Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1910-02-03

tant relative accepts the trust one
fourth of the prisoners fortune will be
the material reward The good priest
will go at once to the United States and
take the darling daugter with him.
There is but one consideration: the
ready money the prisoner brought with
him to Spain has been exhausted; the
distant relative is therefore requested
to send enough to liberate the valise
containing the secret receptacle and
the certificate of deposit. This money
is to be sent to the good priest at an
address Indicated, and, having received
| it, the good priest will at once secure
the valise and start for America, the
| land of the free and the home of the
brave with the darling daughter.
The above is generally the first letter
of the series. It is quickly followed by
another in which the prisoner pathetic
ally states that his strength is rapidly
failing and the end is near He beseech-
es his dear distant relative to assume
the trust and be loving father to the
darling daughter. The third letter is
from the good priest himself, who, in
brief, touching terms, and hopelessly
bad Eng lish, announces the death of
the unhappy prisoner; the good priest
adds that the darling daughter is under
his care. He is ready to put his prom
Use into execution and start for the
received the necessary funds from the
distant relative. The good priest fire.
quently incloses with his letter bogus
newspaper clipping announcing the
death in prison at Barcelona of the
famous Cuban patriot sometimes called
Augustin Lafente); the newspaper no.
tice also speaks cunningly of the confis-
Gated valise ard the darling daughter.
1t is simple scheme, but presented
in such plausible way thai almost any
unsuspecting distant relative" OF
European extraction would be more or
less deceived by the glad prospect of
falling heir to the agreeable custody of
a darling daughter with big fortune,
and one-fourth interest therein as an
additional recompense.
Naturally the first impulse of the dis
tant relative is to ask lawyer CT
Judge or some authority what course he
ought to pursue in the premises, but as
he thinks of doing this his attention is
taken by the warning in the prisoners
| letter beseeching him not to mention
the matter to any living soul lest the
secret of the valise and hidden recep-
tacle be indiscreetly betrayed.
The valise, after all, with it's con-
cealed certificate of deposit, is the key
to the situation and possession must be
taken OF it before anything can be done
or said. This $50 cunningly set forth
by the prisoner) is very evident to the
distant relative, and so he quite fire.
quently preserves the secret intact, and
instead of consulting lawyer or writ
| ing to the American Consul General at
Barcelona, he quietly sends draft for
| the sum demanded to the good priest
and awaits results. Of course he waits
in vain. and the poor, dead prisoner
and the good priest and the darling
daughter in the course of time pass out
of his life forever, leaving him only an
uncomfortable memory of the money
he so cheerfuily contributed to the con-
fidence game.
For nearly twenty years these same
knaves have been practicing their swim
die, and it is needless to suggest that
they are very carefully organized; they
have confederates not only in the Unit
ed States but in most other countries.
The confederates in question select
man and find out all they can about
him; they get hold of family names,
family origin, and family characters
tics. This information is transmitted
to the rascals in Spain, and letters are
at once written to the prospective vic
tim. The scheme is presented and de
veloped in a very plausible way and
many of our fellow-countrymen, have
"bitten'' promptly and cheerfully.
Under the Spanish laws a felony
must be consummated before the police
may act, and mere attempt to obtain
money by false pretenses does not APP
pear to warrant arrest. The money
must be actually paid over and the
prosecuting witness must be present in
propria persona to testify; otherwise
prosecution would be useless.
Recently the letters written to the
distant relative have varied somewhat
from the original; the political prison
er having become a noted Russian
banker who absconded, leaving deficit
of some millions Of roubles, killed in a
quarrel in England another Russian,
and finally took refuge in Spain, where
he was apprehended and charged with
manslaughter.
This change of character, however,
is immaterial, and in the future more
new characters will probably be intro
duced by the gang. The scheme is the
same, and the public is warned to place
no credence in such or similar letters.
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