St. Charles City Republican intelligencer. [volume] (St. Charles City [Charles City], Iowa) 1857-1861, 1857-12-03
New Theory Of Stealing.

1t has been announced that Jane.
D. Brayman, an editor of the Chicago
Democrat, was on the 29th Oct
sentenced to four years hard labor in
the Pcnitentiary, for stealing letters
from the Post Office in that city. The
Democrat of the 9th ult. says:
So far as Mr.. Braymans connection with
this office is concerned, we have only to say,
that he was highly recommended to us by
both the editors Of the Buffalo Commercial
Advertiser and Buffalo Courier papers of OPP
posite politics. He had been connected with
both offices, and was in the Courier Office pre-
vious to his leaving Buffalo for this city His
position in this Office was what is known
among newspaper men as paragraphist
He was naturally OF a religious turn of mind
and passed most of his leisure in reading re,
ligious papers and writing therefor. One Of
our assistants, as counterpart to Mr.. Bray,
mans sectarian zeal, effected an exchange
with the Boston Investigator, an iniidcl paper
We have distinct remembrance, on two sey,
eral occasions, in the absence of our assistant
that this paper fell into Mr. b. S hands. and
that he manifested his Indignation at it and its
contents by stamping it Indignantly under his
feet. The drawers and shelves in his editorial
room were always crowded with Baptist items,
giving the whereabouts of different clergymen.
revivals in their churches, &C.
We had entire confidence in Mr.. Bravman' S
Innocence until the return of his brother from
the East. We supposed he would then have
an examination. To our great surprise the
examination was waived. The affair is indeed
an inexplicable one, and we are yet to fathom
his motives
We take the following in relation
to Mr.. Brayman from the Milwaukee
Wisconsin:
The case of James o. Brayman now on
trial in Chicago, for larceny. is literally, one
OF the most extraordinary that ever happened
in any country II seems, literally. a crime
without motive. His habits were alstemious
and frugal. He had salary not only ample
for his wants-but more than he used. He
has been honest and honorable in every rela-
ton of life, and yet he has broken open letters.
and taken the money therefrom
In Buffalo he was regarded us one of the
most honest and exemplary men in that great
city. The only motive that we can imagine is
that he may have possessed the miser's insa.
TABLE thirst for gold, and could not restrain
his volition whenever he came within sight of
the charm OF money. Up TO the present time
Mr.. Brayman has been an exemplary member
Of the Baptist Church
We notice that some of the secular ncwspa.
pers have cast it as n slur upon the Baptist de-
that Mr.. Brayman was deacon
Of one OF their churches. They have no cause
% do so, for the gentlemen connected with our
'ihce have had better opportunities of knowing
him than any Baptist in the City, and there
S no one of them but that will testify that,
outside OF this act, his conduct has been that
u an exemplary Christian in every respect"
1t is alleged that the stealing pro-
of Brayman were attribu-
table to insanity or monomania. The
following is the testimony of the Buf.
falo Advertiser, in the office of which
he was once employed
During his engagement with us we wore
often puzzled by the traits of character he OK.
hibited. AS doer of all work his services
were very valuable. His taciturnity was re-
markaDlc, and it was the hardest thing in the
world 10 Keep up ANY conversation with him.
we never knew him to laugh heartily. nor to
express any strong likes or dislikes for men or
thinSs; IN fact he seemed utterly without
passion OF any kind except for work One ne
cnliarity he had that sometimes gave us no
little annoyance That was the habit of tuck
ing away in the qucerest places pieces of manu-
script, and slips cut from exchanges, such as
usually litter an editors table so that they
could be found by nobody but himself. x
phrenologist would say secretiveness was his
largest organ. In his personal habits he was
singularly abstemious and frugal and allowed
himself none of the ordinary amusements of
society, beyond intercourse with those com
posing the limited circle which he knew"