Litchfield enquirer., 1876-10-12

I0FTlnglY correct, tho .lgh based on SnredS 1of evidence that fail far short of legal proof In this instance the thief, from long familiarity with the rules of law, be- ieved there was no possible way in which the hand of justice could reach him. Yet fora man of the world, who had nayigat- ed safely through many perils he now ex- hlblted nnaccountable solicltude to lave the thing hunted up," as otherwise he must be left to share suspicion with others. rf.ss -,a The obvious point Tn the investigation was to learn if the robber had spent any iof the stolen bills, and if so, to find out whether they could in any way be traced back to him. A quiet search was institut- cd ln the towns at each end of the road, but without success. The detective men visited Hartwell, village thirty miles be- y0nd Wilma, where the wife of the messen- ger resided, and after examining all the cash Ill the stores, failed to discover either of the missing notes. Meanwhile the arrival of the officer in the territory |had become generally known, and as he had recently effected several extraordi- nary arrests, public expectation was ex cited to tLe point where it demanded the most unreasonable results. At ordinary times thls extravagant confidence might have hattered his vanity, but now it serv- ed only to augment the annoyance of the situation. as professional pride dislikes to admit that its accomplishments must, in all likelihood, fall far short of the popu- lar requirement.. For five days he worked and studied uninterruptedly, anu as re- ward for all this toll of body and mind, had not yet discovered the first clue to connect Middleton with the crime, though still entertaining not the slightest doubt of his guilt ..'-7 Under the most dexterous handling, the chances of blufing confession out of the exdeputy marshal seemed exceed ingly slim, as he knew all the tricks of the trade, having. often practlsed them himself. He had obviously studied the case. too, in all its bearings, and was prepared to meet attacks at all points. The genius of the detective, however, rose to the level of the emergency. Mid dleton, as he knew was always "hard 1 up' constitutionaly unable to hold on to money. Hence it was safe to infer that he had spent part if not the whole of the proceeds of the robbery. Guided by such reasoning, he hit upon & device which crushed the inveterate trickster and laid the truth bare
 Going to the bank, he procured two perfectly new ten dollar bills of the Scandinavian Bank of Chicago" Pro- ceeding thence to his private room at the hotel, he drew forth the duplicate circu- lar, describing the lost notes, and made, on an ordinary sheet of note-paper, what purported to be correct copy, except that in the place of the second and fifth of the ten dollar bills actually stolen, he substituted description of the two which had just come into his hands. He knew that Middleton had seen the retained list several times at the post office, but did not think he had copied it or that he would be able to identify either of the notes except perhaps the one for five hun dred dollars, if confronted with them. On arriving at Wilma, the detective took the sheet away, and now intended to keep it out of sight. .,.s..f .
 Having fixed up the paper to suit his purposes, he sauntered carelessly over to the offices, and taking the postmaster aside said confdentially,. "Here is 8 dessffption Of the 5t6lsnn If m5bf6eyn mt5bf6e 5yn%iffetf you gave me several days ago. That sheet 1 havn't with me, and may need it soon. Please copy this list in your own hand on one of the regular blanks"
 The postmaster sat down at once and complied with the request. He had not charged his memory with the num- bers of the bills, recollecting that the tens were all new, and on the Scandinavian Bank of Chicago. If shown, the next day, the two lists made by him. self, he could not have told which was the genuine one. For prudential reasons known to himself, the detective did not let him into the secret, and if this page should ever pass under his eye, it will in- form hlm fer the first time of the part he once inadvertently played in bringing a criminal to justice
 Meantime Middleton manifested ex- treme anxiety to keep informed of the movements of Furay: and that officer with the view of inspiring him with vague and misty but terrible dread of danger from some mysterious quarter, instructed two or three trusty men, whom the fellow was certain to question, to report him as almost simultaneously at widely different places. Though seeing no possible way in which he could be caught, the culprit was fast losing his customary mental equilibrium through the distrac- ton produced by the extraordinary and inexplicable flights of the detective. whose celerity seemed to surpass the swiftness of the eagle. A guilty con- science, under the play of it's own fears often reaches Q state of apprehension where it looks for lightning from clear sky. 4 af
 Armed with tue altered description, the officer proceeded to Ceylon, an inn portant station on the line of the road and telegraphed the postmaster at Tils1t to send up clerk, who was to get off at that place and ask no questions.
 The next morning, as the train passed Ceylon on the way West, Middleton inquired anxiously where Furay was, and was told by the clerk whose informa- tion was furnished for the occasion, that he had left the night before on horse back.
 The clerk arrived in response to the telegram. and was duly posted in the part he was to enact in the approaching drama. During the morning the detec- tive had studiously kept out of sight, that his little game might not by chance be exposed, and frustrated.
 In three or four hours the train would return from Wilma, and on It's arrival the special agent was prepared to apply the ''grand bounce" to MT. John Middle | VOAs AO CuuouC0 tuC CACCO1VCHCoo OA UAC onslaught he mounted feet horse, and riding out of the village to commanding point, where the cars could be seen at a 1 distance of several miles, he waited till 1 just about time enough remained for a close connection. when he started back
 on furious gallop, reaching the depot I few seconds after the train. Throwing
 the reins to an acquaintance, he dashed into the mall-room in state of great ap- parent excitement, and, pretending to 1 wipe the precipitation from his face, as if
 overloaded by the exercise of a long hard
 ride, he inquired impatiently, 'tJohn Mid
 dleton. where is your mail key?" To sur
 prlsed to answer, the messenger stood
 as immoyable and speeches. as statue,
 when the question was repeated in tone
 so imperious and peremptory. that it
 seemed to preclude the possibility oi further temperising. To any one else he
 would have denied the possession of a
 key, knowing that lie of that sort would
 avail nothing in the present instance, he replied, s'It is here. producing a string from his roelyek