In 1891, Conan Doyle decided to "kill" Sherlock Holmes. Of course, the famous detective could not die at the hands of an ordinary criminal; a great criminal, a villain, whose personality was not inferior to Holmes, was required.
And Moriarty appeared - an ominous professor of mathematics, the master of the underworld, an invisible spider, sitting in the center of a huge web he created, according to the plans and will of which more than half of the crimes in England are committed.
The readers were amazed at the writer's imagination. However, Conan Doyle did not invent anything, Professor Moriarty had a real prototype, whose name was Adam Worth.
The son of a Jewish tailor
Worth was born in Prussia in 1844 to a poor tailor's family. When the boy was 5 years old, the family moved to the United States, so America raised the future "Napoleon of the underworld" (as one of Scotland Yard's detectives later called him). Adam had an older brother and a younger sister, there was always not enough money in the family, the family was frankly in poverty.
Adam was not going to follow in his father's footsteps and, believing in the great American dream, at the age of 14 he left home to "make his million." In three years of wandering, illusions have dissipated. In 1861, he reached New York, where he got a job as a shop assistant. Less than a few months later, the shopkeeper began to suspect that Worth's seller was honest.
Adam did not wait for suspicions to grow into confidence, and volunteered for the army. The owner turned to the police, but they just threw up their hands: the war between the North and the South had just begun in the United States, both sides needed soldiers, and the regimental commanders did not give out their volunteers to the police, no matter what sins they were.
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Worth proved to be a good soldier, and in a few months earned the corporal's and then the sergeant's stripes. But war is war. On 28 August 182, Worth's regiment took part in the Battle of Bull Run. Most of Worth's comrades died, and he himself was badly wounded. In the infirmary, the doctor examined the wounded and delivered his verdict: "Will die." But Worth didn't die. Having scrambled out of the clutches of death, he learned that the regiment had already received a message that "Sergeant Adam Worth had died of his wounds."
Oops! Worth thought. Now he could not return to the regiment, without fear of being included in the list of deserters. Adam got the opportunity to start life from scratch, which he did. However, the new life did not become the life of the righteous.
Very soon, both northerners and southerners realized that it was impossible to create armies on the basis of volunteerism and resorted to mobilization. Both in the North and in the South, a practice arose when a person who received a summons could send a “deputy” to the army instead of himself, if there was one. And, of course, there was one for a certain amount. Such a "understudy" could receive up to $ 1,000 in reward.
A new type of fishing appeared, when the “deputy” who had received the agreed amount upon arrival in the regiment disappeared at the first opportunity, in order to appear in the new state some time later in order to “put himself up for sale” again. The occupation was dangerous. These "jumpers" were caught, and when they were caught, a military tribunal awaited them, which handed out sentences to "hang" like gingerbread. For three years Worth was engaged in this risky business, never got caught, and when the war ended, he returned to New York.
New York thug
New York in the mid-19th century was America's crime capital. Of the 800 thousand population, 30 thousand were outright bandits. The city was ruled by Eddie Plague, Gip Blood, Jack Eat-them-all, Pig Donovan and other similar figures, and dozens of gangs with the sonorous names of "Slaughterers", "Forty Thieves", "Cockroach Guard", etc. were operating.
Returning to the city, Adam Worth by this time learned to lie, steal, escape from the pursuit, learned not to be afraid of dangers, to take risks and put his life on the line. The army gave him command skills. And there was one more gang in New York. Starting with petty thefts, Worth soon turned to serious business, moving on to looting and breaking safes. Worth's gang have made a name for themselves in the New York underworld.
During another raid on the Adam Express mail car, carrying money, the gang was ambushed, Worth was captured. He was sentenced to three years and sent to the famous Sing Sing Correctional Prison, famous for its brutal internal regulations. Adam did not like the prison, and a few weeks after arriving in it, he fled.
Worth didn't like prison
Under the wing of Mama Mandelbaum
Mama Frederica Mandelbaum, 48, was one of the largest buyers of stolen goods in New York. However, Mamasha was much higher than other "hucksters" and "hoarders". She herself handed out "orders" to thieves, participated in the development of crimes. Her luxurious mansion was a secular salon for criminals.
It was visited by the thief of diamonds Black Lena Kleinschmidt, the bugbear Baron Max Schinbrun, the safe cracker Charles Bullard (Charlie the Piano) - during lavish receptions he played Chopin etudes on the piano. Mamasha Mandelbaum did not open the doors of her house to every criminal, keeping the brand of her salon and not letting him slide down to the level of thieves' raspberries.
Secular evenings were attended by corrupt police officers, judges and lawyers, whose services Mamasha used to pull out her wards, who fell into the clutches of the law.
For his exceptional merits, Worth was accepted into this narrow circle of the elite, became his own in it. Under the tutelage of Mamasha Mandelbaum, he turned out several cases, the most high-profile of which was the theft from the office of an insurance company $ 20 thousand dollars.
Bullard and Worth crime duo
In 1869, Charlie Pianino and his comrades took $ 100,000 in the robbery of the Hudson River Company train. The company's management turned not to the police, but to the Pinkerton private detective agency. The Pinkies did not fail, and Charles Bullard ended up in White Plains Prison. Mamasha's secular salon lost a musician.
Salon Mammy Mandelbaum
Mom arranged for Charlie to escape. Adam Worth and Max Schinbrunn dug a tunnel through which Bullard left the prison. After a successful escape, Worth and Bullard became friends and companions. Worth's ingenuity combined with Bullard's art yielded a startling result. In the fall of 1869, they robbed the Boylston Bank, pulling out $ 1 million in cash and securities.
The management of the robbed bank turned to Pinkerton's agency. There was a separate clause in the agreement, providing, on the condition of returning the stolen money, a considerable bonus to the agency if Bullard and Worth were found and killed. Precisely killed, the bank will not give a cent for the living.
The companions, having learned about this, urgently left America. They believed in the ability of Pinkerton's agents to fulfill both # 1 and # 2, so they preferred to be separated from the kicks by the ocean.
Adam and Charlie were insanely rich, but they were not going to retire. They were young, in the prime of life (both were under 30) and were going to enjoy the joys of life for many years. However, they understood that money has a bad tendency to end. Therefore, Bullard & Worth continued its activities.
American Bar
In 1871, the friends moved to Paris, where they opened the luxurious American Bar restaurant. Visitors were pampered with gourmet meals and exotic American cocktails. Charlie played the piano, Adam met and entertained the guests.
Police raids on Worth were inconclusive.
The restaurant was visited by both high society representatives and "stars" of the underworld: Charles Becker (Scratch), who forged documents so that he himself could not distinguish them from the originals, bank robber Joseph Chapman, Joe Eliot, nicknamed Kid, etc. "American Bar "Became the Parisian copy of Mamasha Mandelbaum's New York salon.
However, the friends went further. On the second floor, they equipped an illegal gambling house with roulette and card tables, where they invited the most trusted and honored guests.
The Parisian police soon found out about the "peculiarities" of the two friends' bar and conducted a raid. Having broken down the doors, the Azhans ran up to the second floor … Important gentlemen were walking around the rather large room, with glasses of American whiskey in their hands, conducting talks on political topics and expressing their indignation at the insolent actions of the police. No roulette, no gambling tables. Two more raids were carried out with the same result.
American Bar was invulnerable to the police: friends did not stint and invested in the equipment of their establishment. While the policemen were breaking down the doors, Worth pulled the lever - and the roulette, card tables sank into hiding places under the floor, moved into the walls.
Pinkerton Agency vs. Bullard and Worth
In 1873, the Parisian police, desperate to deal with Worth, turned to American kicks. William Pinkerton, one of the sons of the founder of the famous agency, arrived in Paris. The detective arrived at the bar, the thief and the detective sat down at the table and began a leisurely conversation over a glass of whiskey.
Alan Pinkerton Worth's nemesis and friend
Pinkerton could not arrest Worth in France for robbing the Boulston Bank, but he could significantly spoil the criminal's blood. William showed Adam his case, which described the whole life of the criminal, starting with the first desertion, and warned that he could turn the case over to the French authorities - and let them do whatever they want with him.
Or it might not transfer if Worth and Bullard voluntarily close the American Bar and leave France for good. Worth and Bullard decided not to get involved with the "kicks" and liquidated their establishment, but finally stole a suitcase with stones for 30,000 francs from a diamond dealer who inadvertently looked into the restaurant.
Worth's crime empire
London resembled New York a little, although there were plenty of criminals. Worth, under the name of Henry Judson Raymond, bought a luxurious mansion (expensive furniture, a rich library, a tennis court, a bowling alley, a stable with ten horses) and set about building his criminal empire. Telegrams were sent to Paris inviting them to take part in Worth's ambitious new project. Scratch, Kid, Joseph Chapman and a few others accepted the offer and arrived in London. Worth's right hand was his old friend Charlie Piano.
Worth's mansion
Worth planned crimes, and his henchmen found perpetrators. Fake check production, forgery, fraud, robbery of banks and train ticket offices, the homes of wealthy townspeople and post offices - "We can do anything" could well be the slogan of the Worth Company. Over time, Worth began to provide services and work to order. Bribe a bank employee, make a master key, provide an experienced safe cracker, make fake documents - place an order and everything will be done in the best possible way!
In a decade and a half, Worth created a criminal empire, which was already cramped in England and Europe. Worth bought a steam yacht, on which his henchmen went on a pirate raid, robbing banks in the port cities of South America and the West Indies. In the capital of Jamaica, Kingston, they emptied several banks in a matter of hours, shaking out tens of thousands of dollars. The British gunboat set off in pursuit, but could not catch up with the fast yacht.
The only thing that Worth always avoided was "wet" affairs, insisting that his people go to business without weapons or use them only for intimidation. “Instead of shooting, exercise your brains!” - he constantly told his subordinates. It was not humanity that spoke in him: Worth understood that the killings would attract the attention of the police, make their efforts to solve crimes more persistent, and he wanted his organization to remain in the shadows. Yet the police learned of Worth's empire.
Scotland Yard Inspector John Shore
Unlike Moriarty, Worth did not shy away from rough work and sometimes liked to shake off the old. In 1876, a portrait of Lady Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire by Thomas Gainsborough, was auctioned in London. The canvas was bought by William Agnew, having paid for the painting a mind-boggling sum for those times - 10 thousand guineas!
Scotland Yard couldn't handle Worth
But Agnew did not see his purchase: on the night of May 27, Worth and his accomplices climbed into the gallery and stole a picture about which the whole of London was making noise. Investigating this high-profile crime, Scotland Yard inspector John Shore went to Worth and his organization.
Shore vowed to capture and put Worth in jail, but as Inspector Lestrade, Conan Doyle found himself constantly in the wrong. Shore didn't stand a chance, as two police detectives regularly knocked Worth on their boss, warning of all planned London police operations.
Once the entire bloom of the organization was caught in Turkey while trying to sell counterfeit securities. John Shore rushed to Turkey, rubbing his hands, intending to extradite the captured criminals to England. But Worth was faster. He was ahead of Shor by several days and ransomed his friends for huge money from the Ottoman justice. Scotland Yard was again mocked in London newspapers.
In the 1880s, Worth was quite happy: he was rich, married, had a son and a daughter, and hosted parties at his country estate. The police knew that the rich American Henry Raymond was a little bit different from who he claims to be, but they could not show him anything.
How does the "shake the old days" end
In 1890, old friend Charlie Pianino decided to start his own business and left for free bread. But Bullard the bugbear Worth did not know how to plan and organize crimes. In 1892, Charlie Pianino was captured in Belgium while trying to rob a bank. Worth dropped everything and went to Liege to get an old friend out, but upon arrival learned that Charlie Bullard had died in prison.
Stolen portrait of the Duchess of Devonshire
Worth decided, since he had arrived, to "warm up" by robbing the mail carriage carrying mail and money. It was at the level of "beginners": the carriage stopped at the bank and both (!) Accompanying employees retired to the office. Returning with mail bags full of money, they put them in an iron box, locked them and drove to the next bank.
Since none of their "personnel employees" were at hand, Worth decided to take local "specialists" as accomplices, whose task was only to stand on the watch and give a signal in case of danger. Alas, the local criminals turned out to be ordinary punks. As soon as they saw the policemen, they gave a snatch. When Worth, who was breaking the unattended mailbox, guessed to look around, the police were already two steps away.
The Belgian detectives were very surprised when they established the identity of the captured robber - they read English newspapers. A telegram was sent to London with a request to send materials on the detained Henry Judson Raymond. From Scotland Yard came the answer that Mr. Raymond is so-and-so, there is nowhere to put samples, is suspected of involvement in dozens of crimes … but unfortunately there is no direct evidence.
The telegram also went to America to the Pinkerton detective agency: don't you know the name of Mr. Raymond, a native of the United States? William Pinkerton replied in the spirit of “Why! But I won't say anything. The dossier that our agents have been collecting on him for many years, risking their lives, is the property of the Bureau, and why should we give it to you?"
Representatives of William Agnew arrived in Liege and offered Worth a deal: he says where the stolen portrait of the Duchess of Devonshire is, and in exchange they will agree with the Belgian justice and there will be no trial. Worth responded with another option: "First you pull me out, and then I give you the painting." In the end, they didn't agree.
The trial was held on March 20, 1893. The prosecutor blamed Worth for whatever the British police could provide. Worth denied everything: "Rumors and idle speculations of English newspapermen, who are ready to invent and publish any fable to increase the circulation of their tabloid newspapers" - "Where did you get the money, Mr. Raymond?" - “I play well at the hippodrome, I win at cards. A gentleman's word! " Who can question the word of a gentleman?
For the attempted robbery of the mail coach (the only thing that could be blamed on him), Worth was given 7 years. After serving 4, he was released in 1897 for exemplary behavior. At the gates of the prison, neither his friends-comrades nor his spouse with children met him. In his absence, the empire collapsed, the successors were unable to maintain the "enterprise". The wife was in a psychiatric clinic, the older brother John took the children and took them to America. Adam took a steamer ticket to the United States.
Fair deal
In Chicago, he met with William Pinkerton. As once in Paris, they sat at the table in the saloon and, sipping whiskey, recalled the old days. Adam thanked William for not turning him over to the Belgian police and expressed his respect for Pinkerton's agents as professionals.
This gentleman is Sir Arthur Conan Doyle himself. Thanks to him, Adam Worth gained immortality.
Then Worth offered William a deal: he is ready to return the portrait of the Duchess of Devonshire to Agnew and Sons Gallery for a modest $ 25,000. William will act as an intermediary, receive interest from the transaction and take on several more non-burdensome obligations. The agreement was not drawn up in writing, they simply shook hands, and this was more reliable than any documents.
William Agnew decided that 25,000 was not such a great price and on March 28, 1901, the portrait was exchanged for money in Chicago. Worth and his family returned to London, where, having retired from all affairs, lived for another 9 months and died quietly on January 8, 1902.
After the death of his father, Henry Worth moved to the United States, where he was recruited into the Pinkerton detective agency - it was William who fulfilled the last clause of the contract he once concluded with Napoleon of the underworld Adam Worth.
Klim Podkova