A CONTEMPTIBLE CREATURE.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIX, Issue 76, 28 March 1908, Page 15

A CONTEMPTIBLE CREATURE.

SENTENCE OX A HEA2ILESS BIUA-JIxST.

LONDON, February 14.

The notorious bigamist Artiur Hyne met witu the reward of his crimes at Bristol yesterday, in the shape of seven years' penat servitude, lor ais cruel matrxnxoxiiai escapades, and hve years for fraud — tne sentences to run concurrently. Compared w-itn iiyne, You Veltueim was a novice In bigamy and fraud, for tie prosecution was abie to prove tuat, iv the short space of three years, ire had betrayed and defrauded no less than eight womeu in the United Kingdom by means of marriage and promises of marriage, and had it beea necessary, the prosecution could have brought home to him tie seduction 'of a number of young women, including a mere girl of Iti. at Bristol. For court purposes, iowever, his career since iOtJo, was outlined thus:— Married Miss Beil, at Manchester. Married Mrs Stevens, a widow, Bristol. Ottered marriage to Miss Matthews, Bristol. Offered marriage to Miss Collins. Bristol. Married a young woman iv Dublin. Victimised three other women — one in Aberdeen, cue iv Birminsham, and one- :u Bristol. In one case a child of one of these -marriages'' was born as recently as Wednesday last. Although no reference was made by tie Crown yesterday to tie supposition tiat Hyne is uone other than the notorious bigamist. Dr. Witzhoff. for whom the American police have beeu searching, there appeals little doubt tiat tie two characters are one. When under arrest at Buffalo, Witzhoif confessed to have contracted no fewer than thirty-two bigamous marriages. Many aliases have beea used by this amazing man. Hyue ias posed as: Dr Western, Mr Bessaer. Dr. Reader. Witzhoff ias passed under the names of— Fred A. Schotze.

Dr. George Mulier. Br. Albert, Keider

Periaps tie strongest point of identification lies in the handwriting of the two men, in documents now in tue hands of the Bristol police, reputed to have been •written from New xork by •'Witzhoff," and from Cardiff by "Dr. A, Hyne." In several particulars the writing is identical. Other points that connect the two are the exactly ideuticai methods employed. Both sought women victims primarily for tie purpose of extracting money. Boci married when they found it necessary for the success of tneir extortiou schemes, and omitted that part of the performance wnea the money could be obtained without proceeding to tnat extremity.

.j j VVitzhon* was traced to tie Continent of 3 j Europe and to England after the United s States police had broken up his gang of ■"marriage broilers" and thieves, ' [always speaking of his lue in America, ' j where he stiil uad correspondents, and on | the Continent, which he appeared to know ' j very well. , | Wimholi* was very clever in disguising ; | himself, using cruelly an arrangement of [ | hair and the growth, removal, and re-ar- . ! rangement of moustache, beard, and whls- _ jkers, or all three. Hyne's ttrst move when . jae absconded from Bristol after his release , on bail was to snave off his moustache, , and he boasted to one of his landladies 1 . tiat he could alter nimself beyond recogni- ; tiou. L Witzioffs publisbed photographs. In .various facial disguises, reveal always a .certain similarity: while an enlargement of a small photograph of Hyne, taken In I Bristol, which was used by the local police |in communicating wirh other centres, is j extremely like the -vTitziou" portraits. Morejover, it is unlike Hyne as be appeared in i tie dock. The American police also em-! I phasize the fact that WitzhoO: used eye- i glasses only for purposes of disguise, ana |it was noticeable that after his re-arrest. Hyne entirely discarded his pince-nez. a ■simple act which caused a marked difference in his appearance. Apparently he has never changed his profession of dentist. 'in whici Witzhoff also practised, except j when he tried to persuade Mr Dack. tic 1 father of one of his Bristol victims, into I the belief that he was an electrical marine (engineer, and an inventor of valuable apj pliances for naval gunnery. Even if tie crimes of Witzhoff cannot be fairly laid to Hyue's door, the Bristol convict can be truly scheduled as one or the most contemptible criminals of the cenjury. Yon Veltheim was a blackguard, but he bad. at any rate, a fair measnre of con- | rage. He was not afraid to tackle men. and when "downed" took his punishment withj out a whimper. Hyne preyed on women alone, and when sentenced, "blubbed" like an hysterical schoolgirl. The man's readyflowing tears, when he heard his sentence, are entirely characteristic. "He cried like a water-cart," was the testimony of one lof his victims, and she added, "he seemed to press a spring, and the tears came at wili." He tried the same toctics on the Bristol police. Cpon his arrival, it was noticed that he looked very tired and worn, and a kindhearted officer provided him with some tea ' and a wash. Apparently thinking he had a : sympathetic hearer, he began to cry and : declared how much he regretred his pasc ; wickedness. ' I "There comes a time in the history of ' I the worst man in the worid." he remark- ' jed, "when he is filled with remorse for his j misdeeds and with sorrow for those he has wronged. I have been conscience-stricken ! .for two months or more, aud when the' | Aberdeen police arrested mc, I had prac-1 ticaliy determined to give myself up, con- I £ess my misdeeds, and give up my evil , | ways." An hour after that conversation the police received from Aberdeen a statement that the man had. a fen- days previously, duped a woman in that city, using as a bait the same form of advertisement as at * Bristol and elsewhere.