Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1871-11-21

America Destroyed.
From the Chicago Tribune.l
That our conhagration reduced to Gin
ders thousands Of valuables which car
never be replaced, whose great value
consisted in that very inability to be re
placed, is too evident to be descanted on
The loss Of the records in the court
house, and the numerous suggestions fol
the restoration Of land titles, make i
painfully evident that this fact is only
too we'll appreciated. But these were
public property, and no one thinks o.
denying that their loss was public ca
lamity. But there were private records
whose loss is a public calamity. If any
one thinks otherwise perusal of the
following may tend to change his opin
ion of the subject.
Thousands of thieves, and hundreds
of thousands of people, were as fully ac
quainted with the name Of Allen Pinker
ton as Of Thomas jefferson, or Jack
the Giant-Killer, and his detective
agency was as famous an institution al
Boston Common. The system ovel
which he presided was the result o
years of patient toll and perseverin(
energy, and the reputation enjoyed BY
him was the fruit Of that toll, and en-
ergy, and perseverance. With huge
central office in Chicago, and branchei
in New York and Philadelphia, the cham
pion thiefcatchec had his prey so un
comfortably situated as to be all tn,
time in the tolls, only they didn't know
it.
The system was not destroyed, but {
portion of It's foundation has given away
and the savings of twenty years-not il
dollars and cents, but in records whicl
dollars and cents can never replace
vanished in about half an hour. Mr.
Pinkerton started his famous detective
agency in Chicago in 1852 and two year'
later, when il began to assume large pro
portions, the records were commenced
The most minute details Of every case
were all faithfully recorded; the state
ment Of every applicant for as
sistance in receiving property; the de.
tectives to whom the "job" was in
trusted; his orders; his report Of the op
erations; the disposition by the thief o
the property stolen; the amount recov
cred, and, indeed, every detail Of thG
case. Then, when the thief was brought
to trial, the whole of the Testimony il
the case was taken down, and the iina
disposition of the prisoners duly re
corded, SO that from the time a com
plant was made at Pinkerton's head
quarters that money or property had
been missing, complete history of the
thief and his pursuers, until the disap
pearance Of the former in the peniten
tiary or his acquittal, was recorded
The amount Of matter thus created wal
astonishing. For the mere clerica
work upon it more than $50, 900 had beer
paid OF such curious records ther'
were no less than 400 gigantic volumes
of great value. These were nearly al
slowed away in isix Of Harris larges
safes, while the remainder we're place.
in wooden cases. 1t is needless to stat
that every one of them was destroyed
That in itself would have been public
calamity.
Mr.. Pinkerton also possessed eomplet
records of the secret service Of the Arm.
of the Potomac. They were of immens
value, being not only the complete, bu
the only set in existence Mr.. Pinker
ton, whose facilities for obtaing correc
information during those days were, o
course very much greater than any one
else could boast, valued them at $50 900
The government had already Offered
$50, 600 for them-fifty-nine volumes al
toEether-and negotiations were still
going on. The whole set perished.
Pinkerton had in his employ larg'
number of preventive policemen, who's
occupation was watch while all th'
citys sleeping, to chase the rogues tina
prowl by night, as the two genddTme
were wont to sing. These men had or
ders every night to make out repor
when they came in. They had to Civ
an account of their proceedings on theiI
beat, the condition Of the weather, wha
unusual circumstances they witnessed
who they saw, and what they said or di,
to him or her. These reports were al
copied into the records. There werC
forty of these ponderous volumes, which
were obtained at n cost Of forty dollars
each. Their value may be imegined
They were frequently consulted in Conr
proceedings for the purpose of gaininl
information as regards the weather, th'
condition of the streets, the presence o.
absence Of the, men, and other polio
men. There we're in all forty-eight pa
trolmen, who gave each an account o
these particulars, and it is presumablC
that their accounts generally coincideC
80 far as atmospheric conditions wert
concerned. OF course the records wer,
all destroyed. In the frstmade rush
when the men seized every thing OF
which they could lay their hands, they
carried two Of these volumes down stairs
and threw them on q wagon, into which
much other miscellaneous matter wal
thrown also. The remainder shared the
fiery fate common to every thing in th'
burnt district.
In a small room adjoining Mr. Pink
erton's private Office were a humber o
plain wooden cases, in which were storeC
the files of the daily papers since 1854
There was not a copy Of daily or week
ly paper issued since 1854 of which Mr.
Pinkerton had not a duplicate. Many
were bound together, and los volume
covered them all. There were printes
instructions posted all round the wall
giving instructions to the men, in case o
fire, to move these perishable goods first
trusting the safes to protect the records
1t was supposed that the Harris safes
which cost 1870 each, and Herring
safe, which cost 5000 would be Eortl
something as a protection against FIRE
but the result proved them valueless
Only one safe preserved its contents un
injured, and that one by fortunate ac
cident Owing to some misconstructioT
ia the building, one safe, containing
.n,,,n ~ thn nncntnt hnnl.s md recninl