The Saint Paul globe., 1903-03-16
BIGGEST FRAUD OF
A CENTURY is
CAPTURED
Whitaker Wright, Who
Swindled EngIishmen and
Americans Out of Many
Millions, Nabbed as the
Steamer Reaches New
York HarbOr.

NEW YORK, March 15.-J Whita-
ker Wright, the London promoter, who
is accused of being concerned in coloS-
sal frauds in connection with the or
garization of various financial corpor-
ations, was arrested today on the ar
rival of the French line steamer La
Lorraine from Havre. The arrest was
made by two central Office detectives
ct the request of the London police.
Wright was taken to police head
quarters and later to the Tombs police
court, where he was arraigned before
magistrate and turned over to the
United States authorities. He was then
taken to the Ludlow street Jail
With Wright on the steamship was
a tall, good-looking younw woman, who
said she was the niece of the prisoner.
Her name was on the passenger list
as Miss f. Browne. Wright, when told
that he was under arrest showed no
evidence of excitement and said that
he was a friend of King Edward. His
principal concern was to avoid pub
licity, and he asked that his arrest be
kept from the newspapers. Wright and
his companion were entered on the or
and Mile. Andreoni.
That Wright did not expect to be
arrested is shown by the fact that soon
after the steamship left Havre he told
the purser that a mistake had been
made in making the tickets out in the
name of Andreoni. His name was ac-
cordingly changed and appeared on the
additional list as Mr.. j. w. Wright and
n a Z
Wright was taken to court, where
the detectives explained the arrest in
a few words. Two United States mar
shals appeared with a warrant for
Wright's arrest, charging him with be-
ing a fugitive from justice. Wright
was not called upon to say anything
and in a few moments he was formally
turned over to the custody of the mar
shals, who took him to the Ludlow
street Jail.
Miss Browne, who was left on the
pier, remained looking after the bag
gage. She is a rather tall, slender per-
son, dressed in dark blue and wearing
rather a broad brim, low crowned hat,
draped with a fiimsy light blue veil.
She declined to make any statement
beyond that she had come over to visit
friends. After her baggage had been
examined she left in a cab, instruct
Ing the driver to go to an uptown no
tel
A High Roller.
The financial crash of the companies
fioated by Whitaker Wright came in
December, 1900. There were eleven of
these, including the parent company,
entitled the London & Globe Finance
corporation, with a total capitalization
of $60,675,0 600. Wright was the man
aging director.
Few millionaires lived in the same
princely style as Whitaker Wright. In
Park Lane, London, he had a minia-
ture palace, in the drawing room OF
which was copy of the famous cab
met DU Roi of Louis XIV. It took
three years to complete and cost many
thousands of dollars. At Dodalming
he owned a country seat, in beautify-
ingwhich 600 workmen were engaged.
1t contains costly fountains and statu-
airy brought from Italy. Wrights sta
bles alone cost a small fortune They
have upholstered oak and leather set
tees and polished gun metal fittings
while valuable paintings and bas re-
liefs adorn the stalls His private
yacht was fitted up with similar lux
uriouSnesS, and at one time he was
credited with the intention of con-
structing a yacht to race Sir Thomas
Lipton's Shamrock.
One of the victims of the crash was
the late Marquis of Dufferin and Ava
formerly governor general of Canada
and British ambassador at Paris. He
consented to be chairman of the Lon
don & Globe, and had $4,000 shares in
the different companies.
with Lord Dutferin on the board of
directors were Lieut.. Gen. Cough Call
throp, who was colonel of the Fifth
dragoon guards. and Lord Edward
Wlllam Pelham-C Clinton, master of the
late queens household and son of the
fifth Duke of Newcastle When the
crash came Lord Dufferin was severe
ly censured for his connection with the
Wright companies, but in a frank
speech to the stockholders of the Lon
don & Globe corporation he declared
his position and won the sympathy
of the company His wealth. at one
time large, was believed to have been
swallowed up by these companies.
Sheltered by Royalty.
Much American money was lost in
the failure of the Wright companies
There was a great outcry against the
attitude of the authorities in not pros
ecuting Whitaker Wright and his fell
low directors of the London & Globe.
and in January last a petition was cir
culated on the London stock exchange
signed by many influential men. de-
manding the prosecution Of Wright
as 1T was considered that the credit
of the city and of the London stock
exchange demanded thorough inves-
tigation. A fund of SOS, 900 was raised
to institute the prosecution Of Wright.
Arnold White. the author, at a meet
ing, said the reason the prosecution
was not undertaken by the government
was that the directors of the London
& Globe were sheltering themselves