The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1907-09-05
Observation-Disclosures
Property For Which No Heirs
Can Be Found.
LOSE THEIR IDENTITY

TOR MISSING relrs'
"Did you ever realize that millions
Of dollars are in the hands of the
Chamberlain of New York City and
the State Treasurer awaiting owners,
and that lawyers are working ON the
task Of searching for heirs for these
funds all the time, succeeding or tall
ing in this task in the most unusual
ways?
There is s6,000,OOO in the hands OF
the City Chamberlain alone, which
would be given over to the neirs of the
people who died and left the money
ii those heirs would only appear.
Another odd thing, do you realize
that some of the most valuable prop
egty in New York city is not imprOv-
cd and remains occupied by ram
sl...le Buildings because the owners
have disappeared and that large rents
are collected by people who have no
rlght whatever to them?"
he speaker was a lawyer who
makes a speciality of finding lost heirs
10 estates and owners of bank ac-
counts who have disappeared.
Il often think that no man gets SO
strong an impression of the twisting
paths of life, OF the obscure eGd,es
into which people drift and OF the
mysterious ways in which they can ne
murdered or die in lonely places or
just sink out of the current OF lie
and disappear as lawyer engaged III
sach work as this" he went on. boz
ems of men have disappeared in this
way in cases which | have investigat-
ed.
who knows whether they have
been knocked on the head or have
taken to the river or have changed
their names, although without appar-
ent motive to do SO, and are quietly
living in some retired hamlet?
IF you came into contact with such
cases as | have before me day in and
day out you would wonder too wnat
becomes Of all these people that were
well known and prominent one day
and the next day have disappeared as
utterly as If the earth had opened and
swallowed them up.
AN odd case | remember-not the
oldest, but still rather out of the or
dinary-was that of Belgian artist
ed in this country in 1ooo, when he
was about 80.
He was a portrait painter and soon
after arriving here received numerous
lucrative commissions and In short
was on the high tide of success in no
time. He had a studio and living
rooms in Waverley place fixed up IN
bizarre fashion, and 1t was favorite
stunt of his friends to have tea there
every afternoon and rabbit suppers
In the evening and that sort of thing.
In 1892 he hired safe deposit box
from Broadway company and put in
il between So 900 and $4,000 worth OF
securities. The next day he disap-
peared.
I'VE have hunted for him ever since.
but in vain. We have found his old
mother, who had not heard from him
for three years before MS death.
The trust company would like to
hand the securities over to her. and
she is in poor circumstances, but IL
cannot do so as things are.
What was his fate? Did he volun-
tarily disappear and simply forget the
money? Or was he knocked on the
head in some brawl along the water
front as the endup of crazy spree?
Or was he suddenly stricken with ap-
hasia and is he living in some interior
city or perhaps right mere In New
York?
Who knows? No one has ever
been able to find any trace OF his
whereabouts or any proof OF his death.
There are some queer cases OF
property practically ownerless in the
best business and residence parts OF
New York. This arises from the same
freak that is doubtless at the bottom
of many of the lost heir mysteries.
The owners suffered sudden at
tack of aphasia or just took 1t into
their heads to disappear, The TACT
remains that these properties are prac-
tically ownerless through these disap-
pcarances.
People who collected the rents as
agents or others who learned OF the
disappearance of the owner have sue
ceeded in collecting the rents ever
since, and are in many cases pocket
ing them and posing as the real own
ers. Oh, / know Of several cases OF
this sort. Some Of these properties
are situated next to skyscrapers.
LAS sites for high modern buildings
they are very valuable, but they are
covered with ramshackle edifices which
pay a low but steady rent to the
pseudo owners,
The latter can't afford to take the
rlsk OF putting money into improV-
ing the property for fear the real own
er may turn up some day and turn
them out. So they remain satisfied
with the low rent and let the property
I'LL.