"NOBLEMAN'S" LEGACY.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 7891, 22 December 1903, Page 2

"NOBLEMAN'S" LEGACY.

CURIOUS STORY OF A CHEQUE FOR ,£19,400:. An extraordinary story of alleged 1 deception was unfolded at Bow Street in October, when Henry Woods, aged twenty-six, was charged with forging a cheque for £19,400 and with obtaining £100 by falsa pretences. Woods is asserted to have masqueraded as a nobleman andi an Army officer, and to have pretended to be the recipient of a large legacy. Mr Rowe, who prosecuted, stated that the prisoner had passed under the title of Lord Leetham. He was really the son of a man' who had for many y-ears worked 1 as a footman, and thus had contrived to copy the ways and habits of people in a superior position. He had nb claim to a military career, except that he had enlisjbed in the Hoyal Marine Artillery, andafter six weeks' service was discharged ati medically unfit. In March, 1902, Mr Jacob Budd, a builder of Hounslow, made^the acquaintance of the prisoner, who then represented himself as Lieuteimnt Wood, of the Imperial Yeomanry, and saiid that he had just returned from South Africa. He was wearing several war riboons. On the representation that ha was unable to get his money from the War Office, he borrowed £10 from Mr Budd, which he afterwards repaid; At subsequent interviews Wood informed Mr Budd that ne was purchasing an estate in Devonshire. H& succeeded in borrowing various sums of money on the strength of these representations, amounting in the aggregate to about £120". He also told Mr Bndd that he had fifty large diamonds, which he had brought from South Africa, and Major Egerton had .agreed to advance him £15,000 -upon them at any time. His relations were wealthy folkj who were at present living abroad. In October last year, continued counsel, the accused met Mr Budd by appointment in a house in Stepney, and there he produced a -cheque for £19,400, saying that io represented «. lega-cy. He said that he had no banking account, si> he a^ked Mr Budd to pa§s the cheque through his bank, and after deducting £4700 for certain property purchased from' Mr Budd, to hand him over tho balance. A Mr Hyains was the drawer cf the cheque, and the accused stated that he lived at The Drive, Hove, On. going there, however, Mr Budd was unable to. find anyone of that.n-tuns. ■ ' i " The accused was remanded.