CHAPTER 23
THE CASE OF THE REFUGEE
I always made it a rule to keep abreast of the times. Nearly all of my schemes were geared to the latest news in national or international affairs.
Early one morning I was driving into Indianapolis. At a tourist camp outside of Lafayette I stopped at a little restaurant and had some of their specialty - homemade chili.
After eating I asked the owner of the place to fill up my gas tank. He pulled the car over to the gasoline pumps. In so doing he noticed my bags, which were covered with stamps from various foreign countries. These were not spurious, having been affixed at various times on my trips abroad.
“Do you do a lot of traveling?”
“Yes. I’ve spent considerable time in Europe.”
“My one ambition has been to see Europe,” he shook his head. “What did you do over there?”
“I represented European capital. But there isn’t much to represent now.”
“Do you know many people over there?”
“Yes. I was in Germany for a long time and I have a very good friend in the Reichsbank.”
“How much do you think it would cost to take a trip to Berlin?”
“About $5,000.”
“Oh, I could afford it,” he assured me. He had finished with the car and continued: “Won’t you come in and have a glass of wine with me?”
“Thank you.”
I followed him into the cottage he occupied. He brought glasses and poured wine for both of us.
“I’ve retired from active business,” he said and I noted he was apparently past sixty. “I run this little place just to have something to do. I used to own a big dairy in Ohio, but I sold it out.”
I was beginning to see light. I lingered about an hour, telling him of my European travels. I didn’t have to add much fiction because I really had been in all parts of Europe and every big city on the continent was familiar to me. I had only to be careful in telling of my business dealings. None was legitimate, but I always had a good story to cover each trip.
It was easy to see he had not been far from his native Ohio. My tales of Europe intrigued him. He was very friendly and invited me to drop in to see him on my way back from Indianapolis.
I went on into Indianapolis and registered at the Claypool as John Bauer. I fixed up a letter from Mexico, properly stamped and postmarked. The letter read:
Dear Friend:
Now that I’ve arrived in Mexico, I want to write and thank you for the great risk you took in helping me to get out of the fatherland. I suppose it will be a very difficult task to get into the United States. If I can’t get there now, maybe you can dispose of some of my holdings in American corporations. Perhaps you can raise sufficient money to get me into your great country. I shall remain most anxious until you write to me with some hope of the future. Shall I send you some of the stocks and bonds and have you dispose of them or shall I hold them in abeyance? Please let me hear from you.
Faithfully yours,
Henrietta
The letter was written in a dainty feminine hand and the envelope was addressed to John Bauer at the Claypool Hotel in Indianapolis.
With this letter and some photographs I returned to the tourist camp. The photos were of my father’s relatives in Paris - my aunt and two uncles.
I dropped in to see my new-found friend whose name I had learned was Andrew Lamont. We had coffee and chatted awhile and I departed, purposely leaving the letter and photographs on a table.
I drove on into Lafayette and telephoned Lamont.
“I lost a very valuable letter,” I told him. “I prize it highly and will give a reward for its return.”
“From Mexico?” he asked.
“Yes, that’s it.”
“You left it here.”
“What a relief!” I sighed so heavily I’m sure he could hear it over the phone. “Would you be good enough to mail it to me?”
“I’ll be glad to. You left some pictures, too.”
“I wondered what happened to those pictures. They are some of my European relatives. Please mail them with the letter.”
He mailed the letter and pictures to me in Indianapolis. I knew he had read the letter. I waited a couple of days and dropped in to see him again.
He was quite chummy and asked how things were going in Indianapolis. Then he maneuvered the conversation to the possibilities of my making a trip to Mexico.
“I have an opportunity to get a lot of money,” I told him, “if I can find a man I can confide in-a man with a bank account.”
“I have a bank account,” he said. “I also have a car. If you want to go to Mexico I’ll take you.”
“No, let me tell you the story. There was a wealthy Jewish family with vast holdings in Germany and France. All their possessions in Germany were confiscated by Hitler and the family was thrown into a concentration camp. Only one member escaped - the daughter, Henrietta. Through my friend in the Reichsbank I arranged passage for her to Mexico aboard a tramp steamer. The captain was bribed and she was smuggled into his cabin. She had a trunk with a secret compartment in the bottom. This secret compartment held jewels and holdings of American stocks and bonds - Standard Oil, American Telephone and Telegraph, Allied Chemicals, and many others. About a million dollars’ worth in all.
“In spite of this wealth Henrietta is stranded in Mexico. She would like to get into this country and convert the stocks into cash, with the hope of rescuing her family from the Nazis. But she needs help. I promised to help her as soon as I returned to this country.
“I had some trouble getting out of Germany myself. I went to the American embassy and they arranged my passage. But it cost a lot of money.
“Mr. Lamont, I’d like to go to Mexico and help Henrietta, but I don’t have any money. I think I can have her smuggled into this country. She has agreed to turn all her holdings over to me and give me half of what I get out of them. Suppose you tell your banker and ask him to advance me the money to help her?”
“I’ll advance the money myself,” he replied, a greedy light in his eyes. “But how do you expect to get her out of Mexico?”
“Sailors can be bribed. I hope to find a man with a tramp steamer who will bring her in - for a consideration, of course.”
“Suppose you fail?”
“Then I’ll bring the stocks back and sell them for her.”
“What if you can’t get them across the border?” he pressed.
“Then I’ll sell the stock in Mexico. Maybe I can get 30 per cent of its value. In that case, I’ll buy a small cruiser and smuggle Henrietta into the country myself.”
“How much do I get out of it?”
“I’ll give you a third of the proceeds. The amount you make will depend on whether I have to sell the stock in Mexico or can get it into this country. But you ought to get from $100,000 to $300,000 out of the deal.”
Mention of these figures made Lamont rub his hands. “I’ll help you,” he said. “How much do you want to start?”
“Five hundred to a thousand dollars.”
“I haven’t got that much cash here. I’ll have to go to the bank. But you can put up here overnight.”
I spent the night in one of his cabins. The next morning he went to Lafayette and returned with $500. I took the money and started for Mexico by automobile.
At Dallas I called Lamont.
“I’ve just heard from Henrietta,” I told him. “She needs $1,000 at once. The captain who brought her over demands more money.”
“That’s a lot of money,” he protested.
“Yes, I know,” I agreed. “But now that we’ve gone this far we can’t afford to let this man upset the whole thing.”
“How do you know he won’t be demanding more money?”
“Because he’s sailing in a few days. As soon as he’s out of the way we know he won’t be able to talk.”
“All right,” Lamont yielded. “How’ll I send it to you?”
“Wire it care of Western Union at Laredo. Use the code word Oscar for identification.”
“I’ll send it,” he promised.
I drove on to Laredo and checked in at a hotel. After I had eaten and relaxed a bit I called at Western Union.
“Do you have a money order for John Bauer?” I inquired.
“John Bauer?” said the clerk. “I’ll see.” He returned in a short time and asked: “Do you have a dog?”
“Yes.”
“What’s his name?”
“Oscar.”
“Yes, we have a money order for you. Sign here.”
I signed the receipt and received the money. From Laredo I drove to Monterey and on into Mexico City. It was really a lark for me. The scenery was interesting and I was in no hurry. There was naturally no Henrietta in Mexico City to distract my attention from the city’s night life, which I enjoyed for several days before I called Lamont again.
“Everything is going fine,” I told him enthusiastically. “Henrietta is comfortable and nobody is molesting her. I haven’t been able to find a boat to smuggle her in though. It may require a few weeks to do that. I’ll stay and try to arrange it if you can send me some more money.”
“I’ve already given you $1,500,” he objected. “Why can’t you get some of the stock and raise some money?”
“I can do that,” I replied. “I’ll bring some of the stock back and sell it in the United States. See you in a few days.”
About a week later I returned to Indiana and checked in at a hotel in Lafayette. Later I drove out to see Lamont. I took with me stock certificates of the Standard Oil Company, American Telephone and Telegraph, and Allied Chemicals, with a total face value of $15,000. They were all phonies but looked so genuine they’d fool almost anybody.
Lamont was enthusiastic when I showed him the certificates.
“Suppose we get your banker to dispose of these?” I suggested.
“Good. I’ll let Jim run the place and we’ll go into Lafayette now.”
He drove into Lafayette and I followed in my car. We went to his bank and he introduced me to the president, a man I will call John Parker.
He looked over the certificates and there was no indication of doubt on his face. “Where did you get these?” he inquired.
I told him of haying acquired them from the refugee. “Why,” I asked, “they’re good, aren’t they?”
“Gilt-edged,” he replied. “I’d be glad to sell them for you, but they are not endorsed.”
“Do they have to be?” I asked, appearing crestfallen.
“Yes. They have to be authenticated.”
“Well, I guess there isn’t anything else I can do.” I got up, disappointment written in every move, and Lamont and I started for the door.
Lamont was already out the door and I was about to leave when the banker said: “Just a moment.” He beckoned to me and I returned to his desk.
“Where are you stopping?” he asked in an undertone.
I named my hotel.
“I’ll telephone you later,” he said quickly. “I have something in mind.”
I knew pretty well what was in his mind, but I had no intention of telling Lamont. When I rejoined him he wanted to know why Parker had called me back.
“He just wanted to tell me to be sure to have the certificates notarized,” I replied. “They have to be endorsed and notarized.”
“What are your plans now?” Lamont asked.
“As soon as I’ve rested up I’m going back to Mexico and get the certificates signed,” I told him.
We chatted for half an hour. Then I parted from Lamont, with the promise that I would get in touch with him the next day.
I had been back at my hotel only a few minutes when the phone rang. It was Parker. “Would you come over to my law offices?” he asked. I told him I would and he gave me the address.
Parker’s office was in a spacious suite in the best building in town. I later learned he had a number of young lawyers working for him and that he spent a few hours there after the bank closed, supervising their activities and ironing out problems.
Parker himself was in his middle forties, a stocky man with a jutting chin and long, unruly brown hair. He wore horn-rimmed glasses and was a tireless worker. I was soon to learn he also was a tireless schemer and that his main interest in life was the acquisition of money, of which he already had a considerable amount.
He greeted me cordially and offered me a comfortable chair and cigar. Clearly this was a build-up.
“How much does Lamont know about this woman who owns the stock?” he asked.
“Very little,” I replied. “Why?”
“Don’t tell him any more. I think I’m in a better position than he is to help you. How much are her holdings?”
“About two million dollars.”
“Why don’t you bring her in?”
I showed him the correspondence and told him the story about her narrow escape from Hitler and her inability to get into the United States.
“I can smuggle her in,” I explained. “But I will have to buy a small cruiser, equip it, hire a crew, and bribe a few officials. All that costs money and I don’t have any.”
“How much are you getting out of it if you do succeed in smuggling her in?” he asked, getting right to the point.
“I think she will give me 50 per cent.”
“I might help you finance it,” he proposed. “How much of your share will you pay for help?”
“I’d be willing to pay 30 per cent of my share.”
“Not enough,” he said quickly. “If I do go in with you, it will have to be half.”
I considered this for a moment, finally shrugged. “There isn’t anything else I can do,” I said. “I can’t buy a boat without money so I’ll have to accept your proposal.”
“What had you planned to do next?”
“Return to Mexico.”
“How soon?”
“Probably in two weeks.”
“Why do you have to put it off so long?” he asked. I could see from the look of avarice in his eyes and the way he rubbed his hands that he was very anxious.
“I haven’t any money to make the trip,” I replied. “I hope to have enough by that time.”
“I’ll furnish the money,” the banker said impatiently. “Meet me here tomorrow morning at nine forty-five. I’ll slip away from the bank for a few minutes. Meanwhile you better shake Lamont.”
Shaking Lamont was no trouble at all. I called him the next morning and told him I was on my way back to Mexico and that I would get in touch with him as soon as I could.
I met Parker as arranged. He had the look of a well-fed cat who is preparing to gorge himself on a juicy mouse.
“When are you leaving?”
“Right away.”
“Fine. The sooner you start the better.”
“I still don’t have any money,” I reminded him.
“Stop worrying about the money,” he said. “Here’s $500. If you need any more call me at my home.” He handed me a card with his home address and phone number.
“This ought to be enough,” I assured him, pocketing the money. “I’ll keep you informed of my progress.”
I drove back to Mexico City and after waiting a couple of days called Parker.
“Henrietta’s in hiding,” I told him. “She saw the former ambassador to Germany on the street and is fearful of being recognized.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Make arrangements to get her out of the country just as fast as I can.”
I waited a couple more days, than drove back to Lafayette. I avoided Lamont but went at once to see the banker.
“The trip only cost me $300,” I told him. “Here’s the balance of the money you gave me.” I returned $200 to Parker and it had a tremendous psychological effect on him.
“What progress did you make?” he asked anxiously.
“I found a tramp steamer that is sailing in a few days. The captain is willing to smuggle her into the United States for $7,500.”
“How do I know that you are telling me the truth?”
“I don’t understand.”
“How do I know this woman has all that stock?”
“I asked her to give me some sort of evidence. She gave me this letter.”
The letter was on the stationery of the Chase National Bank of New York. It was signed “Winthrop W. Aldrich.” It looked as genuine as if Aldrich really had written it. The letterhead was an exact replica and the expensive bond paper had a watermark.
According to the letter Mr. Aldrich was glad Henrietta had successfully eluded the Nazis with her vast holdings of stocks and precious jewels. He expressed a desire to serve her and hoped she would permit the Chase National Bank to handle her affairs if she succeeded in getting to New York.
This letter readily convinced Parker. He put aside all doubts and got down to business.
“Does she have the stocks in a safe place?” he asked.
“Yes, she still has them in the trunk,” I replied. “Of course, nobody knows that it has a secret compartment. Even the man who is going to smuggle her in doesn’t know that she is carrying a valuable cargo. He thinks she’s just a poor refugee whose friends are anxious to save her from the Nazis.”
“Good. There’s no use wasting time.”
He made out two documents. One was a note for $7,500 payable on demand. I signed it and, as president of the bank, he approved it. The other was an agreement that, in consideration of his financial help, I would give him fifty per cent of my share. I signed that, too, using the name, John Bauer.
With the money I started back for Mexico right away. At Laredo I stopped and called Lamont.
“I’ve been wondering what happened to you,” he said.
“Well, I’ve been very busy trying to get Henrietta into the United States,” I told him. “I’ve finally located the captain of a freighter who is willing to smuggle her in for $1,500.”
“What are you going to do now?”
“I have to raise the money. Can you send it to me?”
“Yes, but that’s all I can send you.”
“You won’t need to send any more. Once she gets to the United States we’ll have all the money we want.”
“All right, where do you want it sent?”
“The Western Union at Laredo. Use the same code word.”
I waited around several hours and the wire didn’t come. It was a dangerous game I was playing. If Lamont and Parker had got together and compared notes I was a dead duck. After the second time I had inquired at Western Union I became jittery. I thought of a dozen things that might be happening.
It was nearly dark when I decided to ask once more. But to be sure no trap had been laid I hired a boy to go to Western Union for me. I watched him from across the street while he asked. He returned and told me the wire was there.
I went in, gave the code word, and received the $1,500. As it developed, my fears had been groundless. But I didn’t hang around Laredo any longer. I got in my car and drove on to Mexico City.
There I telephoned Parker and told him I needed an additional $1,500 to bribe consular officials who had got wind of the proposed smuggling. He protested but wired the money to me.
I went back to the United States after arranging with a man in Mexico City to send a couple of wires for me. One of them, addressed to me in care of the banker, was signed “Henrietta” and stated:
EVERYTHING ARRANGED.
WAITING FOR CLEARANCE PAPERS.
The other was addressed to me in care of Lamont. It read:
DIFFICULTY IN ARRANGING CLEARANCE PAPERS.
SHOULD BE IN NEW YORK IN TWO WEEKS.
I went out to see Lamont and he handed me the telegram.
“Well, it won’t be long now,” I told him. “I’ll go to New York and meet her and I’ll be back here as soon as I can.”
This seemed reasonable enough to him. I put up at his camp overnight and told him in detail - quite fictitious - of the trouble I’d encountered in arranging Henrietta’s passage. I left the following morning and told him I was on my way to New York.
I drove on into Lafayette and the banker had the other telegram.
“How long do you think she’ll be held up?” he asked anxiously.
“Not long,” I assured him. “I arranged everything with the consular officials before I left.”
“Guess we will just have to wait,” he said impatiently.
I went on over to the hotel and registered. That afternoon I returned to the bank. I had a faked airmail letter that read:
We are about to sail. We expect to be in New York next Saturday. I hope that you will be there to meet me.
Hurriedly,
Henrietta
In a state of great excitement I went into the banker’s office and showed him the letter. He read it with great satisfaction.
“I’m going to drive to New York to meet her,” I told Parker. “The poor woman will need help. She has some clothing, but it definitely stamps her as a foreigner. I think she’d better be dressed properly to protect us.”
Parker readily agreed.
“I’ll need more cash to do that,” I pointed out. “Can I increase the note?”
“You’re already in about $10,000.”
“No, it’s $9,000. Suppose you make it $10,000 even.”
“But $500 ought to be enough.”
“I don’t think so. Henrietta is an aristocrat. If she is to be dressed in a manner that befits her I think I’ll need a great deal more than that. Suppose you make the note for $12,000.”
We haggled for some time over this point. He finally compromised by giving me $1,500. I then departed for New York to meet poor Henrietta.
I did actually go to New York. I was there when the boat was supposed to arrive. But I was busy with other activities. I went to a bowery passport photographer’s and got a fake photograph of Henrietta. Then I bought a New York paper and had the front page reprinted. The headline read:
CAPTAIN ARRESTED FOR
SMUGGLING WEALTHY ALIEN
The story under the headline stated that the captain of a freighter had been arrested for trying to smuggle into New York a wealthy German refugee. It related how the woman had been put aboard the freighter with a trunk found to contain some two millions in securities and jewels as the result of a plot initiated by one John Bauer, who was being sought by police. The picture of Henrietta was prominently displayed.
With this I hurried back to Indiana and laid the paper in front of the banker. Parker was furious, but he didn’t doubt the authenticity of the paper or the story.
“What are you going to do now?” he demanded.
“I’m going back to Mexico. Just as fast as I can.”
“Don’t be a fool. That’s the first place they’ll look. You had better go up to the north woods.”
“All right,” I agreed, “but I’ll need more money.”
“What!” The banker jumped from his chair and shook an angry fist in my face. “Why should I give you more money?”
“Don’t forget,” I reminded him coolly, “that if I’m caught, I’ll have to involve you.”
“I wish I’d never laid eyes on you!” Parker said, fervent hatred in his voice. He was frothing at the mouth, but the threat of exposure was effective. He reached in his pocket.
“Here’s $200. Now get out of here and I hope that I never see you again!”
He had his wish. I got out and he has never seen me since. This was one case where I didn’t have to worry about documentary evidence. I’m quite sure Parker burned both the note and the agreement I had signed as soon as he could conveniently do it.
This scheme may seem fantastic. But it is no more so than the famous “Spanish prisoner” swindle which is being worked through the mails even today. It is in the same category as the hidden-treasure lure.
There is something about buried treasure that appeals to a wide number of people. If you can produce a yellowed map, presumably made up by a pirate, you can tell a story to fit the circumstances and there will be many people who will believe it. Besides that, there will be many who will invest large sums in expeditions to find the treasure.
My story of Henrietta and her stocks was comparable to that. I used it successfully on others. It was the last big scheme in my fifty years as a confidence man.
