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The arrival of a letter of credit sent to the Australian Joint Stock Bank in Sydney and signed by Baring Brothers in London announced the impending arrival of Francisco Antonio de Miranda of Miranda Brothers in Lisbon. Enclosed were letters addressed to Miranda, with instructions to pass them to him once he arrived in the colony.
Miranda was described as the “head of a large and well-known Portuguese house.” He was visiting on important business and the letter stated that a Portuguese establishment advised Baring Brothers to negotiate with the Australian Joint Stock Bank. The letter of credit was for £15,000. It was accompanied by £5,000 worth of bills drawn upon a Hong Kong bank.
A partner at Baring Brothers followed up with another letter. They mentioned a railway loan and suggested establishing an agency for the disposal of Russian Bonds. Superfluous information in the letter was strange, but the Manager of the Australian Joint Stock Bank deemed it genuine.
He contacted the Spanish Consul in Sydney, Don Antonio Arrom de Ayala, and requested the names of all the Spanish Consuls in the colonies. He also asked that should the man approach him, to please direct him to the bank to collect his letters which were “of great importance and urgency.”
There was some uncertainty as to when and where Miranda would arrive. A month later, on 14 October 1857, he disembarked at Melbourne. After taking a room at Hockin’s Family and Commercial Hotel, his next stop was the Oriental Bank. He presented a letter of credit from Coutts and Company for £2,500 and drew £650. The money helped him to avoid “pecuniary embarrassment.” Upon his arrival in Sydney a week later, he presented himself to Don Arrom de Ayala and asked for his help.
Don Arrom de Ayala was busy and offered to help when he had more time. The stranger left his card: “Mr. Miranda, Petty’s Hotel.” At the end of the day, the name on the card caught the Spanish Consul’s eye. He immediately remembered the note from the Australian Joint Stock Bank. The next morning, he visited Petty’s Hotel and questioned him, “Are you Mr. Miranda? Do you expect letters?” After receiving affirmative answers, he offered to take him to the bank.
Miranda’s visit to the bank was uneventful. He was attended to courteously and treated with the respect a man of such social standing and wealth would expect. He received the letters and mentioned the letter of credit. His manner, his dress, the documents, and the fact that the Spanish Consul knew the Portuguese house to which he belonged all indicated that he was who he said he was.
With his identity confirmed, he explained his purpose. He was an agent for the Mint of Portugal and produced letters signed by the Ministers of the Crown authorising him to buy gold. He represented vine growers and intended to purchase land for their use. He was also instructed to obtain samples of various New South Wales products for inspection by Portuguese merchants.
Miranda continued residing at Petty’s Hotel and began moving among Sydney’s elite. Dripping with diamonds, he spent his money and acted in a “free and unembarrassed” manner. He was knowledgeable on all subjects and understood the science of the times. Befitting his station in life, he was aware of both Spanish and Portuguese trade practices and provided such specific anecdotes that there was no doubt he knew the parties discussed.
His correspondence was large and minute. He received, after his arrival, letters from his foreign correspondent.
His plans were enacted with care and precision. Considerate of the future emigrant vine growers, and with the help of the Spanish Consul, he approached the Archbishop of Sydney. Archbishop John Polding provided him with written testimonies stating that “the members of the Roman Catholic Church were in the enjoyment of full toleration” in the colony.
Throughout his time in New South Wales, Miranda drew upon his line of credit and then, at the suggestion of the bank, forwarded the Hong Kong bills to Baring Brothers. In total, he drew £20,000. He then requested the transfer of his funds to his agent in Sydney so that they had the means to transact on his behalf.
While looking for suitable land, he fixed upon a property in Victoria owned by Mr Cohen. Negotiations ensued and it became necessary to travel to Melbourne to complete the final paperwork. With a letter of credit from the Sydney bank in hand, Miranda left via the ‘Wonga Wonga’ on 15 December 1857.
Upon his arrival, he drew the full amount at the Oriental Bank as well as the balance of the £2,500 from Coutts and Company. At the time, there was a run on the banks so he requested that all his cash and notes be converted into gold and sent to his room at Hockin’s Hotel. He then announced his intention to travel to the goldfields to purchase more gold for the Mint of Portugal.
He sent his trunks to McGowan and Co. and on 30 December, he bought a ticket. He arrived well after the coach had left. Regretting his tardiness, the trunks remained in the office until the following day when they were removed for transportation to Ballarat.
Before he left, Miranda sent a letter to the Spanish Consul advising that once he had completed his business in Melbourne, he would return to Sydney. When Miranda failed to arrive, Don Arrom de Ayala became alarmed.
His imagination running, the Spanish Consul assumed the worst. Considering the amount of gold Miranda had, and the length of the journey by coach to Ballarat, he presumed he had met with foul play. Miranda had also left £1,700 at a bank in Sydney. Surely, he would have returned for it. Don Arrom de Ayala left for Melbourne and reported the matter to the police.
In Melbourne, he received a telegraph that Miranda was on the goldfields. Several other telegraphs reported on his whereabouts until a fourth advised that they had the wrong man. The Consul’s hope diminished.
As Don Arrom de Ayala searched, the Australian Joint Stock Bank officials grew ever more suspicious. They made enquiries, which did nothing to alleviate their concerns. They contacted Detective James Singleton who travelled to Melbourne on 9 February via the steamship ‘London’. Once he arrived, he booked the same apartments that Miranda had stayed in at Hockin’s Hotel.
He began tracing Miranda’s movements. On 29 December, Miranda left the hotel and mentioned to the butler that he was going to Ballarat. On the 30th, his trunks were removed and sent to McGowan’s office where he paid the 30 shilling fare. On the 31st, he changed his mind, deciding to instead travel on a Cobb and Co. coach. He was not seen again after that point.
Around the same time, a Frenchman named M. Le Prairie boarded the ‘John Barbour’ destined for Callao in Peru. After an introduction to the Captain, no expense was spared in providing him with the finest wines for the voyage. The ship departed on 1 January.
Detective Singleton compared descriptions of each man and concluded that Le Prairie and Miranda were the same person. There was no doubt that he had “managed to carry off, by a series of the most ingenious movements, about £20,000.”
The realisation set in. Miranda was a con man. He played his part perfectly and everything fell into place without a hitch. With his letters in hand, the bank manager assumed the Consul knew him while the Consul assumed the bank manager knew him. When a Director sought further confirmation from the Consul, it was done so on a street corner. A written request would have provided more detail and perhaps resulted in caution.
Bank officials also learned that when Miranda conversed with them he had disguised his grasp of English. Pretending that he did not speak it well enabled him to “enjoy the advantage of delay afforded by slow interpretation…” In situations where he was not furthering the trick, he spoke perfect English without affectation.
There was no doubt that he had “managed to carry off, by a series of the most ingenious movements, about £20,000.”
He maintained a cool head and took advantage of moments such as the run on the banks. Everything was planned down to the tiniest detail in order to perfect the scam. He knew of trade matters, had access to bank stationery, and was able to imitate their stamps and seal. Two Australian banks fell for his ploy. A journalist for The Sydney Morning Herald later reflected that an “Accident might have discovered it. A moment’s light would have led to the detection of the entire plot, but that light was never afforded until too late.”
There still remains the question who, after all, is this accomplished swindler?
Questions as to his identity remained unanswered. Aged about 45, he was of medium height, stout build, dark-haired, partly bald, and had small dark whiskers. He was fashionably dressed, and of “genteel appearance.” Most importantly, he was charming. Everyone he encountered in Sydney and Melbourne was dazzled by him and his ideas. Some assumed he must have previously been a bank clerk while others thought he may have been a higher-class European merchant.
He had now brought all his matters within a narrow compass, and a few successful moves would place him beyond danger.
As time passed, it was clear that Miranda and the £20,000 was gone. Newspaper articles about the swindle were tinged with an element of admiration. The choice of the Australian Joint Stock Bank was clever in that it mainly consisted of colonists who had little to do with banking practices in London. Flattery also played a part. It was the highest compliment to the Directors of the bank to be selected to deal with such a wealthy individual.
With the benefit of hindsight, a story of suspicion followed. A journalist for the Sydney Morning Herald made contact with a Melbourne detective who had expressed the belief that there was something about Miranda that made him seem like a swindler. When the detective mentioned such thoughts to Miranda’s friends, they were quickly rejected.
There was speculation that Miranda had actually arrived in Victoria in September 1857 (not October) and quietly toured the goldfields. Afterwards, he proceeded to Sydney where he advertised for an accomplice named Morgan. While the truth of such a claim may not be accurate, he did place a ‘Missing Friend’ advertisement in both Victorian and New South Wales papers soon after his arrival. Perhaps the man he referred to, Manuel Soares do Nascimento, was an accomplice to the swindle.
When the English mail arrived in mid-March 1858, it contained confirmation that all the documents Miranda had presented were forgeries. No one at Baring Brothers knew who he was. The Spanish Consul in particular was devastated. He was one of the few holding on to hope that the man he had befriended was genuine. The return of bills marked ‘the drawer unknown’ finally vanquished such feelings.
The days that followed were a mixed bag of administration, revelation, and speculation. The Australian Joint Stock Bank took out a writ of foreign attachment to recover over two thousand pounds from the garnishees, Antonio Arrom de Ayala and Edward Rottman. News spread that a bank in Hobart had also received a letter of credit for £2,500 made out to Miranda. He never travelled to Tasmania and the bank was considered to have had a lucky escape. Rumours about Miranda’s identity also continued. One person in Adelaide speculated that he was the wayward son of a Scottish banker.
On 11 April 1858, Don Arrom de Ayala departed Sydney for Marseilles aboard the ‘RMSS Victoria’. He presumably returned to Spain to provide a report in person. By 1859, he was in London. Around the same time, it was reported that Miranda was in Callao “living in great affluence.” With no extradition treaty in place between the two countries, Miranda remained free and faced no consequences for the crime.
In March 1859, a story appeared in the literary magazine Bentley’s Miscellany. Written by Dudley Costello, it was called ‘The History of Mr. Miranda’ and provided a narrative of Miranda’s exploits in Sydney. The publication was too much for Don Antonio Arrom de Ayala. On 14 April 1859, he died by suicide on the grounds of Blenheim Palace. A tragic end to the life of Sydney’s first Spanish Consul.
With limited information, journalists satisfied themselves with rumours. In early 1860, Miranda was supposedly shot by police somewhere in South America. In November of the same year, he was shot and killed by business associates in New York. In May 1863, a letter arrived dated 18 March, sent by London agents of the Australian Joint Stock Bank. They stated that Miranda was alive and in Paris. Much like the other stories, it was incorrect and a case of mistaken identity.
The only surety associated with Miranda was that he had got away. None of the supposed sightings (or deaths) could be verified. All of them turned out to be false. Where he went and even his true identity remained unknown.
From the 1880s onwards, journalists stopped reporting on the rumours. Too much time had passed. Miranda instead became part of history. A story retold over and over again. The death of an old banking official or a merchant associated with him revived the tale. When Hockin's Hotel in Melbourne was demolished in 1936 for the construction of Mitchell House, special attention was given to the Miranda swindle. It was the "sensation of the 50s" and, for the longest time, thought to be "a record in swindles in Australian banking history."
Sources:
State Library New South Wales; George Street, cnr of King Street, Sydney; Call Number: SPF/538; Record Identifier: nQR2aPd1; https://collection.sl.nsw.gov.au/record/nQR2aPd1
State Library New South Wales; Petty's Hotel, N.S.W. [1867-1871] / Francis W. Robinson, Landscape photographer, 348 George Street, Sydney; Call Number: SPF/184; Record Identifier: YdmdEaP9; https://collection.sl.nsw.gov.au/record/YdmdEaP9
State Library Victoria; Thomas, E. (1853) The junction of Elizabeth & Lonsdale Sts Melbourne [picture] / Stringer, Mason & Co.; https://find.slv.vic.gov.au/permalink/61SLV_INST/17t49l2/alma9919112313607636
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