SIX LAWYERS ROBBED.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 95, 18 May 1909, Page 4

SIX LAWYERS ROBBED.

A STORY OF AMUSIXO RASCALITY. The Transvaal Weekly publishes the following account of how a confidence mail succeeded in robbing sonie of the legal brigade of Johannesburg in a manner, to say the least of it, original:— SCENE I.—A LAWYER'S OFFICE. He told a tearful talc. It was a true tale of woe. There were tears in his voice when he told it, as well as tears in his eyes. It was a sympathetic solicitor who listened, 'and a man in evident distress ■who 'besought liis assistance. His tale was something as follows: — Urgent need existed for an immediate journey .to German West Africa. He was a wealthy man, but it was necessary to place all his affairs in the hands of a thoroughly trustworthy and sympathetic solicitor. That, h'e explained, was the object of his visit. He knew that Mr.

could be well trusted in this confidential matter. (Mr. bowed his delighted thanks.)? The first thing that was necessary was to draw up a power of attorney in .favor of Mr. , giving him authority to sell all the forage-on the farm, which was situated near Elsburg. The power of attorney was duly drawn up, and full instructions given with regard to the disposal of the wife's clothing and jewellery (the lady being recently dead). The visitor had, he said, a minor child, whose interests he desired to safeguard; and it was easy to gather from the sob in his throat that the minor child was very close to his heart-

strings. His farm, he continued, was a very big property, and the instructions relating to numberless items occupied a considerable ,time both in the giving and in the putting into legal phraseology. One item alone related to 9000 cattle', and there was a great deal of other stock; so that, as he explained, the agency was one of flrat-ratc importance. But, above all, the interests of the dear child, who was still' a minor, must be carefully safeguarded during his most unfortunate absence.

In the suspicious' way which is peculiar to farmers, he had found it desirable to hide all his wife's jewellery and his money—to bury it in the groirad on the farm, in fact The precise spot where these could be found was disclosed .to the lawyer in secrecy. That gentleman was authorise;! to recover the jewellery and convert it into cash, and instructed that that and the ready money were to be handed over to, or be properly secured for, his dear child, who was still a minor. SCENIC 11.-TIIE SAME. Then the man goes away, but returns almost immediately afterwards, la addition to his distress at having to leave his home and his child—who was still a minor—and to leave at such an inopportune moment, there is evidently something else on his mind. He weeps, and the solicitor's' tender heart is melted at tlie sight. Then it comes out that the nature of .the client's business compels hiiu to 'leave by that evening's Cape mail, and, owing to his worry and the hurry of leaving his farm, he dias come away without any money. Will his lawyer advance him £lO on the security of the farm and the 9000 cattle'; Of course lie will. Have m'e not said that the solicitor had a tender heart? He lends the money, and the distressed father of a loving child—who is' a minor —departs from the office, distressed no longer, and hastens away to begin his unwc.come journey, since, of course, the sooner it is begun tlie sooner will it and his troubles he over. That is the.tearful tale that was told to one of our well-known solicitors a few nays ago. Amid so much that is painful, it is' pleusant to remember that at least one of our lawyers—one memoer' of the much-maligned class—has shown himself to be susceptible to sorrows, and has opened his heart and his purse like the good Samaritan he undoubtedly is. Now, a really astonishing thing happened in connection with this incident, which was only discovered afterwards'. It turned out that tnere mere six separate farmers who were leaving for (jerman West Africa on the same day, and each of them had 9000 cattle on his farm, while the farms were all near Elsburg.' Moreover, More were six sympathetic lawyers who listened to these-six tearful tales of woe, and they drew up six separate powers of attorney and six wills'.

If it is gratifying to know that we nave one laivycr in Johannesburg with a kind heant, how much imoro pleasing is it to learn that there are no fewer than | half-a-dozen of them? It is clear that we must revise our opinion of the chin-actci-s of these gentlemen. These six lawyers, then, were much elated with ■the business that they had put through. Times are hard (as we all know) ami in the careful management « a big estate there are opportunities (as all lawyers know) of obtaining some very tat pickings. By an odd coincidence, our six lawyers had olliccs all in one .building, <,r at least very close to each other. They dropped mysterious hints to one another of hav '"g got hold of "a good thing,-' but, like six" legal oysters, closed up very suildc-i----ly when curipsity as to details was displayed. SCENE 111.-ON THE FARM. The next event in .this true story of six farms, six minor daughters, and six lawyers, was a secret visit of inspection by six legal gentlemen to Elsbnr<* On the morning following .the interview, the six solicitors travelled to the farm, and there the denouement occurred. Just fancy half-a-dozen grave students of the law arriving from different directions on an inoffensive Boer's farm, and then each angrily shouting and waving his power of attorney in the face of the other. Oh, it was too bud! Where were the 0000 cattle and the other stock? Where was the pet daughter who was still a minor? Where was the man who had borrowed money from them? Alas, and alas! No answer could be found, and they were only six sad and sorrowful solicitors; for, oh, they had been horribly spoofed. They had been sold deceived, taken in, rooked—Kocpenickc<>. Deceit is always' bad in itself, but to deceive six trusting, sympathetic ! And so they commenced their weary journey home again. And on the way they compared notes, and slowly, hesitatingly, reluotantiy—for, as we have seen, they /were all tender-hearted and trusting men—they began to sec that there had not been six farmers' telling six tearful tiles, but only one farmer" who was a very model of slim rascality.' He had actually befooled six separate and distinct living embodiments of legal astuteness!

"Well, at any rate," said one 'o the other, "I am not so gullible as you were. He did not got any moiiev out of me! He only got a mackintosh." All Honor to the man whose soft heart only cost him a mackintosh.

A touch of real melancholy is' added to a, sufficiently' sorrowful tale bv the fact that at least one of the lawvers borrowed money from another in order to oblige the distressed client and help him on his way. la it not a fearful tale?