The Man Who Stole Portugal

328 Pages·1966·9.693 MB·English

by  Murray Teigh Bloom

The Man Who Stole
PORTUGAL
Murray Teigh Bloom
CHARLES SCRIBNER’S SONS
New York
COPYRIGHT © 1966 MURRAY T. BLOOM
Copyright 1953 Murray T. Bloom
This book published simultaneously in the
United States of America and in Canada—
Copyright under the Berne Convention
All rights reserved. No part of this book
may be reproduced in any form without the
permission of Charles Scribner’s Sons.
A-8.66[V]
Printed in the United States of America
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 66-22823
THE MAN WHO STOLE PORTUGAL

Books by Murray Teigh Bloom
THE MAN WHO STOLE PORTUGAL
MONEY OF THEIR OWN

This book is for Amy and Ellen.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Most oF the research and interviews for this book were conducted
during three trips to England and Europe between 1963 and 1965.
My London researches were aided immeasurably by Heather
Chapman and those in Paris by Francis Schell. From Stuttgart, Arno
Alexy very ably conducted several difficult searches and interviews in
various parts of Germany. During my long stay in Portugal extensive
sight translations of the lengthy trial records and contemporary news-
papers were done for me fluently and efficiently by Peter B. Miranda.
In Amsterdam, Aad van Leeuwen was helpful in opening certain
sources.
For a full set of the transcripts of the three London trials, plus
other important documents, I am deeply grateful to Sir James Water-
low, Bart.* Other useful assistance was provided by Helen Romer of
Seaford, Sussex; Lynn Grossberg of Caracas, Venezuela, and Tomé
Vieria of Lisbon.
Background information on the banknote business was provided
by the late William F. Hunt, Chairman of the United States Bank
Note Company and Frederic Colclough, Chairman of the Ameri-
can Bank Note Company, both of New York. In London several
officials of Thomas De La Rue & Company Ltd. were equally helpful.
W. van Andringa de Kempenaer, managing director of Johan En-
schedé en Zonen of Haarlem, a gracious host, also provided partic-
ularly useful data.
Some sources in Lisbon and London have asked me not to men-
tion their names so that I can only offer them a vague salute and my
repeated thanks.
I am indebted to my old friend, Dr. Alfonso Quiroz Cuaron, Di-
rector of the Division of Special Investigations of the Bank of Mexico,
who first interested me in the Portuguese banknote case several years
ago.
Gratitude, too, to my tireless typist, Sherley A. Raices for decod-
ing my manuscript against a deadline.
Finally, there is a continuing debt to the MacDowell Colony of
Peterborough, New Hampshire—one of our great social inventions—
for granting me the boon of a stay long enough to finish this book.
* The London trials required some 2100 pages of legal-size transcripts.
The Portuguese trials covered 75 volumes, 32 annexes, for a total of 22,000
pages.
CONTENTS
PROLOGUE:
House of Lords, April 28, 1932
1924 1925 (cont'd)
Lisbon. November 24 3 Lisbon. May 28 116
Paris. November 28 22 The Hague. July 26
123
Lisbon. November 30 28 London. July. 29 128
Berlin. December 1 Lisbon. August 1
129
The Hague. December 2 London. August 6
131
Haarlem. December 2 The Hague. August 8
132
London. December 4 Carlsbad. August 12
134
Lisbon. December 5 Paris. August 27
137
The Hague. December 5 London. August 29 140
Lisbon. December 7 Lisbon. September 14
143
The Hague. December 13 Angola. October 8 150
London. December 17 London. October 9
153
The Hague. December 18 The Hague. October 10
155
Lisbon. December 22 Lisbon. November 12 158
Angola. November 14
1925 160
Lisbon. November 23 162
London. January 6 Oporto. December 4 168
Lisbon. January 13 The Hague. December 5 175
London. February 10
S.S. Woerman. December 6 175
The Hague. February 11
Lisbon. December 6 178
Lisbon. February 16 London. December 9 181
Lisbon. March 1 Lisbon. December 12 184
Lisbon. April 15
London. December 12 188
Paris. April 29 101 Lisbon. December 14
190
London. May 9 110 Lisbon. December 24
194
The Hague. May 21 114 London. December 28
197
ix
Contents
1926-1932 (contd)
1926-1932
The Hague. January 11 201 London. July 6 264
Lisbon. January 13 203 London. April 28, 1932 266
The Hague. March 206
Lisbon. May 28 211
The Hague. November 26 215 EPILOGUE: 1932-1964
Helsa. May, 1927 217
London. July 222 Berlin. September 20 273
Lisbon. April 27, 1928 223 Seaford. December 22, 1933 275
Lisbon. May 31 225 Lisbon. 1935 277
London. November 29 226 Berlin. August 29, 1936 280
Paris. January, 1929 227 Lisbon. May 7, 1945 283
Cannes. February 13, 1960 288
Nice. April 229
London. November 9 232 London. March 17 290
Lisbon. December 234 Lisbon. March 30 292
Lisbon. May 6, 1930 236 Caracas. May, 1964 294
Lisbon. May 11 238 London. July 30 296
London. November 24 242 Lisbon. August 298
Lisbon. January, 1931 260 Haarlem. August 24 302
London. March 26 262 The Hague. August 25 304