The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1902-11-30

WRITTEN FOR II SUNDAY
Deep. cunning and treacherous as tho
plot of 'Father Goriot," in which. for a
certain consideration. q third person ar
ranges . marriage between a poor aristocrat
and an heiress. are the workings Of q
coteris Of men and women Of high social
standing who have formed themselves into
. marriage syndicate"
This Clique preys on representative Of
rank and wealth In every country.
Its hideous vampire head has reared itself
f one Of the social centsrs Of the Old
World
From this point Its claws penetrate to the
turthermost corners Of the earth.
With the strength of q Scylla It fastens
poi unsuspecung victims. shedding no
blood. but draining the very life Itself from
those II draws Into its pesuient embrace.
No utlsd bachelor. no unmarried woman Of
wealth. may hope to escape this fearful be-
ing II once its fsr-seeing eye beholds them.
The vampires trail is marked by the dis
niusionment OF romance, by blackmail. end
Ing frequently In suicide.
MANAGED BY WOMEN.
II Il . well established TACT that matri-
moniai bureaus managed by women Of rank
have dourished in London.
Until Baron Burchard Won M~uenchhausen
made public the workings Of q certain
clique, which resulted in the arrest of two
$500 SSA = aVbi9 WOulou 6SSOCidU6p whose
trial was completed the other day in Ber-
LIN. the world at large was nawars of
the extstence Of this particular Set.
mi marriage syndicate under the
dirscuon OF a woman has for years, % It
= said. been carrying on business. assist
70 procure wealthy wives, receiving In re-
utru Tor their services Q large percentage
Of the marriage settlement
According to the Baroness Martha Won
Huenchhausen sister OF the man who was
lured into the clutches of this Syndicate"
by borrowing money from them, American
Harnesses are the chosen victims,
Every unmarried girl In this country who
Possesses a fortune OF an attractive figure
II placed on the list OF possibilities and n
she makes a visit to Europe the moment
sne steps aboard the steamer her name In
flashed to every office Of the syndicate.
Coronets are Immediately polished up. and
the leader Of the coterie takes steps To
procure an Introduction to her and her
family. In order to offer her influence to "a
cure her a presentation at court
II. on the other hand, the heiress remains
In her own country, the nobleman who finds
himself In the power Of the Syndicate" ia
sometimes forced to make q journey to the
United States in the hope OF meeting and
winning the wealthy bride selected for him
by the b-lackmailers
That these schemers should choose wom-
Ell OF great fortunes Is only natural. for
the larger the marriage settlement the
greater their share.
Baron Won Muenchhausen was, SO his sis-
ter says. the first to openly charge this set
Of money lenders in Berlin with being black.
mailers and marriage brokers.
tn Baron. whose family at the time Of
his relation with the syndicate" owned an
estate Of some 1000 acres In Schwoebber.
near Hanover, Germany, was a Lieutenant
in the Fourteenth Field Artillery Regiment
Of Karisruhe. Baden.
CLAIMS BARON WAS ENTRAPPED.
Baroness Won M-uenchhausen, who is Wis
ting In New York. said, when relating the
circumstances Of the affair:
Lake most army officers. my brother was
comparatively poor and had contracted
debit.
For an officer in the German Army to
borrow money is, however, against the
rules, and any one being found indebted to
money lenders is Immediately dismissed
from the service in disgrace. II negotiations
OF this sort are carried on at all they must,
Of course. be treated with the utmost
secrecy.
"At the time my brother was In need Of
funds he met two men In Berlin who were
thought to be reputable private bankers,
From them he received a sum Of money. for
which he gave as security a part Of his
inheritance
mo sooner, however. had the transaction
been made than the men. known as Eissler
a Ptncus. sought out my brother and de-
manded an immediate return of the money,
with large interest. or they would report
tbs AFFAIR to his Colonel
This meant disgrace n ostracism. and