WANTED, AN HAIR.

New Zealand Herald, Volume L, Issue 15233, 21 February 1913, Page 7

WANTED, AN HAIR.

fORTUNE OF £3,t)oo,ooQi\ HOST OF CLAIMANTS. "\ ££MY W TEBRAirS " ATIVES." fortune of three million pounds which it was ascertained recently might have- been claimed by the army veteran, :■"' Richard John Walters, who died at, Point Chevalier recently, is arousing a great de<d '. ■ of interest. " ■■■■■:\\ It will be remembered thai Walters was ii the employ of Mr. T. W. Mayson, of ■ Point Chevalier, and was of eccentric habits. Ha often hinted that he was heir to an English estate of big proportions, but bo always said that he was too old to bother about money— couldn't enjoy the ' - fruits of it if he went to the trouble of ' (retting it. I* has now been found that :: the estate-which Walters might have claimed is that known as "West-Lands," ' In South Wales. Upon it aro very rich .:: ,' coal, lead, and slate deposits, and together tfith a large number of bonds and securities the whole estate runs up to a value l -' of over £3,000,000. ..There are a host of claimants to this : jjiagnincent, fortune, and it is surprising " . Iww many people are, writing to Sir. May- • ion, m order to find out if .they are any jelation of the deceased pensioner. Some '" 0 the letters are very interesting. It is said by .those who have gone thoroughly into the estate that the claimant who appears to have most hope of obtaining the fortune ia Mr. John R. Walters, a young : jnan who is now resident at Benoui, Trans- : taaL Some years ago, Mr. John Walters, : :'. ieiff., the fatter of the claimant (now de- ' ceased) heard that in the family there were '-.:■■ ■ estates of considerable value. His inquiries led him to London, where the ' matter was brought before the Chancery ' : . • Coart. Mr. Walters, junr.., now writes to r jfr. Mayson to say that when the case had been dealt with, the presiding judge saia ' . that the claim to the heirdom had only one ■ ; missing link. If Mr. Walters, senr. could find a certain Richard John Walters," and clear up the mystery of his whereabouts,, the fortune would undoubtedly revert to the claimant when this Richard

John Walters died. A world's totir was then taken by Mr.

Walters, senr., and his son, Mr. J. R.

. falters (the present claimant from South Africa), in search of Richard John Walf'r'^ifii&tOnly -two years ago. they returned to the Transvaal -without discovering his whereabouts. Mr. Walters, sear.,' subse- & quently died. .Another active pursuit of the big estate.

is Laaig made by Mr. J. R. Walters, and lis has engaged a firm, of London solicitors ! to further his claim, pending his arrival la r| Jondon from Capetown. ; 1 •There axe a number of other claimants. .' " One is a young man named Stanley Arthur ; Walters, .now of Leicester, England, but S"K? formerly a sorter in the general post office in. Wellington. In a letter to Mr. May£o3, he .states that he often heard that he had an uncle in New Zealand, but could : BCTer locate him., - Meantime the estate still lies in chancery- ' &i Hona,- and the Public Trust Offices of ' ' '•' both England and Now Zealand are pur- ■■■•;■ - ■■':sssag enquiries about the claimants • ; "' i' ' i ' ■'■•