The daily silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1903-1907, 1904-07-18
THE PRINCE OF SWINDlfRS
Offering to Sell Germah Sc
Crets His SChe me

| SW1nQleQ various ptOpie out VI ltOuSdidS
of pounds on the pretext that he was
possessed of the plans of German fort
resses. for which the French government
was prepared 10 pay him huge sums of
money.
This mysterious Individual was describ-
ed as the Prince of %Swindlers." He has
lived in the most expensive hotels upon
the money obtained from his victims and
his society was much sought after owing
to his charming manners.
Morgan" Ferguson and Baron Won
Schelia" are a few of the names under
which he is alleged to rave made the ac-
1ualntance of many people in fashionable
hotels and to nave swindled them out of
sums of money varying in amount from
/ few hundred pounds to thousands.
His system of obtaining money was In
/ ge01OuS anu DCfdf III ~ al III o~N"Ao
according to circumstances. 1t was, In
act. a brilliant elaboration of the conf
Ience trick. Posing under one of his
lliases, he would confide in persons who
believed in him that he was in communi-
alton with a German officer. who was
prepared to sell him the plans of the
Qualifications of Metz or S~trasburg, or
10Th. Also that for these documents a
MARQUIS. acting for the French minister
war. was prepared to pay a very large
;um of money-sometimes as much as
1900 pounds. He would induce his VIC
i'm to secretly meet the marquis who
Gould offer large sums for the plans. but
lot so much as the baron" desired, and
egotiations would hang fire.
In the meantime the mythical German
ficer would insist on drawing some mon
Y. which the victim was induced TO hand
yer to the baron" This would go on
ntil the creduiity or the funds of the
he baron would fade into space and the
'rench marquis would disappear as
nysteriously as he had appeared.
Five years ago the English police held
4 warrant for the arrest of a man be-
ieved to be the swindler in question for
)racticing the same sort of fraud upon
n Austrian. Nearly three years arp an
English gentleman complained Of hav-
ashton by Baron Won Schelia.' Every
fort was made to discover this man.
Iotels were watched. but the baron"
vas living In a~ffiuenee abroad and Scot
and Yard could do nothing.
AS regards the arrest in the present
ease, Mr.. Harris and his friend, Mr.. Birk-
beck. working in collusion with the
Scotland Yard detectives, pretended to
carry OH lht hrsoNidttOiS iVi III 1'N
beck to meet Ferguson and the Mar
1uis de Manneville" at the Hotel Mod
srne. Orleans. to hand over a sum of
money. All kept the appointment. and
0 did the police.
The hotel was surrounded and a motor
ar was In readiness to be used for pur-
poses of pursuit If necessary. The pre-
CAUTIONS were not taken without neec,
in a cab, and was not captured until he
lad reached the Sercot railroad station
our miles away. He was about to go
way by train when the police motor car
dashed W to the station. He had 23.000
'rancs in his possession. but the mar
Iuis." who was to pay 100000 for the bo-
gus plans in Mr.. Harris possession. had
10 more than II francs In his pocket. on
o Paris to join Mr.. Birkbeck In assisting
he police in bringing Ferguson to JUS
ice.
Between two and three years ago Bar
IN Won Schelia" ruined a London doctor
~ inducing him to part with 1850 pounds
the whole of his fortune. Schelia, who
hen lived at a private hotel in Bays
water, where the doctor with his wife
liso resided, produced to him the "secre,
llans'' of Metz, Strasburg and Breslau,
md the drawings of a new German gun.
These. OF course, We're fictitious. but he
ersuaded the doctor that he was to re-
Give 1900, 900 francs for them from the
French government. and promised him