Evening star., 1925-10-25


bert and her brother Roman
i Daurignac have reappeared.
In the day OF their celebrity
| they raised $50 900, 900 on an alleged
American legacy and had a valise
full of government bonds estimated
anywhere from $4,000, 900 to $40 900,
Q00
Last Tuesday respectable man OF
about 65 was seen by woman shop
per to walk away from a street bar
gain counter with a pair of cloth slip
pers in his hands. on the impulse
she cried: "Stop him" Arrested, he
explained that he was merely hurry.
| ing a few steps to show the slippers
| TO friend who had passed on.
The slippers We're worth 40 cents.
The man was Roman Daurignac.
At the commissariat he would have
been released at once, but that he
gave another name: and when his
true identity appeared the contrast
with his past Of millions led to in
| quiry.
In few hours Roman Daurignac
was free. But his downtown office
| had been visited His sister Therese
| had been questioned. The art work
of her husband. Frederick Humbert.
| had been examined. And Paris was
| again wondering about the valise full
OF government bonds which existed
| the night before justice examined the
| Humbert flreproof safe-and had ut
terly disappeared in the morning.
During five years, between 1897 and
| 1902, Therese Humbert borrowed an
average Of 81 900, 900 a year from some
| OF the keenest business men of Paris.
| The basis was an alleged legacy of
| Sic, 900, 900 and accumulations claimed
to have been left her before her mar
riage by a mythical old American
| named Crawford, and sequestered by
| agreement with his nephews.
Interviewed yesterday by the ex.
| celsior, Maria Daurignac. younger sis
| ter of Therese and Roman, scolded
the stupidity" of Paris capitalists
who tempt" people to borrow their
| money.
| You are astonishing. you Parisians!
| (the DaurignacS are from the south.
| And YOU are stupid, A person tells
| you: I have inherited a hundred mil.
| lionsr and you believe 1t. VOLTA, You
believe whatever's told you. But
where we come from. at Toulouse
| when some one says: L have inherit
ed a hundred millions nobody would
have an idea it could be true.
"One must be very stupid to lend
| money on such a story" said sister
| Maria. 'Therese. who told 1t with
out reflection. just TO say something
to make herself interesting, quoi, She
perceived that the pleasant tale was
taken for real truth! Eth! que voulez
vous? Therese was honest, but she
was not saint! Why not should
she borrow. since she found folks
imbecile enough to loan? Then, after
ward, the imbectles make a fuss abou,
it,
| dc h,,t
to it. Fontana. greatest jewelel
of the Palais Royal, gave up $4,000,
600 to Therese and Roman from his
personal pocket. The Egyptian bank
| er, Cataui, loaned between 5000, ,OOC
and $4,000,000. Such men, and 2(
others like them, do not advance i'm
mense sums on q pleasant story"
In the shadow was a master mind
Profound legal astuteness and tortu
GUS complication Of judicial procedure
made the basis for "the greatest fraud
of the century"
The father-in-law of Therese wa.
old Gustave Humbert, one e-time minis
ter Of justice, who long held a high
place in the Cour des Complies. AL
though no proof exists, all passed as
If the gay old spider made the joy o
his last years in spinning n terrific
web for boosting Therese and blufflns
Romain to use as their own. A won
derful web!
Maitre Parmentier. head OF tn,
greatest law firm of Hayre, told at tn,
trial how he was duped for years. ii,
imagined himself. always, to be acting
|, for ''the Crawfords and produced
5000 letters from and to them, con
tained in IS great tin boxes,
In nine years Parmentier saw tn,
alleged Henry Crawford three times
and his supposed brother Robert never
although more than half the letter:
of instructions came from Robert.
At their first interview the mys
terious Henry-"elegant foreigner O
middle age, speaking French perfectly
with a slight southern accent"-ex
planned that his uncle, the deceased
William Crawford, had been over
Influenced to leave $16.0O0,0 900 by will
to q young lady named ThereSe Dau
rignac, since married to Frederick
Humbert.
when we compromised with he
for $1.2o0,000," he said, my brothe
and I We're ignorant of later will
made by our uncle in our favor. w,
presented ourselves to Nine. Humber
solely as his heirs at law, deSpoiled b,
, an outsider-herself. We had no doc
, uments. So we were happy when sh
J offered us 100000 apiece as com
promise.
'It is true." he went on, "the com
promise carried a clause Of honor
] which would compensate us greatly