Litchfield enquirer., 1876-04-20

she most natural msanner possible, giving the gentleman who had invested merely ten dollar bill and little politeness, and who may have secured several thousand dollars. ample time to escape.
 s These are merely instances out of count less modes of executing the same class of villainy; and Sheridan aud the last named gang worked thls line of business rob bing banks at Chicago, St Louis, Louis vile, and other large western cities-untii 1865, when he also broke with them seek ing more high toned companioDs, and was taken on by George Williams, alias Eng lish George" a widely-kno"n thief and bank robber. William had his eye upon the young criminal for some time, and, Ea,lmiring hls siIrewdness, audacity. and tact, teok him into his eastern operations, where he did such good work that iii 1887 sSheridan was known to be worth at least 1875, 900:
 A little later he participated i. the sneak robbery of the Ma. yland Fire In .salrlnee company of Baltimore, acting as "stal" while the gang crowded the office and got over sra, 900 in money and negoti- Hable bonds Not one cent of this amount was recovered, nor were any of the rob- bers captured. ~
 His next exploit was at Springfield, H., where he was not so fortunate. After the srobbery he had come West with Charles Hicks, Baltimore sneak thief; and Philip Pierson, alias Baltimore Phlly," and their lntiatory move was upon the First National bank at Sprinfeld. Sheridan called at the bank, and, as usual, propos- ed some complicated business lucrative .to the bank, which completely engaged the cashier, while Pierson, 'piped" and Hicks sneaked into the vault and secured packages containing $32, ,O0O. As Hicks was leisurely leaving the place the presi- dent entered. and. observing the huge package peeping out from under his sBm.s mer over coat, which was not large enough to cover them; grabbed him and demand ed where he got SO much money. He re- piled that he had just drawn it out: but the president suggested that they had better step into his apartment until they could see to 1t. The cashier at once real lzed what was being attempted, and. on some preteXt handed a card to the presi- dent with instructions to sekd two men to- the front of tle bank to deta n the person conversing, which was done, resulting in sHRR1DAN's CAPTURE,
 though Pierson escaped. Hicks and Sher- ldan of coursed claimed that they did not know each other, but were put in different cells and were given separate trials. Hicks pleaded guilty and got eight years at Jo- ,liet. but Sheridan played the high moral dogde, gave bail in the sum of $7OO0, which amount he deposited, attorny set the money in his hands aside for his ap- prehension and conviction, intrusting his arrest to Pinkerton.
 .. WILLIAM A. PINKERrox,
 Allan Pinkerton's son. and assistant su- perintendent ot his Chicago office, was given one man to assist him. and was de- talled to bring Sheridan in He was led to believe that he was communicating with Hicks at Joliet through Hicks broth CT, who visited hlm with unusual frequen- cy, and he consequently followed the lat ter to Hudson, Mich, where he arrived one evening on the same train with Hicks, and ascerained, to his surprise, that Sher- idan not only owned the hotel-the best in the city, where they stopped. anl Which was, and Is now, kept by Colonel
 -, Sheriden's brother-in-law, but was also the possessor of splendid fruit-farm near St. Joe, Mich, and large tracts of pine and fa' ming lands scatterd through the state. Hicks directed the clerk to call him at o'clock next morning. and Pinkerton suggested o'clock for him. self, and, rising promptly at that hour, was able to do bit of business peculiarly characteristic of hls shrewdness. He kneS V that, though Sheridan had already be- come notorious, nobody had ever succeed ed ill
 GETTING HIS PICTURE, and this is more important thing to the detectives than the public may realize, for one good picture of a criminal can be made to do duty in thousand places at the same time. He ascertained the loca. tion of Colonel-'s family rooms. and by executing little burglary on his own account, secured from a few pictures, too sacred even for the family album, an ex- cellent photograph of Sheridan, which now adorns Pinkerton's rogues' gallery in this city and through which, and copies in possession of their other agencies in America and correspondents in Europe, this. greatest living criminal has been brought down. After breakfast he found that Sheridan was at the hotel, and had already communicated with Hicks. He dld not feel justified in attempting his ar- rest in the midst of so many friends, and followed him for some weeks, finally nab- ping him at a favorable opportunity in Sandusky, having touch time getting him to chicago. as the splendidly appearing fellow not only strongly asserted that he was being kidnapped, appealed to pas sengers for aid in the most innocent and lmpassioned manner possible, but also somewhat shook the virtue of Pinkerton's aid, to whom he offered
 S1O,cOO BRIDE, l merely for an opportunity to jump through the window of the cars saloon, so that Pinkerton was obliged to watch both men night and day; and after he had finally housed him at the office of the agency here, and William Pinkerton was re- enter ing the room from a moments absence cautinusly and with his revolver before him, Sheridan made an attempt to fling the contents. of Major Allan pinkerton's snuff box into his eyes for the purpose of binding him and rushing past him into the hall and thus into the street; seeing that his captor was as careful as he was shrewd and inventive he took a pinch of snuff and replaced the box. remarking pleasantly: Billy. that d--d fine snuff of your father's!''
 He was taken to Springfield, and after postponing his trial for nearly year &c., cured 8 change of venue to Decatur, and re- tained not only the best lawyers in the state. but also three intelligent jurors, and
 finally. after expending $20, ,O00, as hessaf- forwards confessed to Pinkerton in brag- gadocial vein, was acquitted.
 After this affair, Sheridan, who was con- tinually seeking better class of work in his profession, went East and organized party of '.bank bursters,' consisting of Frank Mccoy. alias ''Big Frank" James Brady, James Hope, Ike Marsh. and oth- CTS, the crowd becoming terror to the east, until hunted so closely that they were obliged to disband, when he assisted at robbery of bank Tn Cleveland,
 when he and pals secured $40, 900, follow ed by the raid upon the Mechanics (Haw
 ley's) bank at Scranton. Pennsylvania,
 where he and Little George Orton ap- propriated $37,n0o in negotiable bonds.
 His next exploit of note. and one which