Arizona republican., 1911-12-17
CONFIDENCE QUEEN.
Who Once Amazed the Country Is
 to Be Granted a Pardon.

Eighty-two-y year-old Ellen Peck. many times photographed for the rogucs' gallery and whom Inspector Thomas X. Byrncs called the queen of confidence women." will be re- leased from Auburn prison soon. says the New York Times. She has served about two years of her ten-year sen tence for swindling. and Governor Dix. in committing sentence said that he thought Ellen Peck was now too old to be any longer menace to society.
 Robert J. Haire. the lawyer. and others in New York have been seek ing commutatiOn Of sentence since Mrs Peck's committal When a pe- titiOn for her release reached Gov ernor Hughes in 1909 he refused tC grant it. saving old age is no cX- cuse for crime"
 Mrs. Peck was born in Woodville, x. H., and was formerly Nellie Cros- by. As a young school teacher in New York and Connecticut she was once described as "demure in man
  She married Richard w Peck of this city and is the mother of three chil- dren.
 Inspector Byrnes has said that Mrs Pecks swindles brought her Sl.0O0.- O00
 Mrs. Peck was first heard of in 1880. when she was accused of swim ding E. T Babbitt. the soap manu- facturer. of about S20O00 in cash. Mr Rabbit had lost package of bonds and Mrs. Peck persuaded him that she was good detective Mir. Bab- bitt's good money did not bring back the bad. however In 1887 she was accused of proving upon the easy nature of Dr. Jason Marks of this city. and was believed to have re- lieved him of s20.000 in money and jewels. An attempt was made at the same time to connect her with swindle concerning Jay Gould
 In 1894 Mrs. Peck posed as Mrs. Mary Hansen, the wife of Admiral Johann Carll Hansen of the Dutch navy. She lived luxuriously in Brook lyn and borrowed money freely on the unsuspectinG admirars good name. shortly after, by like system. Mrs. Peck swindled pr. Christopher Lott. a physician of Reid avenue. Brooklyn. out of $10000 in various installments Miss Nellie Shea. q trained nurse with a bank account. was another easy victim.
 In -S97 Judge Cowing. in general l.. for five years. but till people trust ed her. John D. Grady. a diamond merchant. lost $21.000 to Mrs. Peck He had given her diamonds to keep for him. Twenty-Five indictments were found against her. but she es- capped punishment. Another jeweler a Cuban. was a victim in the sum of sl2.000. Furniture dealers. money lenders and other eXtenders of credit by Mrs. Peck
 She met Julius Columbani. who had served time in prison in 1884. Mrs. Peck inserted an advertisement in the newspapers for loan on diamonds. answered her advertise nent. but in lieu of cash offered | Richmond county bonds in payment | Mrs Peck accepted the offer and dis | covered subsequently, that the bonds | we're those which had only previously | ,een stolen She told her tale to | Inspector Byrnes and set trap for columbani in room over q Sixth venue saloon. When the detectives made their appearance Columbani rcw a gun and refused to be taken live Mrs. Peck also drew a re- olver and Columbani jumped through n open window. and was later cap ured
 Between 1885 and 1905 Mrs. Peck 'as unusually active. Age seemed n sharpen her wits. She used names f men of undisputable reputation to espoil other men who knew these len personally.
 Her last offense was in 1909. when he was convicted of swindling Nor land. Wilson & Schubert. real es- lte firm of New York city. out of ? 400 in land transaction. and sen T enced to ten years. She obtained honey on false titles of land in Ken lcky The family home was at parkhill. \. Y. and there she was expected generally for many years uring her criminal career. her friends to believe the reports about CT.