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About The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 8, 1908)
THE SUNDAY OREGOSIAX. PORTLAND. NOVEMBER 8, 1903. 9 Tales of time W it-l? iris? ffl Tf?lf?A HIf5) AfC "Tr-UHlr? mflM lAf Mlfl HERE are few mysteries which ar never cleared up." com ' mcnced Captain Dickson, as ve at before the cheerful wood fire of his eosy study one night last Winter, "al though some of them slumber for years among the things forgotten, until the denouement Is accidentally developed by some person who, perhaps, never heard of the original matter. Such ww the case whlrh I have come to remember as that of 'The Iron Pot." It was a vessel of this humble character that Anally cleared up a great mystery and brought the guilty to JustJre. "You are well aware that the silver dollar pafsetw current for something like 43 or 50 cents- more than the actual sil ver in it is worth. This fact has not been overlooked by counterfeiters, and because of it the secret service haa had some knotty problems to unravel. "The largest percentage of counterfeits of specie are crude, black, leaden things that are readily detectable and difficult to pas a The handling of these coins Is bs-t with excessive danger. But there have been some casps where counterfeit era hav so perfectly Imitated the silver dollar that experts have been deceived by It. Such a coin was brought out by a gang operating In St. Louis some years ago. Their dollar was of the same fine ness and weight as the coin of the Gov ernment's mint and had the same quan tity of alio;-. The only difference be tween the two was that the s-ourtous coin was a shade thicker than the gen uine, which fart was due to the ma chinery of the counterfeiters being some what lighter and less powedful than that of the Federal mints. "The popular Idea that coins are cast or molded I? quite erroneous. They are stamped or pressed out of narrow strips of metal. It is only by this means that they can be sufficiently compressed to stand the wear to whh-h they are sub jected in circulation. The machines used for this purpose are heavy, ponderous things, and It Is difficult for counterfeit ers to Bcurp the manufacture of such a machine and quite as hard a proposition for them to find a suitably secret place In which to operate it, once they have got It made. "The St. Tenuis gang nad their plant In a cleverly constructed cave in a sub urban district. It was an artificial cave, dug bark In the fare of a clay and gravel bluff. The entrance was through the shanty of a poor Irish family, a cir cumstance that diverted suspicion from It and one to which is partly due the long immunity the gang enjoyed. It is not necessary to detail the long and tedious work it took to locate the cave, for that is a story all by Itself, and dws not neei"to be told to lead up to the matter of the Iron pot. At any rate, when we descended uion the shanty and explored the cave, we found nothing more t'ian a ponderous machine, a few tools ordinarily employed with machinery of any character and a gasoline engine, which supplied the motive power. We were certain that the machine had been , twd to stamp out the bad money, but I there was nothing beside It that looked trie least bit suspicions. It might have i been used for a legitimate business quite as well as for a contraband one. as far as anything we found would Indicate. The only fact that tended to point to Its ral use was that It was hidden away in such a suspicious place. "There was no scrap of metal, no coins, i BEING PROF&OR SHORTY MUGABE,.? ACCOUNT OF A MIX-UP PLUTE WHO WAiS3 DODGIfVG THE PROCEiy,iV, iPERVER AS I was sayin' to Swifty Joe, "Swlfty." says I. "did It ever strika you that every garden has Its lemon tree?" "Ahr. chee!" says Swifty. "All the hand organs is playln' that tune. Ring off. But say. what's the use wastln' high art conversation on coi-oanut head ltke that? so I don't till him w"jat happens out to Primrose Park on a wet Sunday. You see. when I goes up on Saturday night I was lookln' for an other dry sixiler; but I uess I must have read the signs wrong, for when I wakes up In the mornln' the rain is comln' down slantwise and plenty, and the lawn Is lookln' as soggy as the under crust of a huckleberry pie. It sure seems like an all day session with my- heels up on the rati and nothin' doln' but read the paperj and wish I was back on Broadway. One of Mrs. Whaley's Sunday breakfasts cheers me up some, and I've got my self planted In a dry corner of the side porch, prepared for the worst when I hears somethln" out on the Post road that makes ma sit up. It sounded like a solid bump, followed by breakin' class. I squints out through the rain and sees a big black tourin' car with Its nose jammed good and hard against an elm tree about three foot thu-k. Looks like a case of skiddin'," says I to myself. That's lust what lias happened. There's quite some of a curve out there, nd. tie road beln' greasy, and maybe on account of the dew on his goggles. Mr. Sliuffer has cut It too f:ne. Not beln' able to climb a tree or go through it, the slxtr-horse power gives a hiccup or two and goes out of business. Luckv he was runnin' Inside the need limit, or the machine would have plastered lilm up against that tree so tiaht the Coroner would have had to pry him off with a putty knife. As It is. he only has his wind knocked ouc by the steerln' wheel, and before I can grsb an umbrella and get half way out to the road he has got his breath back and has limbed out to take a view of the busted lamps and the crumpled hood. "That's one way of stoppin1 quick." says I. soothln. "Sar-r-r-re!" says lie. vwhlch don't help much." says I: "but if it's any relief to your feelln's, ltt it come." And he does. too. I don't under stand much French: hut j'ou can al ways tell cuss words In a'.y language, and this gent had a fine lot on tap. He was waikin around that bu'sted machine and tearin' 'em off by the yard. hen some one raps on the plate gla i-indowi of the limousine and he corks chemica's. or other thing used in the aij. Only the machine and a few wrenches and similar tools. The gang had skipped out. The Irishman was half-witted, and his wife was to clever to be caught in the traps we laid for her. We had made a waierhaul, except for the machine, which was destroyed. The cave was filled up. Acting undr orders from Washington we maintained secrecy about the entire matter and nothing of it got .into the newspapers. "I found one tiling in the shanty which might or might not offer a clew to the counterfeiters. It was an empty envelops bearing Hie postmark of an obscure rail road station in the sunkland district of Northeastern Arkansas. I had long ago learned that !t is the seemingly insignifi cant things tliat lead to the discovery of criminals, and while this envelope might mean nothing, on the other hand, it might be of the gravest importance. It had been found beneath the sheet of metal on which the cook stove stood, the tip of one corner, discolored and grimy, attract ing my attention. I had secured it and pocketed it without attracting attention. "If the gang had never existed it could not have disappeared more effectually. We were far to fac with a blank wn.ll. This made us the more anxious to capture the counterfeiters. As nothing better of fered, the, chief suggested that I follow up the clew of the empty envelope. "With as cumbersome and complete an outfit as every city sportsman carries Into the woods with him, I left the train one day at the wayside station which bore the name of the postmark. Securing a guide and cook. In the person of a lanky native. I had my truck hauled out to the St. Francis River, only two miles distant, where I pitched camp and made prepara tions for an indefinite stay. "It was the greatest game country I have ever seen. There were deer without limit and a good sprinkling of turkeys, some bears, and water fowl of every kind, until the killing of them lost much of its charm, and became mora like ruthless slaughter. "I had a plentiful supply of liquors and cigars, a fact my guide lost no time in spreading broadcast about -the country. This was just what I wanted him to do, for It brnucht the nntives flocking to my camp to partake of the liquors and cigars which I distributed with a lavish hand. It gave me the opportunity for which I was playing. "By making Inquiry of my visitors. I learned that about five miles down the river were camped. In a snug cabin built by themselves, three gentlemen from parts unknown. They maintained the place as a sort of club and had spent the Spring season there. They left about March and were gone until October, when they re turned one night and again took posses sion of their cabin. Our raid on the cave had been made on October 15, and this caused me to think that perhaps the empty envelope was making good. "As the three gentlemen did not deign to visit my camp, I decided to make a call upon them. "I started out in a folding canvas canoe, late In Ihj afternoon, and arrived In the vicinity of their camp just at nightfall. With a sharp cypress tree, aided by a jagged cu-t from my bunting knife, I suc ceeded In punching a bad hole in the bottom of the canoe, and with the boat rapidly filling with water, I landed just after sunset at the very door of their cabin. The three men were at home and they welcomed me with the open hospital ity of campers. Insisting that I spend ; the night wHl them. This was Just what j I had been playing for. "It was easy to se that the men were j crooks. There la always something to up like the emergency brake had been put on. "Gee!" says I. "I thought you was runnin' an empty. If you've got folks In there you'd better see how bad they're shook up." With that I begins rubberln' at the back windows; but I got as much sat isfaction as if I'd been peekin' down a Jointed gas pipe. Every curtain was pulled down tight, except one, and that only stays up Ion; enough for a hand to wave the shutter to the other side of the car. He trots around live ly, too. and begins to explain how it happened and what the damage was. Well, there didn't seem to be any wild call for my help, or society, either; but I was eettin' curious. I wanted to know what klud of people was ridln" ' around In the rain that way, with tne shutters all up, so I strolls across to my own side of the road and waits to see what's poln' to happen next. It didn't take long for Ooggles to con vince his people that the car was all to the bad. Then I sees a shads pulled back, and I has a feelln' that some one was slzin' me up close. In a minute or so the snuffer comes over and touches his cap, as polite as you please. "Ees that the house of monsieur?" says he. polnttn' to the cottage. "That's the house of me, for a fact," says T. "Pardong." says he. "but will mon sieur have the great kindness to de clare his nameT" "Why. cert, Frenchy." says I. "I am Monsoor Shorty SlcCahe. Here's my business card and telephone num ber. Sorry I ain't got my latest photo graph and vaccination certificated too." "Mercl. mercl!" says he. "Same to you and many of 'em," says t It wasn't exactly the weather I'd pick out for swappin' bows and that sort of thing: but I can be Just as po lite as the next one. even if I am standin' in the mud. with an umbrella Icakin' down my collar. Frenchy takes the card over to the shut-up machine and pokes it through a slit In the door. Say, It was all done as mysterious as If the stage was set for some kind of a Jugglin" trick. First Frenchy puts his face close up to the glass and chins a minute or so without takin' breath: then he listens to what somebody tires back, shruggin' his shoulders and stiakln' his head all. the time; the next he steps out into the road, lookin' up and down anxious like, I was gettin' soaked from my knees down: but It was too. excitln' a thing to leave. All of a sudden the side door Is pushed open, and some one beckons mo over. He was a well-shaped, mid dlin' oldish gent, with a cropped gray niu.Mache and a pair of rfose-set gray eyes that I could almost feel explorln' .'rem JWmm-t Atya J - - - r disclose the counterfeiter, if the ob server Is only sufficiently versed in their ways and mannerisms to recog nize the telltale signs. I was pretty sure, before the eveningr was over, that these were the men who had done the the back of my head as he turned 'em on me. But he was real smooth spoken. He wants to know how far It is to the nearest garage, and if he could tele phone, and if I minded them waitin' a while at my place. Course, I says that in a case of this kind my ranch Is wide open for as long as they likes. . "Well," says he, turnin' to the dark corner of the car, "what do you say?" Blessed If I could see a thing inside there; but I has a lady all pictured out, even to Just how high her veils come on the cushions All the answer he gets is a sort of a mumble that I couldn't make out. "But you know It Isn't safe to stay here;" says he to the one in the corner. I pricks up my ears a little at that. Maybe slttln' in a bu'sced bubble along side the road ain't the most joyful pas time in the world; but I couldn't figure out why It wasnf safe. The argument seems to convince the unknown, though: for there comes another mum ble, and the first gene piles out. Then him and Frenchy ranges up on' either side the step and proceeds to haul out oareful a tall, bent-shouldered party with his head all muffled tip in a steamer rug that he was wearin' same's a washerwoman wears a shawl. By the gentle way they handles - him I thinks first eft that he's sick or some thin"; but when his feet strikes the ground he stands up without beln' propped and steps around like a well man. Gent number one. notlcln' me stand In' there with my mouth open, remarks, "Perhaps you will lead the way, Mr. McCabe?" "Sure," says I. and puts myself at the head of the procession. It wa'n't until they'd phoned for a wreckln' machine and Frenchy has been sent off with his Instructions, that I gets a good look at number two: for he waits until everything Is settled be fore he begins unwindin' the head wrappins'. Then I sees I'm entertalnin' a curio. Not that he was one of the toothless, snow-capped kind. His hair Is only nicely frosted up, and his face la as smooth as a baby's; but he has a complexion like an apple dumpling, and them eyes of his was the foxiest, shiftiest set of lamps" I ever see In a man. Course. I could account for the crop of soft, wavy hair, and the white, even teecb. They come from the store, and a better Job was never turned oui- But the eyes had me guessin' from the start. I'd have bet my pile there wa'n't another pair like 'em 'in the country, and yet they has a sort of familiar look I couldn't get away from. I-' was dead sure I hadn't run across the rest of this old gent, but I couldn't shake the thought that somewhere I must have pppn them eyes before. Say. it was enough to give you the creeps! Job In St. Louis. "Nothing about the cabin was the least bit suspicious. A large iron pot bubbled invitingly over the open fire, the fragrant odor of boiling meat issuing from under its lid when the steam So that's where I start hlntln' for par ticulars. "Excuse me," says I, "but - didn't catch your names." The two gents flashes a look back and forth, and then the one that's been doing the talkln' speaks up. "Thayer Is mine," says he, "and this is er Mr. Dayton." Say. he was a smooth boy, all right. The Thayer comes out just as though he was used to sayin' It, and if it hadn't been for the diamond "W" on his gold watch fob I shouldn't have suspicloned it at all. There was only the least bit of a hitch about the Dayton, too; Just enough to give me a quiet hunch that I was beln' treated to an incog. "Dayton, eh?" says I. "From Ohio?" At that they swaps another quick look, and then both turns on me. But when they sees me grinnin' they knew it was only a josh. "Ah, Dayton, Ohio!" says Mr. Thayer. "Very good, very good!" "That's nothin' to what I can do on a bright day," says I. "But make your self to home, gents, while I dig up a box of smoke sticks." When I comes back with the cigars Mr, Dayton has shed his long raincoat and is over in the corner preparin' to get down on his knees in front of a Morris chair. Thayer has Just spotted his motions, and his straight-cut mouth begins to curl up at the corners. "Oh, I say, Henry," says he, "is that er exactly necessary?" "Samuel." says Mr. Dayton, speakln' kind of solemn and wavery. "we have just had a providential escape from a fatal accident. It Is fitting that I should return thanks for " "Yes. yes," says Thayer; "but can't you hold it over until " and here he squints at me. "Oh, let him blaze away," says I. "I ain't one to bar prayin". Fire ahead!" And he does. It was as fine prayin' as I ever heard too. and before he gets through he's squared himself with everyone- from nere to the Pearly Gates, not forgettln' me, and the kind-hearted elm tree that didn't turn out to be a 10-foot ditch. My! but he sure was a good man! Made me feel mighty low down and mean, just listenin' to him. The effect on Mr. Thayer was different. He stands there roliin' his eyes up to the ceilln' and lookin' weary, just as If he didn't have any religion at all. He has a hard face, that man' Thayer, though; one of the kind that reminds you of pan ics in Wall street, and customs inspec tors, and police court judges. It was easy to see his mind didn't set easy; far after the services were through and me and Mr. Dayton was havin' a talk, the old gent as calm and satisfied as though he was at home. Mr. Thayer was pacln' up and down the room, now and then stoppin' to take a nervous squint out of the windows at the road. He could pushed it up on one side. A steaming haunch of venison, cooking with some vegetables and dumplings, was produced from the pot for our supper, which was served soon after my arrival. In the center of the room was a big table. JiJ Us!l2 not have been more uneasy if he'd been tryln" to dodge a bill collector. Mr. Dayton was as much interested In me as if I'd been his new son-in-law. He wants to know all about the physical cul ture business, and what rent I pay for the studio, and what my average income is, and how much I'm saltin' away in the bank. He seems kind of pleased to hear I don't follow the races, or monkey with the market, and he hands out a lot of good advice about lnvestin' my surplus in first mortgage bonds and real estate. Fatherly! It was almost as good as bein' adopted by a minister. Right in the middle of our talk Mrs. Whaley comes rushin' in from the kitchen and says as how Dennis has nabbed a sus picious actln' character that he's caught tryln' to sneak into the stable, and is towin' him our way. "Gee!" says I, "this Is my day at home for sure. Well, tell Dennis to lug him in on the carpet.' "What! In ..ere?' says old Mr. Dayton, jumpln' up and lookin' scared. "Aren't you afraid?" "All, say now, don't get uneasy," says I. "Most likely it's only some seedy hobo tryln' to get in out of th wet. Let's have a look at him." "But, you know," says Dayton. "I had rather not " It was too late for him to do more than Jump for a dark corner of the room, though; for in comes Dennis, holdln' the guy by the collar. One look was enough to see he wa'n't any reg'lar freight car tourist: hut beyond that I couldn't place him. He's a long geared, think .shanked, sallow faced voung chap, about twenty four or five, I should Judge. He's wearin' eye glasses, and a blue serge suit that needs pressln' and brushin' the worst way; but if he'd been fixed up some, and con nected with the shave and the haircut that was due him, he'd been almost fit for the parlor. He don't take kindly to beln' led up for inspection, though. By the way his jaw was tremblln' and by the shake In his knees, you could tell he was so scared that his liver ws turnin" white. "Well, young feller," says I lookln' him over, "whei-e'd you get the Idea I kept the fam'Iy plate in the stabler' "Oh, I I I I" says he. "Quit that!" 6ays I. "This aint no mass meetin'. What's your gamer "Pup-pup-please, sir, I dud-dud-didn't mum-mum-mean " but his tongue is so thick he can't get out any more. He puts his hands over his face and slumps down on his knees. "Up with ye!" says Dennis, jerkin' him on his feet like he was handlln' a sack of meal. "Easy there, Dennis, or you'll have him apart," says I. "Turn him loose and go lex-k the stable. I'll tend to him." When he gets the Knuckles out of his neck, and fTnds he aint goln' to be hand crudely constructed of heavy oak tim bers. The cabin was well lighted, the lamps being of expensive character and gTeat brilliancy. Guns and fishing tackle and hunting toggery of every kind gave the cabin the atmosphere- "of a sports man's club. "The men talked freely of everything but themselves. They spoke of many cities, but never of their homes. They told me they were college chums who had aJways made it a. custom to spend a few months together each Fall In the woods. They were clever men and read ily passed for the lawyer, the doctor and the merchant, the characters they re spectively pretended to be. The one to whom the other two deferred in every thing was a large, powerful man with clean-shaven face and jaw like a bull dog. His face was too shrewd to be pleasant. He watched me furtively, a sinister, amused smile playing about the corners of his mobile mouth. That smile spoke volumes. It made me lie awake all night. It seemed to say that he knew my real character and therefore I thought it best to keep on the watch. The man seemed capable of offering me per sonal violence. But the night passed away without incident. After break fast I repaired the leak In my canoe and paddled slowly upstream, trying to fig ure out where I had seen the big man with the square Jaw before. "While I was smoking a last cigar before retiring that ewning. It came to me where I had seen him. It was on a streetcar in St. Louis, on one occasion when I was shadowing the shanty at the cave. He had been on the same car and had kept his seat when I alighted near the hut. He had looked at me then as if he.wantec". to know me the next time he saw me. I was assured that he was one of the counterfeiters and made up my mind to arrest the three of them the first thing next morning. "Here I learned a lesson in procras tination. While I hastily gobbled down my breakfast the next day, a trapper, who camped near by and who had gone to the village the night before for sup plies, happened along and told me a most disconcerting bit of news. The three men had taken French leave. They had caught a through freight about midnight, taking little or no baggage with them. I hastened to the village, and although I worked the single tele graph wire to Its utmost capacity, the three men succeeded in making their es--cape. "Sending a full cipher report to Wash ington, I repaired to the cabin in the swamps and made a careful search of it. Everything within was in the greatest confusion. Clothing and shells, guns and fishing-tackle were strewn about the floor, evidencing a precipitate departure. It was tantalizing again to allow the criminals to escape. I felt deeply chagrined, and resolved never again to put oft a matter of this kind. The men had forestalled me by only a few hours, for I had intended arresting them that morning, and there had been nothing in their conduct during my visit to their cabin to indicate that they thought of flight. "In one corner of the cabin, beneath the very bunk on which I had slept, there was an xcavatlon three feet square and as many deep. The cover was down and dirt was strewn 'over it, which gave It the same appearance as the dirt floor of the house. I discovered it by a hollow sound when I tapped over the spot. It was empty. "I noticed the absence of the pot which had supplied my supper, but it was rather a subconscious notice of it. The WITHA cuffed, or hit on the head with a billy, he feels a little better. "Now tell us all about it," says I. "Oh, I will." says he: "I'll tell every thing Just as it happened. But please don't don't " and down he goes again. "Up. up!" says I, pokin' my thumb at him, like the elephant trainers do. "Pup-pup-please " he starts off once more. "Oh, have it your own way," says I. "If you can talk easier on your knee pads, why stay there Jaut get busy. What par ticular kind of an undesirable cit. are you, anyway?" "I I'm a thief," says he, beginnln' to blubber. "Oh, shocking!" says old Mr. Dayton, who has been edging out from behind the corner of the bookcase. Thayer comes to the front too, and the three of us lines up before the specimen on the rug. Now say, I've seen enough of crooks to know that the average run of 'em don't go around punlishin' their -record before strangers; so I takes it we've dug up an amateur. "Thief, eh?" says I. "Is that a bluff, or are you just bragging?" Yes, yes," he goes on; "I am a thief, a thief!" "Well, well," says I. "don't get chesty over it. You've got lots of competition in that line. What's your specialty?" But just then old -Mr. Dayton butts in, wantin' to try his hand. And say, what ever that old duck's reg'lar business is, he missed it by not goln' out with a par lor organ and a tent; for as an exhorter he's the fancy goods. First thing Thayer and I knows he has camped down along side that shingle-chested wreck, and has got hold of one of his hands, and he's doin' the Moody and Sankey turn to beat the cars. It was "Oh, my poor erring broth er," and "Sinners come to glory," and all that 'business; both of 'em rockin' back and forth on their knees like some one was pullln' the strings. ' After a few minutes of that Mr. Dayton looks up at us with his eyes leaky and says, "Now, friends, let us all Join In a hymn for the sake of this poor wander ing soul. Come, 'Salvation Is Free.' To gether, now!" Say, would you believe it? He had me goln'. - 'Maybe I never made a stab at hymn singin' before, but I did then. So does" Thayer. The four of us was at It full tilt, when I looks up and sees Dennis and Mother Whaley peekin' through the door, with their eyes popped out and their mouths open. That sends me off the key as quick as though I'd fell from a ladder, and I'd quit for good If old Mr. Dayton hadn't caught my eye and give me the en couragin' nod. At that I waves the Wha leys to beat It, and takes a fresh start. "Now," says Mr. Dayton, after we'd staggered " through "Bringing in the Sheaves,' perhaps our dear brother will confers his sin." . "Why, sure,"" says I. "I'll go as far as" fact really made no appreciable -Impression on me at the time, nor did It, in fact, until more than a year had passed. It was then recalled by a newsooer dis patch under date of the small village. 'Some of the boys in the vlllasc had appropriated the cabin as a sort of club house, after the throe men had fled. Thy would spend Saturdays there, fishing and swimming and hunting. Immediately In front of the cabin was a steep bank, and the river widened out into a broad, depp pool which afforded good tlshing and swimming. The boys would throw white pebbles into this hole and dive for them from the bank. One of them had struck his head against sumething hard at the bottom of the river slid had lx?en pullt-d up a corpse, his skull lwiviug ben frac tured by the impact of the blow. "The others investigated and found a large iron pot half buried in the soft mud. Ita cover was sealed down and Its weight had been so great the boys couldn't lift it from Its oozy bed. Tlie dispatch stated that the pot was to be raised and its contents examined. "I was in Little Rock when I read this dispatch and, without waiting for instruc tions from headquarters. I boarded the first train and set out for the village. I was In a state of feverish excitement, fearing I would arrive there after the prt had been secured. I wanted to be the first to view its contents. I felt sure I knew what was in it. "After a journey that seemed inter minable I arrived at the village and in quired about the ot. Aly fears had been groundless. With the Indifference so characteristic In country people the vil lagers had forgotten, after the funeral of the unfortunate young man, tiie in cident of the pot. While there had been some talk of raising it, no one had taken the lead, and there the matter had rested. "Securing a team of mules and some strong ropes and chains. I drove out to the cabin. By dint of much diving I suc ceeded In fastening the chains about the pot and had my assistant drag it out upon the bank. It was the vessel wh U'H had hung over the flre when I had visited the counterfeiters In their lair. Then I remembered Its absence, when I had searched the hut after their departure. It was sealed with paraffin and sealing wax, and not a drop of water had passed the lid. "It contained a complete set of en gravers' tools, several bottles of power ful acids, glass stopped and sealed, a number of bars of silver, some 30d-odd counterfeit silver dollars, and the dies with which they had been stamped with wax, and were as bright and fresh as when they beat out the false coins in the secret cave. "After swearing my assistant to sec recy, I returned to headquarters with my booty. "Not many weeks later two of the men were captured. I had given the department a minute description of them, after their unceremonious de parture, and its vast machinery had been set in motion for their apprehen sion. It is a maxim of the service that a man once a counterfeiter Is al ways a counterfeiter! This rule held good with reference to two of the men, at least, for they were captured and convicted of another Job. The in cidents I haye just related were not introduced in evidence against them and consequently escaped the press. The man with the bulldog jaw escaped completely at that time, but I met with him, years after, under circumstances neither of us will forget so long as we live." (Next week Capt. Dickson will relate the Mory of "The Affair of the Panama Hat.") i "It will be your turn next," says the old boy, motioning me to go on -the side track. Say, you can judge the state I was In from singin' them hymns when I make a break like that. Honest, if he hadn't stopped me, I'd gone on to tell all the mean things I ever done, or meant to do. That old gent has the most catchin' kind of piousness I ever run against. The wreck feels it too, and as soon as he gets a show he loosens up. "It was apples," says he. "I stole ap ples." What a jar! "Apples!" says I. "G'wan! If you can't dig up anything worse than pinchin' a little fruit, you'd better quit. Ah, take another think!" But old Dayton wouldn't have it that way. Says he, "It's a sin to steal a piu. Go on, my young friend." And our young friend was more than willin'. He says his name Is Alfred Mar ston Boggs, and that he was studyln' to be a minister. Seems he'd been puttln' in his vacation gettin' subscriptions for "The Life of McKinley," and takin' orders for a glucose fact'ry that turns out home made preserves, tryin' to make enough to pay his board durin' the next term. But he'd run up against it good and hard. Alfy finds the subscription business over done, and in the territory he strikes all the women put up their own strawb'ries -and canned peaches. He'd got as far as Albany, and was workin' his way down the river, when his last dollar gets away from Iiim. Firs:, off he eats his jam samples, which givos him the coilywabbles so bad ho has to lay off for two days and swaii his agent's copy of the "Life" for lodgin at; a third rate hotel. That leaves him all in a heap at the foot of the slidin' board, with a 50-miie walk between him and the near est place where his touch was good. Alfy has stuck it out for nearly a day, acquirln' an appetite like a sausage, mill, when he strikes one of them big estates up along the Hudson and sees some nice red apples. There was a high iron fence with spikes on top, just purpose to keep folks out; but our young friend has a gnawin' sensation that won't behave, so over he climbs. . 'Oh, horrors!" says I. "You didn't really and truly steal an apple, did you?" Alfy groans and nods his head, and says the worst is yet to come. He goes on to tell how it was a dinky little tree, with only five or six appies on it; but he gob bles down tho whole crop. He is just fin lshin' off the last one when he finds himself collared by a real elegant young gent with a half-baked look on his face, but so mad he s nearly frotliin' at tho mouth. "It was terrible!" says Alfy. "He said I was a common thief, ami that lie was going to have me put In jail and then oh, I don't know what mai'.e me do it. (Coucluded on Page 11.;
