The Plymouth Democrat. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1869-1941, 1869-10-21
stairs. "Didn't 1 tell your It's "a

Although TWO pair OF SIalrS separated
me from the partner OF my bosom, was
aware of the sniff which succeeded, and
| implied 40 yes; you're quite right, my
man; this as MT. Trumway's. You
needn't be afraid you've mistaken the
house. There isn't such another man in
the neighbOrhood as lives at No. 49," But
aloud, she proceeded, "Quie right
| bring it in, please" "John, Do you
Sniff (bcing interpreted): "Or would
like it taken into the drawing room, OF
placed on the dressing-table of the spare
room perhaps, or on the study mantel-
piece?"
1 thought it better to go down stairs.
go, leave it in the passage" said. "No
one will steal it."
40 dear, no." said my wife with little
smile "No one will steal 1t; that's quite
certain" l admit it was not seductive
looking object now.
When we were alone, Mrs. Trumway
asked me what intended to do with the
safe, which was the very question l had
Teen asking myself ever since returning
from the SALE
"What do l intend doing with it, my
dcar?" repeated, to gain time. "Why
-yes-ah that is-do with it? Why,
open it, of course"
She sniffcd sniff equal to two columns
of printed matter Although my answer
was not premeditated, didn't think it al
together bad notion. Accordingly, for
the next two or three weeks my house be-
came the constant resort of blacksmiths,
whitesmiths, locksmiths, and people in the
engineering way, all of whom, however,
failed utterly in the attempt to open the
unpickable, undrillable fire and thief
proof, Lot 217. They fairly owned it
beat them. wanted the safe opened,
however, for the reason that, being
opened, it might become an article per-
haps useful or saleable, whereas now it
was neither. One morning, an idea of
unusual brilliancy occurred to me, and
put on my hat, and went out to put it in
practice. / walked up to our great model
Jail, and saw the governor, with whom /
had previously some acquaintance. l told
him l should feel deeply obliged if he
could render me assistance, and then came
to the purpOrt of my visit.
"Have you, my good sir, such things as
good strong burglar on the establishment
that you could lend me for an hour or
two?' And l explained what wanted
him for. But the governor shook his
head, and said he was sorry to disOblige
me, but it really couldn't be done, as all
their burglars were in use, and couldn't
be spared off the premises. Very good
but supPosing were to send the safe up
to the burglar to while away few hours
of his leisure at congcnial pursuit mo
lie didn't see that he could it would be
against the rules; besides which, their
burglars had become SO reformed by at
tention to the ministrations of the chap
lain, that it was exceedingly doubtful If.
they would be willing to return to sinful
ways, such as breaking open safes, lest it
might show a worldly spirit that would
with their tickcts-Of- leave; and
then, again, there were no burglars tools
i'll the jail.
"Tll tell you what, though" he said,
after bit 81 dare say could find you
man who would do it.
They report themselves to us at stated in
tcrvals, SO that we always know where to
find them. Indeed, think / know just
the very man, and will send him to you"
One evening in the twilight, about a
week afterwards, our servant came i'm, in
some alarm, to say that two very ILL look
ing men were at the back door, who said
they had "come to crack the gov'nor's
money box" They were not nice looking
men. One of them, a great brawny ruffian,
with head and neck like bull, and
wisp of colored handkerchief over a shirt
less chest, hairy as Esau's, gave me stolid
nod when | went out.
"Thc boss up at the Model" he said,
pointing with his thumb over his shoulder
ln the direction of the Jail, "asked me if
so be as | would Obige you by crackin' a
little bit of box you've got You sec,
gov'nOr, l ai'nt any tools o. my own, so
I've brought pal who's got his 'Lady's
Companion with him, to do the Job" in
dicating his friend, who carried parcel
OF tools done up in mating. l should say
lie was not nice man to have for friend
"a spare, short, cunning little fellow, with
restless eyes; face that gave you the inn
preston of a weazers; and thin nose,
with continual nervous twitching in the
nostrls, like rabbits, as though he was
an animal always on the scent for game or
hunters, which perhaps he was His name
was TOney.
| brought them in, and pointing out the
safe, asked if they thought they could open
it.
"Open !" repeated Toney, with ineffa-
bic contempt, why kid could open it
with pen-nive! It's one of them Uninl-
Bill" he said to his mate
you remember 'cm; like what we had
at (somc name l couldn't catcb).
Why, | could blow it open it with an
ounce of baccer in quarter of an hour"
Well,' / said, az would give you five
shillings TO open it."
Would you, be-gar?" growled the big
man. Our terms is 'arf suv'rin'-me
and Toney-and two pots of beer, and
two ounces of bacccr; and then it's a ia
vor, on account of our doin' it to oblige
the boss. And we amt a-going to do it
here, un'stan' but if you've got e'er q bit
of clubhouse out at the back, where we
can be private, Wen do the job there on
the quiet"
| was obliged to accede to their terms
Qndee'. they were both persons / would
not have had difference with for the
world). So they carried the safe into the
tool house in the garden, where supplied
them with the quantity of ale and tobacco
agreed on, and they shut themselves in.
"1ts only a case fer the alderman
Bill, heard the little man remark as |
left Them
In twenty-fiv minutes, by my watch,
'hO JUL Cdlllc anu tOlu lie III
was done. mot that we've been all this
time about it though, guv'nor, for Toney
he prised it open in five minutes, as easy
as oyster, but we've been settin' and
dein' quiet pipe together.
They certainly had opened it, not by
picking the lock, as anticipated, but by
wrenching off the back, so that the safe
was completely destroyed. They had
drilled two holes in the back-plate, to al
low OF inserting two immensely powerful
steel crowbars in such position that the
leverage of the two bars would tell one
against the other, and wrench out the in
termediate piece. From the appearance
of the holes and the smell in the out house,
| judged the men had previously lowered
the temper of the steel back with blow
pipe in the places where they intended to
drill. / felt disposed to be angry at the
destruction of the safe, and was going to
say so, when Toney pointed out a dirty
roll of papers lying inside. took them
out, unrolled them, and forgot my wrath