The New Orleans bulletin. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1874-1876, 1874-10-27

THROWN In PRISON TO BE ROBBED.

THROWN IN PRISON TO BE ROBBED
Luther Bryant is an old man, who keeps
sort of street stand in New York. He deals il
Old coins, postage stamps. and all kinds o
curiosites, and nobody knew much about hi
J worldly circumstances or private life. At leas
he supposed tina no one knew anything abou
these things. He lived in the third story of
tenement in q tumble-down locality, and b,
J lived alone. His stall on the street corne
presented the appearance of bazaar of anti
quarian tribes. He bought and sold various
unique and fancitul articles. He bought, bu
never sold postage stamps. They were hi
, pet weakness
| The other day old Mr.. Bryant was arrested
by man who called himself "a prig ate de
tective, at the instance of Mr.. Eberhard Fa
Der, the lead-pencil man. The charge wa!
buying stolen postage stamps from q son O.
Mr.. Faber, and he was locked up in thu
Tombs until the authorities should get ready
to look into the case. He was not used te
prison life, and was exceedingly rest
less in his dungeon. He felt tina,
he was honest, and he felt concern about
something else which had been until ther
a secret Of his. He told some of his fellow
prisoners that he had many valuables in his
house and was afraid he would be robbed
while in jail. They advised him to engage a
lawyer. One agreed to undertake his case,
and he paid him s25 in advance The lawyer
went away and the old man never saw him
any more He could get no word to any
friend outside, and the prison authorities
would admit no one to see him. He felt him
self dead and buriei in that prison. It was a
terrible nightmare constantly dreamed he
was being robbed, and yet he could neither
move nor speak. So Mr. Bryant spent several
days and nights in the Tombs.
| A little girl wandering about the passages
| of the tenement in which the old man lived
and locked himself up. discovered one day
| that MIR. Bryant's rooms were open. This
was SO unusual that she told her mother of
the circumstance The mother found that the
rooms had been broken open, and told the
police. The police came and examined the
apartments, and, upon inquiry after the occu-
pant, ascertained that he was in the Tombs.
They went to see him, but were refused adj
mission. They finally got an order for some
prison authority to be admitted to the
presence OF the prisoner. They saw and
and pillaged The news nearly struck old
Luther Bryant dead. 1t was long time be-
fore he recovered from the shock sufficiently
to speak, when he told the police officers his
story, and they did not believe it. They,
however, had the case brought before the Dis
trict Attorney, and there appearing to be no
charges against him, the old man was finally
released. Several members of the police ac-
companied him to his rooms, and he sat down
amid the wrecks like sailor cast upon a
desert shore who had lost all but life, and
deems that useless. The old man now re-
counted the treasures which had been in those
rooms and the officers examined the evidences
so far as they could exist He told them where
everything was concealed, how it was secured
and what it was worth. "Under that
bureau he said, sobbing, lat least in the
false drawer beneath the others, and between
the bottom of that drawer and the ground
were 5000 in $40 gold pieces Each piece
had been weighed by me in those little scales
you see," pointing to them and holding them
up for their better observation. Every COIN
was stamped by me, bya small hole punched
in the head Of the goddess of liberty, and l
never marked piece unless it was full weight
and good one of its kind. They were done
up in rouleaux and packed in brown paper,
with silk paper inside-all nice little pack
there. In this tin box, which they
have torn open, had So, 600 worth of old
gold, silver, copper and nickel COINS The
box was nearly full, and I was thinking of
buying q new one I used to keep it on the
top shelf of that cupboard. Now, who would
think of finding such a thing there? l had
to get the stepladder to take it down when
wanted it. In that leather bag-a perfectly
new one-which they have cut open at the
frame on both sides, had $500 worth Of mu-
tilated currency and jewelry. That trunk
contained something about $50. 600 worth of
other property. It held stock certificates for
2O,O0O, $1,000 in legal-tender notes and 500
worth of new fitty-cent and ten-cent currency.
Il have lost, also, gold watch, marked
IN. D. in old English, with four-ounce case,
which was made for me by Appleton, Tracy
& Go. The number of the case is 800. At |
tached to it was a heavy gold chain weighing |
one hundred pennyweight and composed Of
solid oblong bars, partly engraved. There was |
also Spanish topaz ring set in twenty-seven
small diamonds; pair of amethyst sleeve |
buttons, marked IN. d.; a pair of gold |
glasses with tortoise shell |
spring; a dozen of silver tea spoons; a mus
tard, sugar dsalt spoon and amethyst bosom
was quantity clothing and pearl album,
inlaid. Everything disappeared
but the few articles Of furniture you see"
But the rooms themselves were surprise
They were elegantly furnished with splendid
carpets, bureaus, mirrors, clocks of fantastic
and the walls were hung with
fine pictures. The furniture alone was worth
several thousand dollars. Mr.. Bryant COM
putes his lose at $50, OOO-in money and
other valuables; and that he had this amount
boarded in the rooms, the officers have now
almost certain proofs They are satisfied that
he robbery is fact. There is little doubt
hat Mr.. Bryant was thrown into prison for
he express purpose of robbery. It was all a
leep-laid plot to plumber him Of ths boarded
reasure of life. He has offered $4,000 for
he arrest Of the burglars, but as the old man
las no ready money now, they are doubtless
afe.
Heroes Of the Rail.
The true heroism of Jim Bludsoe, engineer
# that historical wreck the Prairie Belle"
n "holding her nozzle agin the bank till the
asst galoot's ashore, was nobly initiated day
y two since by an engineer and fireman on
he Marietta and Cincinnati Railroad Their
rain, bound eastward, had to cross a bridge,
me span of which crossed creek and the
ther roadway. The train was moving slow
2 as il neared the bridge its speed not ex-