also Letters of Introduction and Fine Times in the Wealthiest board.
Houses with Any Amount of Plunder: Amazing Story of Two Lady Adventuresses Several of the most wealthy and) prominent members of Shanghai's: business and social community have been made the victims recently of a bogus millionaires and her reputed daughter. The story. of the doings of these two in Shanghai reads almost like a chapter from fiction. Representing [themselves as extremely wealthy they gained entry to what Mr. J.
P. Bland calls "the Capuan villas of "Bubbling Well," borrowed, several thousands of dollars and obtained several articles of value irom the people they imposed upon. The girl became engaged to a well-known dental surgeon and carried off from him two valuable engagement rings. 'To bring their. stay' to a fitting close, they were given a great send off on the Empress of Asia by their unhappy victims, who only dis "The couple arrived in Shanghai from the States on May 17 thy year, They immediately put up at Astor House Hotel and registered under the names of Mrs, and Miss MeKiney. They travelled together on a British passport, believed to be forged, and Mrs. McKiney gave it out that she was the daughter of a Mr. Montgo-
The accent, however, with which mary, English millionaire. they both speak certainly belied their English nationality. The elder woman appeared to be between 48 and 50 years of age; the younger about 25, though she stated that she was only 19, Once the two were comfortably lensconsced in the Astor House, their ext move was to call on the wives: of a number of Shanghai's leading business and banking men arm.
with false letters of introduction. These were accepted unsuspectingly and it was not long before they had the run of Shanghai society.
They Strike a Snag There were, however, one or two people who refused to be duped. One of these was one who is among the most important shipping men in town. The ladies told him they had a letter of introduction from friends of ver, and made no hesitation' about 'He was then allowed the address on the enveloped, and found it addressed not to his' own wife but to his mother, who has never been within 3,000. miles of Shanghai. This put him or his guard and the two kept out of his path.
'They continued their career, however, and the mother gave out that her daughter, on coming of age, would inherit the sum of G.$2,000,- 000. It is fairly obvious now' that this story was intended to make of the girl a brilliant matrimonial prize for Shanghai's rich but impressionable youth. This also, accounted for the statement that she was only 19 years of age, whereas it was fairly obvious that she was some years older. One unfortunate gentlemen succumbed to the young woman's charms, hich were not "Inconsiderable She gave him every encouragement and the two ultimately became engaged and he bought her an ox-pensive engagement ring to seal the contract. Time went on and.
few days later the girl came to him with tears in her eyes and gently broke the news that she had lost the ring, She had been way her hands while talking, so she ox-plained, and the ring must have fallen off her finger. The young man cheered her up for the loss and promptly bought her another, which left Shanghai with the i Needless to say the story of how she lost the first ring was a pure fabrication, and both items of jewellery simply went to swell the Joint loot made by the two.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.