Bozeman avant courier. [volume] (Bozeman, Mont.) 1872-1882, 1874-02-27
SOLD SlN.'
HOW A DETECTIVE FOUND HIM OUT.
From the Dark Side Of New York Life

rFron the Dark Side Of New York Life
People who live in the BOwcry, OF
the vicinity OF Hester street, New
York, or who have had occasion to be
much III that locality, will probably re-
member il hobbling old man, some
what lame, and supporting himself nl
Il thick stick, who was often to bc . i
there OH Sundays, as well as. week
days, some two years ago. lie was
,lcccntly dressed, but was only known
as .Old Sam" He was supposed to
live New Jersey, but no one precisely
knew. He was generally taken for a
farmer, or for IL resident III some little
outlying place. People called him also
.I.a:ne SAM" and whoever heard his
u,i:et mode Of sDcaking, and saw the
fiicEdIy smile that was always lighting
up his face, must have taken him for a
very harmless man. And whoever met
him Gil Sundays vending his way to
church with Il most dcvout aspect,
must assuwdly have thought that he
was very good Old man, who was
going tI,ithcr ont ct p:irc picty.
But ..Laine Sam" was yer, little Of
a saint; on the contrary, lie WAS Il
most :,rrant scoi,ntlrcl, who, to get
money, was capable OF any wicked
ness, and only went to church for bad
motives. In everything he did he had
a dishonest object in view; and, al
though he was generally considered
rs good old man, he was, in truth,
nothing else than a crafty, dcccitful
scountlrcl, an,! the confederate of a
notorious torgcr, burglar and safe thief
named Crosby.
Sam lad been running his evil
course for some years, and had Sys-
tcmatically circulated counterfeit mon
ey wherever occasion had guided him
in his wandcrings; a proceeding which
was easy enough to him Will, his seem
inyly honest face, and an aspect from
which one would have thought that
he could not say ''bOO to i goose"
And fortune favored! him SO we'll and
so long that le succeeded in accunu-
lating !. SUN ef money which enabled
him to buy Il fine farm in Quakcrtown,
whicl, brought him i'll handsome re-
turn.
Sam was always ut work, Tor the cir
culation If counterfeit money cOnt:n-
t;nueL to remain his sole occupation.
But he conducted this vile business SD
cautiously, SO crattily, and under such
ii piOHs air, that it never occurred to
any one to take him for what he really
was. And SO, as lie llobbled about
from Place t. place, lie WIS always the
subject 0: IL tiiendlyagool word, until
one day the chief OF the United States
datec.;vc police, Colonel Whitney, con
cciycl a suspicion against him. AMI
thus the man who had for SO many
years been cheating people with false
money began to be watched.
AS before remarked, Sam always
carried a stick. Which, as lie said, Ire
could not do withM!t, because lie WAS
so lame, that he therefore required
strong support. Wherever he was
seen, wherever lie went, sitting or
standing, he had the stick constantly
in his hand. He never let it 60 from
him. But, one day, tho thought oc-
cured to the detective who was en-
trusted with the case, that there must
be something more about that stick
than ut first appeared, and he deter
mined to come at the truth Of it.
AbO..t that tine there was large
number Of counterfeit notes of various
in circulation iii New |
Jersey, and down as far as Maryland.
The detective officer, working under
the assumed name Of Rugg, found out
that Sam often paid visits in that di-
rectiOu.
So the officer scrapcd an acquaint-
,nce with Sam. At first, meeting him
N the road, he would 80 with him,
hen he very soon took journey on
he railroad with him, and the two
we're constantly i'll bar-rOoms and beer
louses together. He drank and Cos
'ippel with hlm, and thus the acquain-
ance grew thicker; at last on one oc-
'asiOn Sam was observed to pass a
ten dollar bill in hotel,
md soon after to repeat the action in
mother house.
NUW tuC OlllCCl NCAU " NO1ks kilIu |
vas travelling about in New Jersey,
mt Rugg was watching him uMOb-
erved; and, one day, just after Sam
ad come out of a hotel in a country
lace, the detective went in and asked
1hethcr Sam had spent any money
here.
EYES," answered the landlord, "lifty
ents. He is an old miscr-never stays
Trough the night"
"What money did lie give you -
sked Rugg.
'cA ten-dOllar note"
"May see it,"
"Yes, here it is, y answered the pub
can, taking the note out of the till.
"rhe note is hati,7 Rugg quietly re-
larked.
"The devil it is," cried the host.
"NOthing but counterfeit, my
riend! Not worth a cent?
"Damn it'll" shouted the publican.
nd he burst into torrent of 0atls.
Iut Rugg whispered to him: t.NOw be
uiet, friend, l am q detective. Leave
he rest to me and take care of the
Ote till / return"
Upon this Rug left him, and, going
n the road ;,,'er Sam, soon overlook
i'm II