The times., 1901-04-25
HOW THE GOLD Was FOUND
A Talk With the Purser of the
Kaiser Wilhelm Der Crosse.
The Recovery Of the Precious Metal
Fully as Remarkable as the Theft
slowed Away iu Crevice in
Cornice of the Big Steamship.


slowed Away in "a Crevice in n
Cornice of the Big steamship.
NEW YORK. April 24.-The North Ger
man Lloyd steamship Kaiser Wilhelm der
Crosse docked at the Wilson Line pier
early this morning. She reached the lower
bay Yesterday but was held there by the
heavy Cog The ships officers and crew
are still talking Of the robbery of the
treasure vault of the ship n. T1elbaar'
the purser said he believed that the vault
was broken open before the ship left this
port His reason for this theory, he said,
was that a great quantity of baggage be-
! longing TO the passengers was piled up
| in front of the door of the vault. and ne
| did not believe it possible that any per-
| son could have moved this baggage and
replaced it without being seen. The gold
| and consignment Of silver. for the Bank
| of England, was placed in the vault sew
eraI days before the ship sailed The vault
| is aft amidships. two decks below the
main deck. The door leading to the vault
| opens into the hold where the baggage is
| slowed. This door was fastened by a
| large lock, and the keys were in the pos
| session of the purser According 70 the
| officers of the ship it would not have been
| difficult matter for anyone to have
forced this lock.
| Everything about the outside of the
| vault appeared in ORDER said Mr. Tiel-
baar this morning. The big iron clamps
| which dropped down over the top and
sides of the door were in position. We
reached Cherbourg early enough on
Thursday to land the passengers, so we
decided to get them ashore as quickly as
possible. and to make the run across the
channel to Southampton during the night,
in order to put the silver ashore in the
morning. About two hours out of Cher
bourg we began to clear away the bag
gage in the hold in order to get into the
vault. When we came to open the vault
we found the door had been forced. and
going in. discovered that one of the kegs
in which the gold was kept had been
broken open, and instead of nine bars
which should have been there there We're
only six. The fact that only three had
been stolen convinced US that the thieves,
whoever they were, had been frightened
| away before they finished their work.
Also there must have been more than one
person in the plot. We do not know the
guilty person and at present do not suS-
| pect anyone. | am glad that the lock was
| broken, or where would | be. for the keys
| are always in my keeping and am re-
| sponsible for them?
Mysterious as WAS the disappearance
| of the bars the recovery was equally re-
| markable. They were found on Saturday
morning by Theodore Wagers, the band
master, who rs also responsible for the
proper condition of a portion OF the sec
ond cabin. Wagers was cleaning the
| stateroOms and passagewayS and dustins
| the woodwork, which is his regular duty
every Saturday He was at work in the
starboard passageway on the upper deck,
aft of the gangway used by the machin-
lists In busting the upper edge OF cor
nice his hand struck the bars AT first ne
could not understand what he had found.
The bars were laid on their largest sur
face and he was able TO touch them only
with the tips of his fingers through stats
fastened 20 the ceiling for the purpose oil
slowing away various things. He got a
small ladder and his eye caught tns
simmer of the gold. He notified SECOND
Steward Lauw Immediately, who sent foi
the officer of the deck. The port superin-
; | tendent of the company was summoned
: | and the bars were taken out
The thieves certainly selected one OF
, | the most secure spots on board the SNIP :, ~
| which to stow the gold. It was opposite
[ | the passa ge leading to staterooms 50-3g9
. | between two heavy iron stanchions- II
I place it over this cornice 1t was neces
| sary to reach between the celllns ana on
| of the Stats and shove IL back behind the
| cornice Had il not been for the thorough
=. | manner in which the baudmaster cleaned
2 | his division the thieves would in All pron
: ability have gotten away with their Doot3
> | after the Kaiser returned to this port
: On the port side Of the ship, directly op
(. | posite 10 the place where the gold wa!
= | found is the companionway which lead:
S from the upper deck to the baggage holt
and the vault Ii is thought by the ON
g GERS that the persons, who broke into th
I vault while the ship lay In this port
n brought the gold up by this companion
K way with the idea of getting away viii
e il at the time, but that after reaching
g not clear and went over to the Starboar'
}: ! side only a short distance, and hid 1t.