The daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1873-1877, 1874-08-26
Don Jose,s Secret.

In the winter Of 1850, there came "
New Orleans from Havana Spa,nial C G
about thirty years old, and apparently -,
good social condition, whose only oassas1 70
was a large trunk, remarkably hgn' .oI
liz size and curiously pierced IN the top
With many holes. Instead OF gong TO q
hotel his frst business was to inquire ~
nossablv GOOD English, at various stores
apnJ hoHses near the wharf, for information
nfa garrett story to rent as no other abode
wonH suit his particular need, and he
wished to secure such one immediately.
Thus, by the time he had found a lofty
and comfortless sky parlor in a building
opposite the French market, and had his
huge and unweighty trunk transported
there on his own shoulders, many persons
in the city were prepared to regard him as
an eccentric mystery and watch his subse.
seouent proceedings with interest. This
curiosity increased when the stranger, who
paid his small rent in advance and did not
choose to give any name, fitted his trunk
into one of his garnet windows in place OF
the removed sashes as an extemporized
cote for the pigeons, which were presently
seen to fly in and out of it, What next
was the inquisitive feeling of those taking
note of this pathological development
and bar keeper across the street made il
his critical mission to watch the sallow gar
reteer narrowly thenceforth. But nothing
of particular importance ensued. Having
established his pigeonry, the stranger
seemingly adopted reserved, uneventful
life in his lonely lodgings, buying cheap
meals for himself and his feathered charg-
es at the market, and assuming poverty
of English words, by which all overtures
for familiar conversation were eftectually
discouraged, All that could be learned of
his habits by ocular observation was that
when the steamer from Havana came in he
sometimes had Cubanese guest as reserv-
ed as himself. who went back with the
ship; and that occasionally one of his
birds would be seen returning demonstra-
lively to the cote, as from longer absence
than usual. At last, after a year of these
appearances, the watchers concluded
that the man was some harmless
lunatic, with mania for birds, and was
visited at intervals by kindred or friends
from home Near the end Of the second
year he was absent from his garrett severa
weeks, and then, to the exasperating mys
LITIGATION of the bar-keeper and other curl
Gus neighbors, reappeared in a gorgeous
carriage, with liverles. to carry off hi
trunk of pigeons and return thither M
more Obviously some great change hat
come oyer the spirit of his life, for in {
few weeks more he was occupying costly
rooms in the st. Louis hotel as Don Jos
Castillo. In this new aspect he was scarce
ly recognizable as the late pigeonary of tn
forlorn garnet, and to the few of his for
mer observers who now met him h
conceded the fullest license of imagnativ
explanation that their iancies chose to in
dulge. FROM the hotel he removed to
stately mansion on Royal street, where, i
1856, he gave some of the finest social en-
tertainments in the city and maintaine
servants and equippage in extravagan
style Courtly manners and vastly i'm
proved English enabled him to become tn,
leader of a coterie of distinguished fashion
and his richly furnished house witnessed
many display quite in the Monte Crist'
style. Because he spent money lavishl.
it was thought that he must possess mi
lions, and the Don tacitly allowed thi
idea to exert what influence it might, un
til an episode of one of his dashing enter
tainments gave cue to lnvidous suspi
cion of his native high degree AmongS
the guests on the occasion il
question was gentleman who had neve
been there before and was observed to re
gard his host with peculiar attention
Later on, when somewhat flushed wit
wine, this person uttered an eXclamatlU
of surprise and declared emphatically t
those near him that he had finally recogn
zed in the aristocratc Don Jose Castillo
former prowling foreigner to whom he ha
once sold ticket in the Havana lotter,
which had ultimately drawn heavy capita
prize. The foreigner had heard of hi
purchase of the ticket and came to hin
with an offer to buy, which he had ac
cepted. Here was scandal at once, since
according to American ideas, it detracted
from the present patrician pretentions OF
the splendid Cuban and its rapid circula-
ton III society led to the elicitatiou OF
nearly every known tact OF the Don s hrs
year in the city. This alone, however
might not have troubled Castillo greatly
had his fortune Leen equal to report. Blu
he was not a millionaire. His costly styl,
in Royal street was really exhausting hi.
gold at a fearful rate, and just as the Cos
sips were concluding that, whatever hi,
past history and practices, his final posi-
ton was improguable, the fine house. fur
niture, and horses went into the hands o.
the sheriff. With the crash he disappear
cd ahrutiy from high life, leaving his late
fair weather friends to solve the mystery
IT they could but it was not until he haC
almost passed from fashionable memory
that the truth about him came out. Of a
really respectable though not wealthy fam
lily in Cuba, he had been infatuated with
the lottery business of Havana from the
dawn OF his manhood, and, after devoting
nearly ten years to futile schemes for gain
rug fortune therctrun, suddenly conceiv
ed the following idea. lie would go la
New Orleans, where many tickets were
regularly bought, and take thither a brood
OF choice carrier pigeons. After the bird,
were duly domeStieated and familiarized,
an accomplice should come to him by
each steamer from Havana, and carry one
or more of them back. Then, when the
drawing Of the lottery took place. the mum
Der OF the tickets drawing prizes tor New
Orleans should be sent bv the pigeon,
which would make the passage in nine
hours, and thus enable Castillo to seek the
holders of such tickets. long before any
one else could possibly know the fortunes
OF such numbers, and buy the tick
cts from them on apparently blind
speculation. As many an amateur
possessor OF such property, all ov-
or the world, is glad enough to sell out
within few hours of his Investment, and
can generally be traced without much
trouble from the distributing agencies, the
shrewd master Of the pigeons reaped much
average gam by his unsupported aerial de
spatches, and finally as above revealed,
took heavy ''capifal prize" Thence his
change from the garrett tn the hotel and
Royal street. Even after his rise he had