EXTRAORDINARY ATTEMPT AT IMPOSTURE.
{From the Melbourne * Argus,’ March 26.) One of the most extraordinary, and, in its present aspect, unaccountable attempts at imposture was brought .to light yesterday which it has ever been our lob to chronicle On the 13th insb. an advertiaemenb appeared in the ‘Bendigo Advertiser.’ stating that a man was wanted to proceed to Scotland to manage some property, and transact other business for a gentleman residing in Victoria. Applicants were requested to address their communications to a person signing certain imtmis, and leave them at the General Pest Umce, Melbourne. Aypung man named W. B Crum answered the advertisement, and in a day or two after received a reply from a Mr John Tyson, who stated that he was the advertiser. Several other letters passed between them, in which r yson stated that the property was near Glasgow—that he wanted a person to act ai his attorney m its management; that he considered Mr Crum would suit; and that he would give him Ll3O a year, a year’s engageu“ d \? e ° on< Lclass pa-sage Home in the Nubia which sails this day. It was at first proposed that Mr Tyson should proceed to Sandhurst and see Crum before engaging himbut on the plea of sore eyes, Mr Tyson auddonly changed his mind, and it was finally agreed that the meeting should take place at aii? C yesterda'. morning, in front of the Albion Hotel, Bourke sire-1. As Crum had B ° el }PP ro employer, he was told to hold the last letter received by him ib his hand, while the person who should be seen standing with goggles on his eyes, and a hrown veil over his face, would be known as ins hitherto invisible correspondent. Mr v-rum s suspicion as to the bona fides of the
mysterious Mr 'lyson had beea aroused from the hrsfc, and he immediately placed himself m communication with the police at c-andhurat. The Melbourne uetectavea were placed on the qui vive, and Crum when proceeding to the trying place at (he Albion Hotel was followed at some distance by Detectives Lomax and Nixon. He then recognised Mr Tyson by the directions given, and was himself recognised in turn. After he hrst greeting, Mr Tyson said, “We had oetter jump into a cab and see about the oassages-but the first thing necessary is money. He called a cab off the rank in «.-urke street and told the driver to take them to the Bank of Victoria. They both proceeded thither, followed in another cab bv the detectives When the bank was reached lyson said, ‘‘Will you be so good as .go inside and get this cheque cashed. I hlifve two others, but only want this one cashed oV kauded Crum a cheque on the Bank of V ictoria for LIOO, signed by James lyson, and the latter went into the bank to got it cashed By this time the detectives had alighted from their cab unobserved and while Nixon remained on watch outside Lomax followed Crum into the bank to watch the denouement from within. Crum had handed the cheque to the ledger-keeper .when Lomax appeared, and requested that the signature shonl i be examined, as it was feared that it was a forgery. The ledgerkeeper asked them to wait, and in a tew minutes he returned, and stated that the signature, although somewhat like the original appeared to be a forgery, and the money could not be paid. • Lomax went out to Tyson who was still waiting in the cab, and said! ‘Are you Mr Tyson ?” the answer received being, “lam.” Lomax said, “Will you bs so good as te step into the bank for a moment, there’s some difficulty about your cheque.” Tyson at first made as if to comply with the request, but he appeared to
cnange his mind, and refused to leave the cab. Both of the detectives then closed upon him, and he was dragged from the cab, and forced into a small room in the bank off the passage. Hgre the prisoner became very violent, and the detectives, thinking that they had an ordinary criminal to deal with handcuffed him after a hard tussle. They stripped off him the veil, the goggles, a wig and a pair of false whiskers, and the mysterious one stood immediately revealed to one of the bank officials who was present as Mr George Butchart, the well-known stockbroker, and brother of the late Mr Butchart, of the once well-known stock and station agency firm of Kaye and Butchart. He was arrested by Lomax on a eharge of forgery, and cautioned in the usual manner but he behaved himself with great coolness! and from that moment till he was lodged in fSwanston street lock-up he remained doggedly silent. He was taken in the first instance to the detective office, where he was searched, and a number of letters, memorauda, and other documents found upon him Amongst the papers was an unsigned agreement between “W. B. Crum, on the one part, and John Tyson, of Currajong Creek station, on the other- part,” binding the former to gp home to Scotland and manage the affairs of the latter* in consideration of receiving a salary of Ll3O per annum. A slip of paper was also found which showed that the whole day’s proceedings had been carefully planned, and the modus operandi elaborately mapped out. It was covered with the following scrawl Passage, hat, veil, throat-wrapper. Cheque marked at 10 a.m. Meet at 11, cheque cashed. Change notes • start for Williamstown at 12 ; eye-glass.” ’ A cheque for LIOQ IQg 00 the National Bank, purporting to be signed by Mr Goodall, wine merchant, Collins street, was picked up below the cab, where it had evidently been thrown by Butchart when he was arrested ; and from the evidence of his papers it is considered that he had on his person another for LIOO on the Bank of New fiouch _Wal, s, signed by another person, which is still missing. From the above evideuce it would appear as if Butchart had intended to use Crum merely as a tool—that *°S?S trid of k is disguise, and make on with the spoils as opportunity offered. kVi.- m k aD j of fQrtber disguise, Butchart had his hand prominently marked with seven stars, apparently tattooed with blue ink. Lhe marks were merely surface ones, however, and could be removed at pleasure, and d Cr « m given them as part of his description of the imagiaary Mr Tyson, they would have served to render still more glaring the difference between him and Georce Butchart. 6
Mr Butchart’s friends subsequently obtained a medical certificate, signed by Mr W. Thomson and Dr Patrick Mnith, to the effect that the defendant is laboring under decided mental aberration, resulting from erysipelas, from which he suffered some months ago. There are, the doctors state, decided symptoms of thickening of the mem*
branes of the brain. The absence of motive ie shown by the fact that Mr Butchart had close upon L4OO cash credit at one of the banks, and holds property valued at over L 6,000, which he could realise at any. moment.
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Evening Star, Issue 3477, 15 April 1874, Page 3
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1,198EXTRAORDINARY ATTEMPT AT IMPOSTURE. Evening Star, Issue 3477, 15 April 1874, Page 3
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