Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1914-03-06

remarkable Ending of Mysterious
Theft That Had Puzzled the Police
OF TWO countries-Facts Seem to
BE That Robbery Had Been Most
Cieveriy ContriYed by Astute Band
OF Thieves Who Spent a Fortune
In Endsavorlna to Perfect Their
PIans.
n ONDON, ENGLAND.-On July Is
IL necklace of 81 graduated pearls
and three separate large pearls,
the whole valued at 100000, were
stolen from the mails between Paris
land London. Six weeks later four
Fobscure jewel dealers had been arrest
ed on suspicion. and reward of $780,
1000 offered. But for two months the
whereabouts of the stolen necklace
remained a mystery.
At nine o'clock en- the morning OF
September 16 Augustus Horne, a work
hngman, proceeding along a London
street with his lunch basket and kit
EOf tools toward the scene Of his daily
ffabors, noticed soiled and battered
match box on the curb near lamp
post. With a flick Of his toe he
brushed 1t into the gutter. Then, with
pan impulse of mild curiosity. he fished
the box out of the gutter and opened
ut. A man who had been standing
near the lamppost turned and walked
away.
What Horne saw in the box, so he
Thought, was a string of beads and
khree small marbles. He stuck the
package carelessly In his pocket and
walked on. Coming to the Swan pub
1ic house, he stepped inside for a
morning dram. Finishing his drink,
me produced the dirty match box and
showed its contents to the bartender,
explaining:
81 picked 'em out OF the gutter
little way back"
"a string of beads and a few mar
bles," said the bartender Il wouldn't
give a shilling for the lot"
Take 'em for a beer" said Horne.
Nor a beer, either" said the bar
render.
Maybe they're no good" remarked
Horne, but I'll turn 'em in at the
police station anyway"
Leaving the disreputable little pack
age with the desk sergeant, also his
name and address as the finder, Horne
went about his usual business.
Earns $4,000 Reward.
Next day this poor London working
man learned that what he had been
unable to exchange for glass of beer
had earned for him a fortune of $780,
900 for he was the finder Of the $780,
900 worth of stolen pearls about
which two continents were wondering.
Much mystery still surrounds this
astonishing Paris-London mail rob-
berry OF one of the finest and costliest
necklaces OF pearls ever strung to-
gether. They are perfectly gro fuated
pearls, weighing a total of 1850
grains. the great central pearl of the
made-up necklace alone weighing
nearly so grains.
How did the thieves get their hands
on that sealed and registered mail
package? How were they able to
break the seals, open the wooden box
and the jewel case within 1t, remove
the pearls, deliberately substitute cut
loaf sugar of exactly the same weight,
and close and reseal the package with
out detection?
Carried $75oo00 Insurance.
The necklace was made last Octo-
Der. a year 20, for Max Mayer. whose
wholesale jewelry establishment is at
SIS Hatton Garden, London. Mr.. Mayer
had no particular customer In view
at that time. Safely and uneventfully
It passed in the mails three times be-
tween London and Paris during the
winter. as prospective buyers were
located in one city or the other.
For this purpose the registered mail
package is regarded as safer than the
travelling agent of the jewelry house,
and Mr.. Mayer was satisfied, for a
specified period to carry blanket In
surance policy OF $4,000 to cover
any losses or jewels thus transported
Early In July the famous necklace
was again in the keeping of Henri
Solomons, Mr.. Mayors Paris agent.
AS the Paris agent was about to so
away on his vacation, Mr.. Mayer in
structed him to mail the necklace to
the London house. Accordingly. on
the morning OF July Is, Mr.. Solomons
personally took the necklace from the
hank. where II was kept carried IL TO
his home. and there packed and sealed
n as above described. The outer
wrapping WAS OF blue paper backed
with linen. This he sealed with wax
In half a dozen places. stamping each
seal with the Mayer initials, M NJ"
He carried the package to the Paris
nostoffice I'm the Rue de Provence, saw
n weighed by clerk named Louron.
who registered ii at a cost OF s141 TO
Mr. Solomons, and threw it into a
haskell with other registered matter
At TAO o'clock that evening the
registered bag bound for London was
sealed and taken in motor van @