The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1875-11-10
THE PRINCE OF BURGLARS.
Interesting Career Of q Fastidious Bank Rob-

Der.
During the last six weeks broadway has
lacked one of lis handsomest, best dressed
lOungers, and the theatres one of their
most regular attenoants-P Curley.
The reason Is that he is in Vermont
prison, awaiting trial as the leader in the
Barre bank robbery. Mr.. Curley has for
many years made = business of burglary,
amassing thereby fortune estimated at
several hundred thousand dollars and his
money and adrotness have, until now, got
him out of every trouble with the law. His
undertakings have invariably been OF great
magnitude, like the Waterford and other
profitable bank robberies. Although many
times arrested, he has never been brought
to trial. In most instances return of part
of the spoil, through rogues among the de-
tectives, has been his way to freedom. His
exploit at Barre, however, is likely to
bring him to justice, for the queer reason
that he and his comrades in the burglary
got no plumber. The bank lost nothing.
and so has no incentive to compound a fell
ony (; consequently, he can only use his
money IN corrupting public officers, and
there are no indications that he is accom-
plishing anything in that manner.
Peter Curley came from Troy, N. w., a
city that has sent noteworthy company
of thieves and gamblers to New York. He
is an uncommonly handsome fellow, about
thirty-fve years old, dresses elegantly, and
| is, in appearance, what the masses call
aristocratc He has never mixed socially
with thieves, is personally doubtless entire.
ly unknown to most of them, and only dur.
ing the last four or five years has he beer
known with certainty as burglar. Before
| that he was only suspected, not because he
had been definitely implicated in any crime
| but on account of his lavish way of spend
| ing money. He still lived in Troy then,
and had no ostensible business. He lived
luxuriously, but without dissipation, was
always genllemanly in demeanor, dressed
| in careful, good taste, and was excessively
| generous, often contributing to funds fol-
! public uses. His accumulation of proper.
| ~ was steady and rapid He owned the
st. Charles hotel in Troy. and resided in it,
occupying sumptuous apartments.
One night the hotel was set on fire while
being reconstructed, but not badly dam
aged, and it was found that phosphorus
had been scattered about to hasten the
combustion. An investigation showed
that the insurance was high and that
valuable contents included in the schedules
had been secretly removed The general
belief was that Curley had planned, it moi
executed, the incendiaiism but when O
local newspaper said So he pretended
| to be unjustly accused, threatened libel
suit, and secured a retraction.
| His first arrest was for O burglary In
| West Troy, when he took $4,000 in cash
and government bonds from safe in the
Roy shawl factory. He was not punished
however, and the facility with which he
got out of that difficulty has since been re-
peated often. He is supposed to have beer
the leader in eleven bank robberies, plan.
ming the crimes, furnishing the money fol
heavy expenses and fine burglary machin.
cry, directing the work, and taking lion
shares of the booty The detectives say
that he has never been suspected of the
robbery of anything except safes, and that
his enterprises have invariably been planned
and executed with great care and skill
often occupying months Miles, also under
arrest for the Barre burglary, has for many
years been in Curley's employ, and he has
provided lucrative work to several Other
subordinates.
Curley left Troy soon after acquiring the
undoubted reputation of being burglar,
and has since resided in this city, managing
his large property, and adding to II by pro-
fitable robberies. He is well educated,
very intelligent, and has none of the ordi-
Diary social habits of thieves. His liking
of theatres made him a liberal patron OF
them, the more so, he said, as he was cut
off by his reputation from society that
would have been congenial. He often oc-
cupied box at the opera, too, and had