FORTUNES IN FRAUDS.

Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume 36, Issue 9465, 31 March 1905, Page 4

FORTUNES IN FRAUDS.

SOME REMARKABLE SWINDLES. The amount of money and labour whicli higH-clnss swindlers " will ex - pend in ' bringing ' " their plans liito operation is remarkafcte. 'The ordinary wi]|, consider five founds a large sum to spend on a job. INot so the artist in crime! He spends thousands. He risks much because'lie jilays for high stakes'. ' One ( f the most remarkable swindles was that initiated by a Spaniard named Kianco. No'novolist has ever penned a title so romantic'tis the account of this sharper's roguery in the'case'of thft great'HavatiVcard swindle. liianco commenced, operations by buying an enormous number of pack;s «<f cards. ' lie opehicd, every pick', carefully marked each card) and skilfully refast'eneH.t'he packets, so that it was impossible to det.ect'that the pa'clc" liad.been opened. ' 'These operations tedious, "and a couple of yearis were occupied;by them'. Then Bianco shipped his vast stock of marked cards to Havana, where they were sold at such low prices'that the island dealers would stock no others. ' 1 '' ' " " .Ry the time Bianco himself reached Havana his cards'were distributed"all over the place. ' lie joined, the best clubhand, with the aid of the money

Jie possessed, and his cards,soon became rich, All was going well until 'a Frenchman named Lafrnc.ide informed him that he was a sharper. Liaforcade was also a rogue, a lower kind of rogue than the Spaniard. fle had obtained possession of several packs of cards fpoin one pf the principal clubs. His intention was to park tlie cards anjd £jien to replace them in the club scores. To astonjsHpent, he discovered that somebody had marked tfie cards already.' lie obtained several othe'r packs, and found that they were marked also. He went to the dealers and bought packs; every card was marked. Thus he discovered the great fraud.

lie soon tracked the man who always won, and compelled to share his gains. JJianco had to clo the sharping, whi|e liaforcade spenj. nioiVey. When Bianco pa tee to conclusion that the original stopk of his cards was becojping exhausted fie laid his hands on every penny" he could find bolted, leaying the frenchman in the lurclp. ' " 1 ''

Laforcade being left without funds was compelled to abandon his idle ways. He cheated at sards, bungled, and was detected. Wiieu brought before the tlie whole of the remarkable facts o| the gigantic swindle came'to light. The evidence proved that Bianco was the guilty party, He was never heard of after heleit the island,. It could not be that "Leforende kneiv that the c'trds were marked. He was acquitted, but wasYi&liged, to leave Havana. So ended the" most remarkable 'case, of its kind on record.

The prince of modern" forgers was found "dead, in Cairo a short* time ago. His favourite method was' tjo obtain a circular letter of 'credit, and use it time after time upon different bankers." He removed the endorsement, showing that money had' been drawn out, by means of chemicals. He bought a letter of credit 'd£sC), and obtained a 'total of £I4OO, for it from different Continental bankers. ■ Captain Bevan, as he called himself wbs a clever artist.

In some of his frauds he went so as 1 9, away a portion of a banker's cheque, |ll up the space with P a per pulp, "'coloured and engraved the new : piece 1 of. paper, ani'forged writing over tlje 'doctored'- cheque. These 'delicate operations' were done in such, a manner as to. leave the forgery imperceptible v 'without close exami ffaiion. 4 ' 1 ui

In other frauds hp got a stationer in Brussels to machine the water-marks 'of 1 London bankers on pl/iin sheets of paper. These,' sheets he took to Franco to be coloured-''anil- engraved. Some of his forgeries of-Bank of England, notes were actually cashed at a 'provincial, branch The usual manner'in which ordinary bank notes are forged ia first to take a photograph of 'the/ genuine note, 'theh to transfer the negatives' 'to finally to stone. Impressions "from' ' the stone st are placed,upon a well' grained " s block of hard wood, which has been oiled."well. This produces the imitation water-mark [ when' pressed, properly. The Cheque Batik' cheque was sup,!posed to be' u'nforga()le.' 'lt 'was ' a very elaborate cheque printed 'in ' co jpwra» and engraved' with an intricate design. The (Cheque Bank had to discontinue operations,' owing to 'the numerous forgeries. '' One forger set to work by dividing the cheque into numerous portions, ! each of. wljich was given to a specialist to prepare a die oh dies thus madp were combined, and the isounterffiit cheque printed.'therefrom. 1,1 1 "Another forger spent two years and thousands of 'ptiundsj U is said, in'preparing a single cfie. In eacii case tlie forgers obtained.much raoneyi It is doubtful if any cheque" or note cannot be forged. Probably tlje notes of t'j® England are the ciost t^, 'to tfia great ty in iimitating tne paper and to the'complex wHter-marks. : '''"