A BATTLE OF WITS

Hokitika Guardian, 14 March 1927, Page 4

A BATTLE OF WITS

BLUFFING THE BLUFFERS. LONDON, January 19. Members of a gang of Continental crooks, who tried to play a confidence trick on Lord Birkenhead while he was on holiday at Funchal, Maddira, met with one of the most crushing defeats they will ever encounter. The two men apparently thought that Funchal would afford a happy hunting ground for their schemes and they stayed at the hotel where Lord Birkenhead and his family were spending their holiday. Meeting the Secretary for India in the hotel one of them remarked that lie knew Lord Birkenhead was a great student of the English language and suggested a game known as “ spelling bee.” The other man joined in and urged that the British statesman test his skill. In an instant Lord Birkenhead suspected a plot. A CHALLENGE. Turning scornfully on the men he remarked to his challenger: “ Sir, I do not know you and I never want to meet you again. You have forced your attention upon me. a procedure 1 never allow, nor will I allow you to press upon me any competition by which you think you may overcome a stranger.” Tlie man was nonplussed, and was turning away when he was greeted with the remark; I

“.If you wish to lose 1' 100 1 will iTive you from the top spring hoard of the .swimming-pool to-morrow at 11 o’clock.”

The trickster, surprised by the swiftness of Lord Birkenhead's grasp of the situation, lamely accepted the challenge. All the guests at the hotel be* canto aware of the event, and at the appointed time gathered to see the contest .Lord Birkenhead, who is 51, is u'ii expert diver, having won many prizes for his skill in the north of England. Although Lord Birkenhead waited for his opponent, the man did not appear. so later in the evening, in the presence of many guests, the Secretary for India decided to play the tricksters at their own game of bluff. Asked to pay bis forfeit of £IOO for not testing his skill at diving, the mail was evasive and pretended that Lord Birkenhead had not accepted his challenge. AN LTLTJMATU.tr. The other man became insolent, and accused Lord Birkenhead of being afraid to play a simple word-making game. He apparently did not know his would-be /victim, and ho was startled when Lord Birkenhead boldly declared that the men were international crooks, whose records were known to the police of several countries.

Assuming his most dramatic manner Lord Birkenhead delivered an ultimatum. He told I lie men that if they did not nay their hill and leave within half an hour he would expose them and have them driven from the island. At that Lime Lord Birkenhead knew nothing of the men’s history, but his bluff had succeeded. The crooks admitted that the object of their visit was to lleece visitors and that they had been associated with a Continental

• We will leave at once, l>ut ilo not give us into custody,” they pleaded meekly. Lord Birkenhead smiled and confessed in his friend that the bluffers had been beaten at their own game. Those who saw the incident declare that it was probably the greatest triumph of personality in the whole of his brilliant career.

APPEAL TO AN M.P. Commander 0. Locker-Lampson was at Funchal, and u was to him that the crooks appealed for assistance to get to England, lie was surprised to find that one of them had served gallantly with him in Russia, and was a friend of another crook who saved the commander’s life during the war. Commander Locker-Lampson advanced the money for the fare and travelled with them in the same boat from the island. 'i 'hey admitted to him that they had never been so cleverly outwitted, and on leaving the boat wrote promising to pay back the money. This letter was signed “Your devoted adherents.” “ One of the men served very gallantly in the war, and i. could never forget the heroism lie showed then,” ■said Commander Locker-Lampson yesterday. LONDON, January 17. Gliding smoothly up the escalator at Oxford-circus underground station on Wednesday afternoon, an elderly man of independent means was rudely hustled by a middle-aged man with a mean independencee. “ Slop shoving; let me out of this,” demanded the man of means. The escalator continued to escalate, and just as the passengers were nearing the level of the hooking hall the man who had been pushed discovered that a wallet, containing £25, which he carried in an inside breast pocket covered by an overcoat was missing. (.hliekly lie seised his rude neighbour who, dropping the wallet, discovered he had an urgent appointment, and dashed for a tfain on the Bakerloo Tube.

The senior hooking clerk, a tall, powerful man. hearing the cry of

“Slop thief! ” darted out of his ticket library, sprinted down the Bakerloo escalator, and on the bottom steps entwined" his lingers in the collar of Frederick Bounsall, a neatly-dressed middle-aged man who wore a worried look and an abbreviated moustache.

The sequel was hear at 3hirlboroughstreet Police Court yesterday, when Mr Mead, the magistrate, at the earnest request of the police, committed Frederick for trial.