Cincinnati daily press. [volume] (Cincinnati [Ohio]) 1860-1862, 1861-11-07
CuriOsities Of fCrIne-ExperIenoe Of Pc
lice Deteotiye.

lice Detective.
Mr.. James McLevy, member Of the po-
lice detective staff of Edinburg, Scotland,
has just published in London a volume Of
his experiences. It's title is The Sliding Scale
If Lie, or. Thrty Years Observations of
fqlligg Men and Women. SO long service
in a difficult and dangerous business must
necessarily be productive Of curious stories
MIR. McLevy has strung together a remark
able collection Of narratives, for the correct
ness of which he vouches. Thus, he tells
us this story Of the
DETECTION or 4 BURGLAR.
Andrew Ireland, climber ofremarkable
activity, who could 60 where cats would
shudder, had dropped off o wall into Nc
levy's arms, laden with poultry which he
had stolen on the other side. lie was con-
yicted and sentenced to imprisonment, but
escaped by climbing through a skylight.
McLevy could get no trace of him for
months, but was satisfied that he was lurk-
ing in the Old Town. One day he en-
countered funeral procession formed by
ragged lrishmen. A poor woman came up
and told him that it was his work. Her
name was Ireland, and her speech was
Irish. She said that she was burying her
son, who had been killed by McLevy's per-
secution. He offered consolation in the re-
mark that there were no skylights to the
graves, and Andrew would not climb out to
do any more evil. "Skylightsl ay, but
there is; and Andrew Ireland will climb
out and get to heaven, while you, you var
mint, will be breaking frewood in h
to roast their honors the judges who con-
demned my innocent darling McLevy did
not feel altogether comfortable, for, as he
says, there is something in these wild lives,
when wound up by death, that is really
touching. However, he walked up to the
| Office, and there got notice Of the robbery of
| a silveTsmiths workshop. His investigation
! of the case led to no conclusion except that
| the robbery had probably been committed
! by two unknown chimney sweepers. Here
upon he became excessively interested in
all persons of this class and as features are
difficult to discern through o mask of SCOT,
he was in the habit of walking up to any
| sweep he met, and asking for q light to his
| pipe, so as to get close inspection. A
| considerable time after the robbery he hap
! pened to see two sweeps smoking loungingly,
and contemplating in the hand ofone of them
some article which had a silvery look. The
usual artifce gave McLevy an opportunity
Of scanning aSSface which seemed to shrink
under his eye. The features were familiar;
| but still he was for awhile at fault, and
| continued the conversation until he got the
! clue. "Andrew Ireland, when did you come
out of the Canongate .churchyard ?" All
denial was in vain. The silver article which
McLevy had seen glancing in the sooty hand
! proved to be part of the stolen property.
This remarkable exemplifcation Of McLevy' s
keenness of sight and strength of memory
brought the buried son of the widow Ire
land to transportation.
Catching rogues to the sound of music is
not common occurrence, but here is a
tale Of
MUSICAL BOX.
A house had been entered by thieves
while closed during its masters absence.
The premises had been deliberately ran
sacked, and all articles of value and easily
portable had been selected and carried off.
Among them was a musical box, regarding
which McLevy CHANGED to ask the late pro-
prietor what tunes it played. He mentioned
the "Blue Bells of Scotland" McLevy made
the usual searches for the stolen
property, but with small hope and no sue
cess. One evening, being on what he calls
''watch-saunter," he passed tavern fire.
| quented by thieves. Just as he came to the
door his attention was arrested by low and
delicate sound. 1t was the above-named tune
played upon a musical box. He entered
the house, and learned that the box had
been left there by two men who had just
gone out after drinking, and had apparently
forgotten it. The landlady knew the name
of one of the men, and McLevy, when he
heard it, knew the man and his haunts
He went Immediately and seized the thieves
and all the stolen property.