Connecticut western news., 1875-05-28
ALitehrield County Thief.
HIS DEATH BED ooNFEss1oN-A REMARKABLE
 STORY.

ChenangO county, N. Y. The man gave his name as Burr Deming, and was notice able for the absence of hair on his head and face. Shortly after his arrest he was taken i'll and continued to grow worse until Sat- urday, when he died. The day before he died he requested clergyman to be sum- moned to his bedside, as he desired to make certain revelations and confessions before he died. The story he told, or portions of it, have just been made public, and is one of the most extraordinary narratives known to the records of crime.
 He was born, he said, in Sharon, Litch- field county, Conn.,, and the fact of his having no hair attracted the attention of P. T. Barnum when that snowman first started out, and who engaged him to travel with him. Barnum advertised him as Van couver, the no-haired man of VancouVer's Island, feature of the early exhibitions of Barnum which will be remembered by many yet living. He was with Barnum seven years, and then left him to follow life of crime, which he adhered to ever after. He was married eight times, and seven of his wives he declares are yet liv ing--one in New York, two in Philadel- phia, one in Connecticut, one in New Or leans, one in Lockport and one in Boston. He said he had been concerned in more than 300 burglaries since he left Barnum, three of which were attended with murder. He had been arrested 115 times, and served many terms in prison, ranging from six months to two years. The last time he was sentenced was in Buffalo. He was an ac- complice of Dan Noble in the celebrated bond robbery of 1869, and in 1870 he was tried at Buffalo and sentenced to five years in Auburn prison. He served two of it and was then pardoned eut by Governor Hoffman at the petition of friends.
 After leaving Auburn Deming went te Canada He had been there but few months when he joined gang of burglars and planned and helped to execute the rob- bery of St. Catherines bank. He was ar rested before he could leave the province, all the rest escaping. When put upon trial he succeeded in establishing an alibi through the testimony of one Mary Wash burne, supposed respectable seamstress of St. Catherines, but in reality the wife of one of the gang, and an accomplice in the robbery. There is reward, Deming said, of $5OOO still standing for the arrest of the parties engaged Ill the St. Catherines rob bery They got away with about $2o, ,O0O and large amount of bonds, These latter, according to the dying criminal, were bur jed in Delaware county line, and are there yet for all he knew to the contrary. Dem. ing said that the robbery of the United States mail of five bags of valuable matter at Utica year ago was planned by him, but he did not participate in the robbery, although he knew all the parties engaged in it, and how they have managed to elude justice. He was one of the gang who committed the Comstock robbery, also in Utica, which he said did not yield the amount that was reported as taken,sit being in fact an unprotitable job. Besides these leading crimes Tn which he was concerned, Deming confessed to being leader in nu- merous others which acquired but a local reputation, but which were important as to the profit they yielded. He claimed to know who broke open the Port Jervis bank in 1869, when about $50, ,O0O in money and bonds were stolen, and said he was one of the watchers outside when 1t was done. Demlng also said that he knew who robbed and murdered Mr. Edwards few months ago at CooperstoWn. It will be recollected that Edwards. who was wealthy resident of Cooperstown, was attacked at night at his residence, robbed and murdered. By a hat which was left behind by the murderer or murderers,a supposed clew was obtained to party concerned in the crime, and he was arrested. Deming said they had not got ihe right man that he knew to whom the hat belonged. He gave detailed ac count of that crime, mentioning the names of those concerned in it, and made many extraordinary developments which the au- thorities who now have the sworn comics sion will not as yet divulge. Deming lived but few hours after making his statement and was fully aware of his approaching dissolution.
 Il Opinion is to the truth of his confession is considerably divided; many believing that dying man would not trump up thu stories he fold, and others claiming tha
 Deming was crazy. An investigation O
 the statements will be made, and thei
 truth or falsitY settled at once.