The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1870-03-10
rnE sEcRErs or sIArEY ISLAND.



ONster--lIow Jahn Prop0sed to Fix h =
-toNc-A hHn Oilers John sJGO-.Iohn
Rctus u-rbrec Detectives Nail John
on his TbresboId-Morai.
About the Goth Of January last, John Storer.
who lives at Princes Bay. near Tottcnvile, {. l..
went down 10 TIC shore to rick no oysters. The
tie was s~'ra low. While wandering along the
beach, opposite fgrm, formorly owned by BonJa.
min Howard, he saw a nit metal plate lying on ~
stones on the beach at Low water mark. The plate
vac quite rusty Mr. storer threw II up on the bank
A coiored man coming slonI picked up the plate
and was about to carry II Oh, when Mr.. storer re
qucsted lin 70 let It alone, His stove broken
and he thouILt lie could memo Il with the plate Mr.
storer ihen walked on with his prize. Il had be.
come dry, bud through the rast he saw what he de
scrbes some singular little marks" upon g.
Meeting Mr.. Tut, neiEhbor and an old sea captain
BE- show ed him tho plate, sayiugi
Look here: see what have 'ound."
Mr. TuG went into his barn, poured some oil upon
the plate, aud rubbed 1t vigorously With a wooI'en
rag Under the rubbing the lines upon the plate
we're brought to light Mr. Tun read the words
"B--- - Howard" The other characters looked
" " they were revenue stamps for match boxes Mr.
TUT then ssil 10 John:
lyon know that OF the fellows intere- ted
in this match factory here. were arrested las.
fall, charged with having counterfeit match STAMPS
In their possession. Tho oficers found some Of u
STAMPS buried In q garden, aud the press was hidden
ina Fartet, hut trey could never find the ollte One
oil those men wa- man named Howard This Is
one Of the plates q at they printed those stamps
nom a. sure as You're born think It looks IKE
one nj those Tlate~'
well" snid John, ~ don't know anvthinr abont
". can't zee Uhat II II, nor don't know It's lust
sXac,ly vi at want 70 fin my stove. thought It
VAS piece ~ ~ eoi-tron when nr-i found II, D."
JOHN then took tie plate to his fathers house
where he VAS stoopn; at the time. When he went
home lie carried Il Q plate with him. Meanwhile n e
story offs discovery hal Tot out among the ncigh
bOfs, aud hld lorOme a common topic ol cOuvrrsl-
ton on the island Thinking that he would &c,
something f the plue Il he could IND Mr. Howard,
who formerly carried on The mitch factory. John
went To Nv. LNon. siorekee or, AMI asked him
u he knew were Mr.. Howard was. Mr. Lyons,
who If said 20 have formerly been agent for Mr..
Howard sltl thu ne didn't know whore MIR. How.
I'D was, hut he thought he could ind out. John
tren tod LYONS an shout the plate
Two weeks afcrward Mr. Howard visited tho
island lie went to Cornelius Nance VITO live, on tho
trm opposite tue poirt OF The oeach where the Plate
MS found, an toid him thu n he you'd get tho
olate e would give him TWENTY-FIVE dohlrs, When
Mr., Nance told John what Howard sale, John said
that he would not sell the pla'o II the owner ~
the plate would come Tor Il, bee could hAye H. II the
owner would make him present h. would sladl,
gve II up But he didrt van l. sell the plate to
any stranger, because Il didn't bel W 10 tin, lle
cient Kno~ ~d't tho plate, wa, good for beyond
Oight to give him StO0 f'r H.
In abou' week, Mr Ripon, In whose girlen the
counterfeit stamps " IRE uneart cd last fail All vho
Owned tno press described by Mr. Tun met John,
lzkcd him about the plate, aud told Inn that n he
would dc iyeT II 10 lin at certain Tllce In New
York he would give him Eve hundred dollars. John
reused tie morey, lie sid be was afraid he would
get himself into trout le, and he Wouid do nodnug
" the kiud Rpon tnen len.
Determined Ia find out whether the plato Nns
counterfeit or not, and what Il WIZ WORTH John De.
termned to come 10 the city, aud make inquiries Of
tie GOyornmout uncer. Mr.. Tuh accompanied
him. John was alarmed. and Nas fearful OF getting
iutO trouble. They visited tNO revenue officers Whn
looked Al the Plate listened TO Johns story aud
told him that they thought the plate wasn't worth
mytli. z ono vav or tho other, but advised him 10
go TO some higher otcill, giving HIM a name n,d
address John and MI 1un visited The third or ,ius
rooms but ne was not In. II being nearly dark they
returned to Staten Hand.
.tiet 81 four Gays after Jonhs interview with
RipOn, posse # detectives visited Johns residence
and arrested him, without giving him time TO tell hrs
wife where be WIS going, lie was BROUGHT bofnc
Judge Benedict, OF Brooklyn, and held over night
In The morning Johns father, An old man over sew
suty ,enrs OF age entered the court room, haled
his son In the sun Of 81, 100 Tie case will come up
on the 18th inst, at 10 A.. NJ
II IL supposed that NAen the officers made their
raid on the cuunterfeters last fall, Howard RipOu,
or some OF their oonleder.tos, ~ deatroy tie evi
denee OF thor guilt. tossed the pate into the ocean
from the dock 10 front OF Towards former resi-
dence. The action OF he Waves, however and the
u es washed the pmte to the spot where " was
fund by tho innocent AID disappearing country
man Who NJ ould certainly be acquitted The moral
o this stoTy Is Never NEEDLE with counterfeit