FORTUNE OF £8.000,000.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1681, 22 February 1913, Page 4

FORTUNE OF £8.000,000.

A HOST OF CLAIMANTS'. (By Telegraph.—i'rcsß A'taoolatl'on.) . Auckland, tfobruary 21. A fortune of throe million pound®, which it was.ascertained recently niighlt have been claimed by au Army veteran (Richard John Walters), Who died ati Point Chevalier recently, is arousing great deal of interest. It will l)o remembered that Walters was in the employ of Mr. T. W. ,Maysou, of Point Chevalier, and was of eccentric habits. 110 often hmtcd that ho was heir to an English' estate of big proportions, but he always said that he was too old to bother abouf: nionov. He couldn't enjoy the fruits of it if ho went to tho trouble of getting it. It lias now been found that the estate which Walters might- have claimed is that known as "West Lands," in South Wales. Upon it j\vo very rich ccal, lead, and slat© deposits, and together'with 1 ,i large number of and securities tho whole cstato runs up to tho value of over 43,030,000. Tlie.rp. aro a host <?f claimants to this magmnoorit, fortune, and it is- surprising how many people aro writing to Mr. Mayson, in order to find out if they aro any relation of the deceased pensioner. Somo of tho letters aro very interesting. . It is said by thoso who , have gone), thoroughly into tho cstato that tho claimant who appears-to have most hope of obtaining tho .fortune/is' Mr. John K. Walters, a young mati, who is now resident at Benoui, Transvaal. 1 Somo years ago Mr. John Walters, sen., father of claimant (now deceased), 1 hoard that in the family there were estates of consider-able-Value. His inquiries led him to London, whero the matter wag brought-, before tho. Chancery Court. Mr. Walters, jun., now writes to Ii ' Mayson ,to say that when tho case, had been dealt witli tho presiding Judge said that tho claim to tho heirdom had 'only ono missing link. If Mr. Walters,' senr., could fina a certain. "Richard John Walters," and, clear up tho mystery of his whereabouts, ; ho fortune would. undoubtedly revert to the claimant when this Richard Jolm Welters died. , ; . • " _ A world's tour was then taken by Mr. Walters, senr.,' end. his son, Miv J. P. Walters (the present claimant from South' Africa) in scnrch' of ltichard John Walters. Only tivo, years they returned to, th<j Transvaal'without discovering hla whereabouts. Mr, Walters, senr.,. subsequently .died. ' . , Another active pursuit of.iho bis en< fate is being made by Mr. J.'ll. Walters, and he has ■■engaged, a firm of London solicitors to further his claim pending his arrival in Lbndon from Cape Town. There aro ; h" number of other claimants; Ono is n young man named Stanley- Arthur" Walterfe,.\now of Leicester, England, but -formerly '.sorter ;in : . th<* General Post in Wellington., In aletter to, Mr. Mayson,.-lie states that lwr oft?n . hoard that, ho tad.' an uncle in New Zealand, but could never lowlo him.. In tho meantime tho cstato still lies' it*, Clinncery at Home, and' the Public Trust' Offices of, both' England and New Zealand are' ; pursuing about. claimants. [Some time ogo a mairand his wif# willed at IVe Dominion Office in ouest of information about .the estate. They, stated that th6y.,believed they had, : & claim.] ■ 1 • ' '■' "'.