THE SUNDAY OREGOXIAN, PORTLAND, MARCII 27, 1021
253 CTl f?
W SJ M A
M BM MH . M M MM M Bar MS H MM .
I a
h ' JUT M
a ne m aw r MvrM
UVH
I
)
And the Tragic Climax to the Frenzied Career of Aimed a
- Everts, Whose Easy-Money Victims Include Bankers, the
v Clergy
J
7
and Even
Some Very
Shrewd
Business
Men.
16.
bt Hubert e. vale.
A "WOMAN'S form poised for a
flash on the edge of a ferry
boat, and almost without a
sound the waves closed over one who
had gone to eternity.
A trail of high finance ewings
through many states and totals more
than $300,000. '
Scores of men and women bled of
thheir pavings and only an echoing
laugh to answer their tears or their
curses.
Other men who trusted and who
Icved awake to find they are dupes.
And. In Moyamensing prison there
sits Almeda Everts the woman. And
there she will sit, her business men
clergymen -doctor-victims assert, for
many long days to come. If they
have their way. For, even though
many of them refuse to prosecute,
to face tho derision that follows the
admission by a man that a woman
duped him, they want the satisfac
tion for the amounts ranging from
$8000 to $15,000 each from wnich
they were separated of knowing
that she Is in durance vile. So, mys
teriously, petty little things are
charged against her from unsus
pected sources so that, as fast as
clever lawyers dispose of one allega
tion, another arises to keep fast
locked the bars of her prison.
Her Inspiration was Cassie Chad
wick; the methods of that high
priestess of visionary wealth were
followed by Almeda Everts. Side by
fide, In a strange parallel, their lives
are linked 16 years apart
Almeda Everts was not yet 20 years
old, :the wife of a mechanic, when
she was stirred by the witchery of
wealth shown by Cassie Chadwick.
How, on the strength of a mythical
fortune, Mrs. Chadwick had per
suaded hankers to give her millions;
how she rode In gay carriages; how
she dashed here and there in the
automobiles of those days; how
jewels and luxuries were hers,
aroused the strange spirit of Almeda
Everts.
. And how this girl built her own
fantastic 6tory of rich estates and
how she lured and betrayed men
ct wealth and how, like Cassie Chad
wick, she finally came to a prison
cell, Is as exciting as the life story
cf Almeda's predecessor with the
added tragedy of the suicide of the
wife of Robert Mountford, one of
Everts' victims.
Her Husband's Tribute.
"A remarkable woman, an aston
ishing woman," reflected William V.
Chambers, her first husband, as he
smoked his pipe in the parlor of his
borne up in Frankford. In the same
neighborhood that Almeda spent her
childhood days. "I can understand
the feelings of that New Jersey man
who, after identifying her in prison,
said: 'Now let me go away. . If she
speaks to me I cannot help myself;
I will have to go her bail." If ever
there was a woman with hypnotic
power it is Almeda Everts. In her
presence you are helpless man or
woman. She is not handsome, she
never was. . As a girl she was pass
ably good-looking. But. my friend,
he has i- personality such as I have
never seen In any other woman. Let
her talk and you believe everything
she says. Out of her influence you
wonder what swayed you to make a
fool of yourself.
"I know when it started. It was
about the time of the Cassie Chad
wick exposure. She talked about
the woman; perhaps she studied
every action of that noted swindler.
At any rate her whole nature seemed
to change in a flash. She began
to hire expensive rigs and drive up
and down the streets. She bought
expensive things. In one day she
spent more money than I could earn
tax week, I begged her to. end tat
1
f.
r
A
1
y
Vary
i
V
is?
jxc
V
2
4J .
i
to
Cassie Chadwick collected a cool million from other
wise astute business men.
Almeda Everts, the petticoated Ponxl, gathered
CSOO.OOO before her arrest.
. .
Charles PonzJ fleeced credulous Investors out of millions within 12 months.
She laughed and re
extravagance,
plied:
" "Money is the easiest thing to get
in the world.'
"Then we broke. I went my way
She went' hers. More than 15 years
have gone since then and I can speak
dispassionately, but she was a re
markable woman and worthy of bet
ter than a prison. Somehow I do not
blame her, not a bit. And still I
know that she is accused of swindling
scores."
Those who have known and talked
with Almeda, now 38 years old, will
tell you the same thing. Even her
victims praise her ability, her kindli
ness, her sympathy, her mentality.
Vet she was reared among scenes ol
drunkenness and did not go to school
five years in all her life. As a child
shes was beaten, and, frail and
anemic was "bound out" and sen!
to the country.
Todty she talks learnedly on
many subjects. Her English is fault
less, her voice musical and well mod
ulated. Her eyes are frank, happy,
trustful. No society woman dresses
in better taste. No political leader
!n more convincing. No clergyman
more earnest. But
When Everett Marshall and his
wife of Newfield faced the woman in
prison and pointed her out as having
taken $2300 of their savings, she
surveyed them through a gold mon
ocle as if entertained; then with a
merry laugh, she turned to the cap
tain of detectives and confessed
sweetly:
"Certainly I took their money,
blew it away like bubbles. They be
lieved wjiat I eald."
Robert Mountford, of Haddon
Heights, N. J., was helpless before
this .weird woman, Ee gave her $(000.
He Induced his mother to give her
$15,000. Although he was married
he became separated from bis wife
and, according to the court records,
committed bigamy by marrying the
Everts woman. A few weeks later
a disheartened woman leaped from a
ferryboat in the Delaware river. The
police say she was Mrs. Mountford.
When Almeda was arrested in her
luxurious apartments on North
Broad street, Philadelphia, she
laughed and asked the police to
notify "Bob" Mountford. They ex
plained to him the long string of
charges against Her. He was amazed.
"Why, she swindled me and my
mother!" he cried. Then he pre
ferred additional charges against
her. This warrant was served on
Almeda. She smiled ever so sweetly.
"Bob will help me out," she reiter
ated. Away from her voice, away
from her eyes, away from her charm
Mountford was like Iron. But he
went to the prison. He talked with
her. Then he came out, withdrew
his charge and setxout to aid the
woman he knew had duped him. Now
Mountford has disappeared. He is
dominated by Almeda.
So are other victims, or at least
they refuse to prosecute. Some, how
ever, are determined to keep the re
markable woman in jail for a long
time. Five Kensington mill owners
have told the detectives that they
have been fleeced. The amounts
range from $8000 to $15,000 each.
Clergymen, doctors, business men,
rich women who sought social fame,
and even taxicab companies are
listed as victims. How did she do
it?
Just as Cassie Chadwick did it she
did it. There was one difference. This
woman h'gh financier of later days
operated in different cities, Mrs.
Chadwick In one. Her stock in trade
was a mythical Harjes estate. She
was "one of the heirs." Her share
amounted to "hundreds of thousands
of dollars." Yes, it was the Morgan
Harjes financial house of Paris that
held her money. Meanwhile she was
receiving wonderful tips from the
Morgan bank in New York and her
winnings on the stock market ran
into vast sums. Of course, she would
let her friends in on the 'deals and
they would soon be wealthy. But
she 'needed a few thousands for
pressing r.e.eds. Could they accom
modate her? So the stream of gold
came : oiling to the woman who but a
few years ago was a house servant,
half-starved..
Victims who came to her handsome
bungalow In New Jersey one day saw
a check on the Irving Bank of New
York for $100,000. It was signed "J.
P. Morgan." Almeda tossed it into a
corner of the desk. "The local bank
does not have funds to cash it; I will
have to wait a few days to get the
money."
She was visiting at the home of one
who had too much faith In her. She
begged permission to use the tele-
THE PARALLEL
ALMEDA EVERTS
Uneducated. Former house servant. Said to
have taken $300,000 from her: victims.
Posed as heiress to vast fortune.
Called a hypnotist.
Unusual talker. ' . .
Fond of carriages - and automobiles.
Not handsome. Good dresser.
Owned fine bungalow and kept city apartment.
Sought business men as victims.
Daring and cool,
Arrested; In prison,
Got more than
CASSIE CHADWICK.
Uneducated. Once a servant.
$1,000,000 from her dupes.
Posed as heiress to vast fortune.
Admitted she' studied hypnotism.
Convincing talker.
Used carriages and automobiles.
Not handsome. Good dresser.
Lived in magnificent home. Had country place.
Bankers and business men her victims.
Daring and cool.
Died in prison.
phone. They heard her talk with her
broker.
"So that stock deal only netted me
$35,000?" they heard her cry, petu
lantly. "I was sure it would reach
$50,000. Oh, well, just credit it to my
account."
Later they agreed that Almeda had
her finger holding down the receiver.
But at the time it was impressive.
SoOuO Year ou Taxis!
It is the gospel truth that she spent
$5000 a year on taxicabs. It was one
of her frenzied hobbies. At Atlantic
City she had a high salaried chauffeur
to run her cars. Like Cassie Chad
wick, she found automobiles impres
sive. Equally convincing was her
tale that she was a niece of the late
John G. Johnson, a millionaire Phil
adelphio lawyer.
Now and then she would exhibit a
letter from a firm of Washington
lawyers telling how swiftly the Har
jes estate was being closed up. That
helped a whole lot. But the lure of
the tips on the stock market was the
strongest. There is a story that six
teen busii ess men and rich farmers in
southern New Jersey formed a pool
and placed sums ranging from $1000
to $5000in her hands hoping to profit
They never heard from the pool.
Almeda Everts was one of the few
persons successful in "skinning" At
lantic City folk. She paraded her es
tate and her stock tips before the
eyes of well-to-do men and women.
Some ray she got more than $10,000
in a very short season. She fled
when warrants were issued.
She went to the Maine summer re
sorts. Just about the time she was
getting her sta set she was ar
rested in Portland on a charge made
by a victim from Pittsburg; Pa. Shs
was sent to prison or nearly a year
and a half. It Is said that almost
very hour of her time in prison was
spent In reading, studying and plan
ning. And when she came out she
began to organize finance and faith
on a large scale.
Almeda is confident that she will
escape sentence in the present prose
cution. Cnly the other day she sent
out this warning:
"Some persons will get me out of
this; they've got to.
Which may mean a great deal for
she is a remarkable woman.
Dueling in Heidelberg Still
Popular.
German Students Continue Old
Custom of Getting; Scarred Faces.
HEIDELBERG. Germany, March 26.
Sword duelling in the Uni
versity of Heidelberg is as popular
and as common today as it was more
than 500 years ago, when this oldest
of German schools was founded. Vir
tually every student who has passed
the first year wears a sword scar on
the left side of his chin or the left
cheek, or a bandaged head, which ad
vertises that the scar is in the mak
ing. Duels do not always arise from
anger or quarrels, but out of the
necessity of providing the student
with a diploma of sword prowess, or
to give him sword practice, which
affords the students great delight.
They are sometimes arranged, like a
boxing bout, by fraternities which
have developed certain differences of
opinion. Five-round duels are popu
lar. "Surgeons stand by to sew up the
wounds after each round, which
usually last a minute," said a Heidel
berg man, who wore a deep scar on
his chin. "If neither student is bad
ly damaged, the fight will go the full
number of rounds decided upon, after
which the stitches the surgeons have
taken will be counted and the man
with the fewest stitches will be de
clared the winner.
"Should, at any time during the en
counter, a combatant dodge a sword
stroke his opponent Is immediately
declared winner. That is the un
forgivable thing in the students'
dueling code to dodge a stroke."
Except Infrequent combats between
older students, when heavy swords
are used, dueling in Heidelberg is not
dangerous. The heads and necks of
the fighters, and the abdomen, are
protected by leather guards.
Some of the favoring duelling places
are ancient cafes and beer rooms, the
floors of which are always covered
with sand, the walls lined with huge
mugs and hung with engravings, old
pictures and trophies of the fight.
These places are sacred to students
and it would be a serious offense
against custom of half a thousand
years for a stranger to wander inand
sit down in some storied chair.
The university is still a law unto It
self, and the civil authorities of the
town of Heidelberg never, under any
pretext, interfere in student affairs.
Punishment is administered to re
fractory students by university au
thorities. The university "Jail" is now
in the top story of the building. It
is a custom for the student confined
in one of these cells to leave his
name and the date of his imprison
ment written on the walls.
C. S. Landseekers to Visit Canada
WINNIPEG. Manitoba. Estimates
that 25,000 United States land seek
ers will visit Western Canada dur
ing 1921 have been made by Wa'ter
Johnson, Winnipeg, secretary of the
Farm Lands Settlement association
of Manitoba. A very large number
of Inquiries about lands have been re
ceived from the states.