GREAT JEWEL SWINDLE.

King Country Chronicle, Volume XVIII, Issue 1857, 4 September 1923, Page 3

GREAT JEWEL SWINDLE.

AUSTRIAN CROWN GEMS.

SENSATIONAL ARREST. Quite a sensation was caused by the announcement recently that Baron Steiner de Volmont, friend of and confidant and treasurer to the late Emperor Karl of Austria, had been arrested. The Swiss Government has * now applied for extradition, and thousands of people in every country of Europe are now anxiously awaiting the trial in the belief that it will at last provide a solution of the missing Austrian Crown jewels. The collection of gems possessed by the late ruler of Austria was one of the most valuable in the world, comprising as it did 156 large diamonds, including such famous stones as the “Lake of Fire” and the “Fountain of Light” and innumerable smaller ones.

Among the set pieces in the collection was the .“Rose Necklace,” a wonderful affair composed of 13 roses fashioned out of diamonds, each perfect in shape and colour. It has been proved beyond question that the Emperor Karl and his consort were iri possession of the jewels when they fled from Austria to Switzerland, but what happened to them afterwards is a mystery that has intrigued half the gem dealers and secret service agents of Europe for many months. a HOW THEY VANISHED. They vanished just as completely and mysteriously as though they had been turned into thin air by the touch of a magic wand. It happened thus. When the emperor was driven into exile in Switzerland he took with him Baron Steiner de Volmont, an old and trusted friend, who, after many years of service with the Emperor Francis Joseph, over whom he exercised considerable influence was appointed confidential secretary and treasurer to the new emperor. He retained that position during his master’s stay in Switzerland, and when in October, 1919, Karl and his wife fle“w to Hungary in a futile attempt to regain a lost throne, they naturally entrusted the Crown jewels to the care of this faithful servant, charging him to yield them to no man without the emperor’s written instructions.

Karl failed miserably. The only result of his ill-advised action was an edict from the Swiss Government forbidding him to return to that country. Consequently he and his consort were transferred to a British warship and taken to Madeira in exile.

They had no money, and as news of the innumerable debts they had incurred in Switzerland had preceded them, they found it extremely hard to get credit. Soon they were facingactual poverty, and it became acutely necessary to regain possession of the valuable jewels left in Baron Steiner’s care.

Karl could not go to fetch them — the Allies forbade that!—so the exempress volunteered to go in his stead. She went, but the jewels had gone before she arrived. The faithful baron was still there, however, and he brought tears to the eyes of the Empress Zita by the story he told. As soon as his royal patrons left, he declared, a shoal of creditors descended upon him demanding payment. Karl’s position prevented him carrying the matter any further, and within a short time he died in a miserable cottage in poverty.

KARL’S LAST REQUEST. But before he died he requested the British Government to make an investigation into the circumstances

of the loss of the jewels, alleging that he had been swindled out of them.

Horatio Bottomley was alleged to know something about the jewels. He had no idea as to the identity of the gems, or of the means by which' they came into the hands of the persons who offered them for sale.

Just before the fates turned against him and he was sent to prison, Bottomley was in the habit of whispering mysteriously to his intimates of a wonderful parcel of jewels with which he proposed to re-establish his financial position in the country.

He did actually make bids for certain stones and had several of them knocked down to him at prices that certainly left room for substantial profit. But he could not produce the sum in cash, and as the temporary owner could not afford to sell on credit the deal fell through. So far, howevex’, no doubt had been cast upon the honesty of Baron Steiner de Volmont. But when the Swiss creditors continued to press for payment of their debts—which could have been settled many times over by the value of the jewels—suspicion was aroused.

The ex-emperor’s brother, Archduke Maximilian, then appealed to the Swiss authorities, alleging in a sworn statement that the world-famous stones had been handed over to dealers, who had made a profit of several millions of dollars.

“PERLASKO SYNDICATE.” For some time he had difficulty in getting a hearing, but at last he succeeded in getting a commission appointed to inquire into the matter. Their findings caused yet another sensation. They declared that the late emperor had been “tricked,” and described the so-called loss of the jewels as “the greatest swindle of the age.” They also came to the conclusion that Baron Steiner de Volmont had entered into a conspiracy with a number of other men known as the “Pexdasko Syndicate” to convert the world-famous jewels to their own use. The Baron’s ari’est followed quickly, and although his alleged “confederates”, are still at large, most people believe that his four-year-old mystery is on the eve of a solution.