In many parts of the world, and a few of
them in the United States He began to
give splendiferous receptions at his superb
house on the Waikiki road, which all of
the dignitarieS in every walk attended and
his manner as host was simply unimpeach-
able He sure did get the Honolulu folks
a-golng. Needless to say his touches for
money, and for big sums at that, went
through with a rush. There were wealthy
men down there who actually hunted him
up for the purpose of lending him money,
so finished chap was he in his business
and SO glibly did he talk of the coffee
business-of which he appeared to know
every detail-and the wonderful transfor-
nation that was going to take place all
over the islands when his syndicate got
into operating shape.
About two months before the finish
that is to say, about four months after
his arrival in Honolulu-'Sir James began
giving big drafts on his London bankers
all OF which were instantly cashed by
Honolulu banking institutions 1t took
then, about two months for a draft to
work Its way to London and back and
Honolulu has no cable, you understand
Sir James never paid penny to the
tradesmen with whom he dealt on SO big
scale. and few of them began to get
bit nervous when he had been in Honolulu
for nearly six months and had given no
evidences that he was a producer of real
coin. His debts, including those for the
furnishing Of the house he had taken and
for servant hire, choice foods. wines cigars
and so on, were said to be easily $4,000 at
the wind-up. AS say. some of the trades
men began to get a trif1e nervous, although
these few were ashamed to express their
feeling so great was Sir James prestige,
but all the same these few got into the
habit of keeping an eye on the outgoing
steamers. to see that Sir James was not
among the departing passengers. There
was and still is in Honolulu, you know, a
law prohibiting any man, native or visitor,
from leaving the islands so long as he is
in debt single farthing, and the little
bunch Of unpaid tradesmen who kept their
eyes on the steamers on sailing days had
this law in mind.
six months. and just about the time that
some Of those big drafts on his London
bankers We're due back on the steamers.
Sir James disappeared. and the bubble
broke. The sensation was something ter
rife. 1t was certain that he hadn't got
away on any Of the steamers. for as / said,
a few Of the tradesmen had carefully
watched the outgoing steamers. At any
rate, he was gone, and he had in his cloth
ing something like $4,000 in cash that he
had got on those London drafts from Hon
oulu bankers and business men. 1t WAS
figured that he must have departed on an
outgoing sailing vessel, and after many
months this fact was determined. A brig
that had sailed for Australia from Honolulu
on the DAY OF Slr James disappearance re-
turned to Honolulu about six months later,
and the captain unhesitatingly admitted
that he had carried MISUNDERSTANDING
man away with him on his last departure
from the port. He said that the distin-
guished-looking man had informed him that
he was in danger of arrest as revolution
ist, and had inspired him with sympathy.
The captain of the brig went on to. say that
the fine-looking man had got his numerous
trunks aboard under cover OF night, and
had paid a rafting good sum for his trans
portation to Australia. The captains part
in the performance was only natural and
he didn't come in for any condemnation.
But l can tell you that for good many
years after there was fine-tooth-comb go
ing-over of strangers credentials that made
imposition virtually impossible. and right
down to the present day stranger drop
ping off at Honolulu with letters of intro
duction Is studied pretty carefully before
he can get check cashed."
All Died in Rocking Chairs.
From the st. Paul Dispatch
BY the death of Mrs. Rachel Oliver at La
yaIle this week there is brought to light
remarkable series Of events in which the
$1,000 newman Of doafh nf a1noSf onfiro