The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1874-03-10
QUEER PEOPLE.


NOTED CoUNTERFErrERs-AN HOUR IN tn
NATIONAL RoGUEs' GALLERY-THR KING"
In the room of the secret service division
of the treasury department. at Washington,
may be seen a most interesting collection of
photographs. 1t is called the national
rogues' gallery and The Washington
Chronicle has written it up at great length.
From the account of the many noted rogues,
the history of Pete Mccartney, since known
as the skiing Of the counterieiters" may
be given as an extraordinary specimen OF
the class. Pete has several aliases, but
he is now familiarity known as "Joe
Woods, "John Warren" and "James Gfa-
ham" Pete's correct name is said to
sS be John lie bss bssS deHoed TSis mans
counterfeiting; and strange to say,
until the reorganization OF the secret
service force, under Colonel Whitley, he
was never effectually secured. He is de-
scribed as being nearly six feet in height, OF
powerful build, black hair, beard, and nous
Tache, deepest, restless, piercing black eyes,
crooked and thin nose, and shaggy, black
coarse eyebrows. Mccartney is naturally
talented, has an excellent education, a hne
delivery as a speaker, is an entertaining
conversationalist, possessed withal of subtle
cunning and pleasing address. He is
first-class printer, h chemist of no mean
ability, and, in short, one OF the most dan
gerous, as well as most successful, men who
ever prostituted mis- blains to that species
crime, and during the last quarter of cen
tury he has been arrested over twenty times
but always managed to escape before or a
ter the confinement. In 1866, McCartne.
married daughter of John Trout, e. note
cOunterfeiter, now serving a term in tn
Jackson, Michigan, state prison. Her mother,
Mrs. Trout, was dealer in queer"
Pete has had two children by his wife.
other. Mrs. Mccartney, whose like
ness joins that of her husband in
the frame, appears to be handsome, dark
eyed woman OF thirty. In 1864 he was ar
rested near st. Louis, and brought manacled
and handcuffed on the Pennsylvania Cen
tral railroad under a guard Of soldiers.
While the train was being wheeled along al
the rate of thirty five miles an hour he
dashed from the rear platform OF the car and
made his escape. In 1865 he turned up again
as the proprietor of a Photographic gallery
in Cairo, III. There, while practicing the art
he was giving counterfeit notes in change TO
his customers. The local police were again
after him, and captured the culprit, but he
again eluded the officers, and was not heard
of until 1866. At Rollln, Mo-, in that year
, he opened a livery stable. One day gem
tleman visited Pete to hire a horse and
wagon, anu Wls06u IL uilNou 10 us DOttl.
Mccartney saw through
THE DETECTIVES LITTLE GAME e.
and fled from the town. During the year
| following he was apprehended several times.
but through some mysterious agency always
succeeded in gaining his liberty. In the
summer of 1870 he was arrested in Spring.
field, H., for dealing in counterfeit money
but broke from the Springfield Jail on the
| night of his incarceration. The next place
the arch counLerfeiter made his home
was in st. Paul, Mimi. There he started
out on lecture tour, giving very inter
esting addresses on the art of detecting eoun
terleit money. He was known then a:
"Prot. James Graham" While engaged il
the lecture course he was busily di5tribut-
ing ''covey" 10 the guileless pu blic. Th'
police again got on his trail, and he was com
PEELED to abandon this little deceit. Shortly
after he opened an elaborately furnished
dentists parlor in East st. Louis and prac
ticed dentistry very successfully. Durin,
this time he managed to ''shove'' a large
amount of ''queer." In East St. Louis b,
was again taken into custody, but as usua
took French leave" Mccartney ha
stated his frequent escapes cost him owe
$40 700, paid to detectives, iail-keepers, anC
officers generally. In 1869, Col. Whitley
was appointed chief, and he at once deter
mined to crush out Mccartney and hi
gang. He was tracked to Portland, Kentuck,
:. and a descent made upon his home, but tn
bird had flown. The detectives, however
captured quantity of counterfeit plates
J printing presses, and tools. The partia
success was followed up, however, and Nc
Cartney was finally captured at Venice, ii
linos. Upon his arrest he offered TO deliv
er over to the officers large number @
counterfeit plates, including set OF plate
for all denominations of fractional currency
In additIon to this he offered $4,000 wort
of "queer'' if ne were released, but the offe
was refused. On the 25th of February, 1S7l
Pete was confined in the jail of Louisville
He was kept there until October of the sam
year, when his trial began. During th
[ pending of the trial he was bailed at Sl5 00'
= This amount he forfeited, and is still
large. 1t is generally believed that Pet
has given up this mode OF life, and is no
! following some honest calling in the oil
3 world.