The New York herald., 1869-11-19
the LayaE AFFAIR IN BosgoT.
Singular Case OF Mistaken faentit5-one OF
the CrriasilIes OF Crime.


TFrom the Boston Traveller, Nov. lT.l
Some weeks ago IL viii be remenDereu that thfee
young men were arrested Ia an easus or Sorou no
Burglars tools In their possession An lnyestgalion
into the circumstances led TO lhe dscoyeiI sas nI @
the sale Ia the provision store OF Cnaries .. 1
William Simonds, on Lincoln street Tue men % WIZ
held in $4,000 eacn Tor eXarninationi tneir naules
are Thomas Murphy Charles May, alas MACE ana
Benjamin Goldsmith allas GOuld, AliaS Lafihc. ooo
seqLenty Murphy and Mace were dniy convicted,
and are now serving sentence in the state fIison
For reasons best known TO the authorities uoiu-
smiths trial was postponed. although inc eyiaeioe M
against hlm was suliclenty strong 10 benu hln :"
penal Institution. -.
few days since the authorities OF New York city
came 10 Boston for the purpose OF Identifying
Iayine the robber one Of tho robbers, OF Aehs
jeweiry store No $50 Broadway, some time during
the past two weeks, OF $4,000 worth OF properly
Two clerks from the establishment visited the Cam
bridge street Jail, and without any hesitation Wna
ever identified Lavine as being the man VINO COM
mitted the theft There seeming to be no doubt
whatever III regard to the matter IN company Win
MAJOR Jones, oil tue state poIice, ana New iofn oln
GERS the prisoner was taken TO that city. MAJOR
Jones' IN the meantime, had talked over the mater
Layine, VINO appeared unusually cheerful al Tue
new phase things had taken with MN lie WAS,
moreover, very anxious TO go TO New YORK, anu
said he had expected 10 be arrested Tor conf
mittlng the diamond robbery. II ne nad got
TO go to prison he would rather be in New
York, because he mad friends there VINO might VISIT
nm whIe III durance ylle.p MAJOR Jones now. now
ever, told the young man that Two indictments
were already hanging over MS head IN Sunolk
county and t5at those must be disposed oil rst ana
Lavme who assumed TO have some knowledge OF
the practice IN sach cases. urged that the diamond
aIIalr, being the more enormous IN the eye oi the
law would or ought TO be disposed OF first. lie was
very glad he was going 10 New York.
Arriving In tnat city Aliens store was visited ny
lice precinct Accostlng the proprietor, the captain
made known his business. 'fonr store was robped
! beneye," said he, "abd you nave hao tue thlel
arrestedY ~ Ion, yes sir; two OF my clerks IdeBt
ned the thief IN the Boston jail He IS the man, no
doubt.n Major Jones was then introduced TO the
make the acquaintance OF that eh1clent
as to whether his two clerks were certain
as to this man. The clerks would have sworn over
pile OF Bibles that Lavine was the man who per-
petrated the thet they remembered his taee and MS
clothes and he was the same man they saw and
idenuhed in the Cambridge street jail. "sutn says
one OF the oticers "there must be great mistake
here. Why, this man Layine has been confined in
the Boston jail ever since the 30th day OF August,
ana your store robbed subsequent 10 That tlme
Again, say, this must be case OF mistaken iden-
tlty." Proprietor ana clerks were dnmiounded az
this unexpected revelation. Inc proprietor looked
the clerks and the clerks looked at the proprietor
| in mute astonishment. "What does ali this meanW
| qnoth the proprietor
we don't Know what the explanation was that
followed, but IL evident to Major Jones that 1t
| was time to put on his thlnElng cap" 10 solve
| matter wnlch mad now become more mys,
| terlous than ever. Perhaps there was some
| connlvance somewhere between parties to cheat
| justice out Of It's demands, aud the matter
had better be probed To the bottom. Outsiders
are not expected TO he versed IN the arts OF tue
professional detective but certain t Is that Major
/
thread that unravelled the mystery IL Is dhcuit Tor
criminal or any OF his conederates or friends To
his track 30 completely as 70 deceive tne pene-
tratiug eve OF au officer who knows his 'Diz." Botn
or those officers know tlef Diz and IL did not take
long 70 prove how Aliens two clerks came to iden-
tify iayine being the man who robbed Tue store,
for this question OF tdentlty was the one that at
! first puzzled the officers. It seems that Laylne,
| whose real name Is Goldsmith, was formerly en-
poyed IN o well known store on Washington street.
| und while so employed he received good wages and
had good prospect before hlm as any young man
,.avn nxif mi A. a III
honest neart for capital; but "Lavneo fell into bad
| company, and beng somewhat inclined to nppro-
priating 10 himself property not his own, he either
| lett his employer or was discharged from service
/ Layne has wealthy brother III New York, and that
brother was acquainted with police officer iii thas
| City named Pihe
| Now il was an easy thing for person, under the
color OF an Official business, to gain an entrance to
| the Cambridge street jail and set his eyes upon
| IayIne. THIS was done. Money is powerful agent
in diverting the ends OF justice sometimes A man
sen, TO Boston for the purpose OF seeing Layine,
| and then teilng another man just now Layihe
| looked. He had a splendId, retentye memory tic
was good at remembering faces, even 10 the sgli
pimpe on tue cheek or the FAINT line Oh the fore
ncad or some little peculiarly about the coniorma
OF tue nose or tue exact angie Oh the curvature
| OF the rounded back.
! In duo time the authorities here were informed
that q man who had been arrested for burglary
answered to the description Of the robber OF jew
ery store in New York, anu hence IL Was thai
Lavine's trial was deferred.
| The clerks III the Broadway store, OF course. had
no knowledgQDf The private arrangement tnat had
| been made To get description OF Lavlne but the
| news was suddenly and confidentally impaired to
the propretor thereof that the supposed roober was
IN the Boston Jail having been arrested Tor crne
| IN that city. A minute description OF Layine WAS
then given OF tine man to the two clerks, wno I'M
| medIately packed their carpet-bags and came 10
| Boston, armed with the necessary papers to see the
in jail. They visited tue jail, as already stated
and from among a cro%d Of prisoners Lattno was
| instantly selected as being the man, He was taken
| to New Y9fK, and the incidents followed which we
nave recorded.
me whole case would seem to show that Laylne
| had an understanding with certain parties IN the
| whole transaction. ana that If he could have sue
| ceeded 10 exchanging his quarters from Boston "a
New York ne would have attempted, anI PROBABLY
| succeeded fD proving dttot far as the NeS
York ROBBERY Is concerned. Layine mas not BEEN
taken 10 New York nj all.
Another cause for Lavne's detention in jail was on
account OF some .'nformatioun wnicn he gave the
| government officers concerning some robDeres, but
| winch has proved fictitious.