The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1919-08-22

1Pltitul Ending Of Career OF ST.
!; Luke White; Once Member
i of Parliament.
BANKRUPT and A WRECK
4ome Of His Poor Constituents Lost
Their All by IntrustIng Il to Him
War Makes Financial
Distress Known.

London-From a position OF anu
ence, popularity and public service
which won him seat In parliament
land a knighthood, Sir Luke White Is
lending his days as the inmate OF q
workhousc tnfirmary in Drifield. Olev'
er enough to rise from poverty to a
noted career, injudicious investments
brought him low, and at the height OF
his political power he was forced to
confess himself bankrupt. He carried
down with him numerous trusting con-
stituents, and his liabilities of $780,
GOO included $95, 900 in loans from
Door people who had conflded their all
to him. The shame Of having thus
wrecked the savings Of those who be-
lieved In him completely unnerved
him. Now he is dependent on public
charity, his spirit utterly crushed, and
he is one of the most pitiful figures In
the north Of England.
Began 40 Office Boy.
Born in Deighton, near York, In
1916, he was an Office boy at fifteen
TOR a collector, who paid him about 30
4cents a week. After eight years In
that service, Of course with increasing
income, he became managing clerk TOR
another solicitor in Drihield. In an
other six years he was admitted to
the bar as solicitor, and In the same
year he succeeded to the practice OF
his employer, who had died.
He speedily became known as =
local preacher and speaker for q large
district, and he was highly popular
and successful. For years he was
chairman of the local board, and then
Of the urban district council. Then he
went to the East Riding county coun-
ell. In 1896 he was appointed one OF
the coroners for East Riding. He act
Cd as election agent for Sir Angus
Holden, Liberal member Of parlia-
ment for the Buckrose division, and
when Sir Angus died In 1900 White
was chosen as his successor. In 1908
he was knighted. -
He continued to divide his time be-
tween his attendance at Westminster
and his business In Yorkshire, but as
he gave more time to his parliament
Tary duties than to his private affairs,
his practice suffered: The war brought
out the fact that he was in financial
distress. and last fall he resigned his
seat and filed a petition in bankruptcy.
1T appeared In the bankruptcy pro-
sceedings that some of his poor con-
%stituents had conflded their money to
tklnn n n,1f intO vvar lOAnS.
+ Popular For Years.
Friends provided for him for
awhile In sanitarium near Scar
borough. When that fund was e1-
*hausted he was removed to the work.
house infirmary, which almost adjoins
the court in which he formerly prac-
tised. His tragic misfortune caused a
great sensation in East Yorkshire
where for years he had been so we'll
known and liked that in the town Of
Bridlington particularly his photo
graph hung on the walls Of every
other house. He had been eminently a
poor mans lawyer.
His fate is now brought afresh to
public notice by an action against
Herbert Brown, a deputy coroner for
the East Riding Of Yorkshire, who Is
charged, Jointly with Sir Luke, with
having appropriated to the personal
use Of Sir Luke in 1907 $1,000 intrust-
ed to them by Witham Hatfield for in
vestment. Sir Luke escapes arraign-
.ment owing to his physical and ner-
vous collapse.