The St. Louis Republic., 1902-06-21
KINGS SOMETIMES
Are SWINDLED ,
Curious Frauds That Have Been
Practiced ON Sons of
Royalty.

London TIT Bits
a curious case of fraud was recently in
vestigated at Birmingham. The man who
stood in the dock had been arrested for
starting bogus missionary societies. The
subscriptions which he had obtained for
missionary purposes he had calmly appro-
priated to his own use.
The Gladstone National Missionary So
ciety was his last enterprise, its object, ac-
coraing to his circulars. being to send mis-
sionaries and trained mission nurses into
the slums. To obtain subscriptions he had
kingdom, even to the King and Queen
Upon him We're found letters from the
Queen and the Princess of Wales. besides
many bishops and statesmen.
TINS is the second recent case of attempt-
ed fraud upon our own royal family. a few
weeks ago a man entered a wel-krown
Strand bank and attempted to cash a check
bearing the signature OF the Keeper of the
Privy Purse. Some suspicion was aroused.
and when the man observed this he immedi-
ately bolted and was only caught after n
most exciting chase. The check was found
King Edward has been more fortunate
than his nephew, the Kaiser. The latter.
always enterprising, alike in business as in
craftsmanship, trusted, some years ago a
large part of his private fortune to a GER
tain banker for investment This banker
was esteemed most brilliant financier. and
was implicitly trusted by many members Of
the German Royal House beside the Kaiser.
He suddenly disappeared. and few days
Then it came out that his affairs were in a
state of great confusion. He had speculated
with the money intrusted 10 him and lost
I'he actual loss to the German royal fam
lily is said 10 have been over quarter OF
million. the only member escaping being
Prince Henry. The story goes, however.
that the Kaiser made good the losses of his
relatives out of his own purse, that he
alone was the victim of his misplaced con-
hdence.
Up to quite recent years the swindling
that went on among the lower officials OF
many courts in Europe was almost beyond
example
that the perquisiteS from single banquet
given on the occasion of the Austrian Em.
peror's Jubilee amounted to ESQ The chief
cook of the Emperor calculated that out
of the 1,250.019 francs spent yearly on the
imperial table no less than half a million
francs went into the pockets of officials and
underlingS.
Matters were quite as bad in Spain. and
almost equally so in Italy. King Humbsrt
was cheated out of at least fi5.OOO a year
over food alone. AT the Spanish Court 1t
had become custom that no bottle OF
turned II unused. and that the same
should hold good with groceries taken from
the storerooms.
1t was the present Kings mother who at
last put her foot down upon this ruinous
extravaganza, with the result that the
royal cooks struck n a body.
When the little Princess Yolande was
born her father. the King of Italy. forbade
any presents to be given. But there was
that at last he was induced to permit the
city to present to the baby a superb silver
CRADLE This was offered by the Mayor anu
q delegation from the municipality. Soon
afterwards. 1t came out that the goldsmith
who had made the cradle had been paid
hut a small part of its cost. who had re-
ceiyed the money was not clear: but even
tuslly the King had to pay out OF his own
pocket the cost Of Rome's gift to his little
girl
One OF the most extraordinary and mys-
terious frauds ever perpetrated on a King
was the theft of the jewels of the grand
father of the present Queen OF Holland.
Who the thieves were was never ascer-
tained. One day the official In whose
charge was the case containing the gems
was found lying insensbIe on the floor. He
had been drugged and so severely that he
never completely recovered. The jewels
were all gone.
A reward OF $500 ELECTED no response
until two years later a Frenchman named
Jean Romage appeared at the Dutch EN-
bassy in Washington and offered to restore
the stones IL the reward were paid. This
was agreed to. and the man pointed out
a spot in Greenwood Cemetery, Brooklyn,
where he said the gems were buried. There
they were found and brought back and are
now reset and worn by the present Queen
Wilhaluina.