Lewistown gazette. [volume] (Lewistown, Pa.) 1843-1944, 1850-08-30
vol XXXVE-yghole No.ls99,

Here is written description of the
persons OF this gang of blacklegs, swind-
lers and forgers," commenced the commits
sioner, summing up his instructions. at
will be your object to discover their pri-
vate haunts, and secure legal evidence of
their nefarious practices. We have been
hitherto baffled, principally, | think
through the too hasty zeal of the officers
employed you must especially avoid that
error. They are practiced scoundrels !;
and it will require considerable patience,
as well as aeumen, to unkennel and bring
them to justice. One of their more re-
cent victims is young Mr.. Merton, son, by
a former marriage, of the Dowager Lady
Everton.* Her ladyship has applied to us
TOR assistance in extricating him from the
tolls i'll which lie is meshed. You will
call Oh her at FIVE o'clock this afternoon
in plain clothes Of course-and obtain
whatever information she may be able to
afford. Remember to communicate d.
rectly with me; and any assistance you
require shall be promptly rendered. =
With these and few other minor direc-
tions, needless to recapitulate, was dis
missed to a task which, difficult and pos
sibly perilous as it might prove, | hailed
as a delightful relief from the wearing
monotony and dull routine of ordinary
duty.
/ fastened home; and after dressing
with great care-the best part of my ward
robe had been fortunately saved by Emily
from the wreck of my fortunes, proceed
ed to Lady Everton's mansion. | was
Immediately marshalled to the drawing
room, where | found her ladyship and her
daughter-a beautiful, fairy-looking girl
awaiting my arrival. Lady Everton ap-
peared greatly surprised at my appearance,
differing, as | dare say it altogether did,
from her abstract idea of policeman,
however atlired or disguised and it was
not till she had perused the note of which
/ was the bearer, that naughty and incred-
ulOus stare became miugated TO glance
of lofty condeseending civlity.
Be seated, Mr. Waters" said her la
dyship, waving TO chair. This note
informs me that You have been selected
for the duty of endeavoring to extricate
my son from the perilous entanglements
in which he has unhappily involved him
SELF"
| was about 10 reply-for | was silly
enough to feel somewhat nettled at the no.
ble lady's haughtness Of manner-that |
was engaged in the public service of extir-
pating a gang of swindlers with whom her
son had involved himself, and was there to
procure from her ladysfiip any information
she might be possessed of, likely TO for
ward so desirable result; but fortunately
the remembrance of my actual position,
spite of my gentleman's attire, flashed
viyidly upon my mind and instead OF
permitting my glib tongue 10 wag irrever-
emily in the presence of right honorable,
bowed with deferential acquiescence.
Her ladyship proceeded, and in sub
stance obtained the following information
Mr.. Charles Merton during the few
months which had elapsed since the at
tainment of his majority, had very literal
ly - fallen amongst thieves" A passion
for gambling seemed to have taken entire
possession Of his mind, and by far the
greater part of his haggard and feverish life
was passed at play. A run of i'll luck.
according to his own belief-but in very
truth run of downright robbery--had set in
against him, and he had not only dissipated
all the ready money which he had inner
tied, and the large sums which the foolish
indulgence of his lady mother had sup
piled him with, but had involved himself
in bonds, bills, and other obligations to a
frighdul amount. The principal agent in
effectng this ruin was one Sandiord-a
man of fashionable and dashing exterior,
and the presiding spirit of the knot of
desperadoes whom | was commissioned to
hunt out. Strange to say, Mr.. Merton
had the blindest reliance upon this mans
honor and even now--trlCked, despoiled
as he had been by him and his gang--rc-
lied upon his counsel and assistance for
escape from the desperate position in
which he was involved. The Everton
estates had passed, in default Of male is
sue, 10 a distant relative of the late lord
so that ruin, absolute and irremediabie,
stared both the wretchcd dupe and his rel
ative in the face. Lady Everton's joint
urc was not very large one, and her son
had been permitted to squander sums
which should have been devoted to the
discharge of claims which were now
pressed harshly against her.
| listened with the deepest interest to
Lady Everton's narrative. Repeatedly,
during the course Of it, as she incidentally
alluded TO the manners and appearance of
Sandford, who had been introduced by Mr..
Merton to his mother and sister, a suspi-
cion, which the police papers had first
awakened, that the gentleman in question
was an old acquaintance Of my own, and
one, moreover, whose favors ! was ex-
tremely deslrous to return in kind, flashed
with increased CONVICTION across my mind.
This surmise Of course kept to myself
and after emphatically cautioning the la
dies to keep our proceedings profound