The anti-monopolist. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1874-1878, 1877-03-01

Idon'b suppose you feel much inter.
ested IN burglars. nor are their habits
"a very choice theme in polite ltera-
ture but then that occurrence 2t Glen
Spring was really an extraordinary af.
fair. You see, the way ! come to get
wind of it was through "Calico Char
ley" as they call him. | was on the
force then as a sergeant. That was
when Acton and Kennedy made it too
hot for both the politicians and the
thieves. We used TO boast at that
time that we had the best police force
in the world. Well, "Calico Charley.
went up for ten years for helping to
crack Oppenheimer' place there in the
Bowery. 1t was an unlucky job for
him all through, and as | was one or
the specials that ''piped'' and took him
and had known him off and on for a
long time before that, it was just like
me one day, when / was up at Sing
Sing, to 60 over to the stone quarry
and getthe keeper to let me have talk
with him. ] got his whole history.
He wasn't one OF your common cracks
men. Not bit of it. He was too
smart by a long shot for that sort or
thing. Don't you run away with the
notion that burglars are awful smart
chaps. That's queer idea that peo-
pie get out of story papers. Let me
tell you that I've had nigh onto fifteen
years chance to find out, and I've never
seen one that wouldn't run his mead
into slip-noose the minute he had the
least luck. O, no, heard the chaplain
say once, over to the island that man
whose mind and body were all right
wouldn't be thief no more than q
healthy fellow would be q pauper.
There's always something the matter
with 'em. A twist in 'em somewhere
that knocks EN- fiat when sound man
gets after en-.
Calico Charley, as | was going to
say, was pretty much of an exception.
He was brought up well. His father
was one Of the best machinists III the
country, and he took more pains TO
make "a man of his boy than the fell
low deserved. The cid man had lit
tie place down there in Maiden lane
when I was a shaver. | recollect 1t
well. It was kind Of machine shop,
where he made and sold three Or four
tricks he'd invented himself. He had
the hoy Charley with him-a bright,
spart chap he was then. When he was
twenty-one he got to be pretty lively
about town, for the old man had saved
up handsome property and let Char
lev have more money than was good
for him. Then they got u new
safe-lock. and it made a big stir, and
believe they went into that sort OF
thing pretty heavy. Any way Char
lev went over TO the first world fan
in London. There he got tipped up.
I never heard exactly how 1t was.
They put up q wicked JOB on him OF
some kind, and got him mixed mp with
a pretty bad London "mob. The
story that we heard WAS that he pick
ed a safe lock for q party that shouldn'
have been picked. Any way, he got
in with the wrong crowd, and they
wouldn't let 60 OF him. He stayed
over there about five years, and got tC
be regular first class sneak, and
worked half dozen jobs in the most
scientific manner. We got word from
Scotland Yard that he was coming
back, and | dropped in at the old
man. place there in Maiden lane tC
try and find out something. Old Cal
colt THAT was his name) had got rich
What with his bank lock and his Other
Inventions, his mean way OF living
and his luck III buying some down
town property before the people hat
an idea how big the city was going t
be, he'd come TO be regular nabob.
couldn't get word out Of him abou
10 3,n1 h yv
up, and was going to retire from busl
ness. Money must have come il
pretty fast to the Old fellow. lie show
ed me half dozen patents that h'
was going to sell out and one of Ell
must have been worth pile of dol
lars.
Now | think Of it, it was Calcot
who put the first Franklinite IN al
iron safe, and he invented the rub
ber fiange which prevented the thieve
from using the air-pump which the,
wanted to blow up a safe.
1t seems that when young Calcot
started for America he'd made up hi
mind to cut his London acquaintance
and tricks, and square it by going bacl
to the old man. None OF rs knew i
at the time. Well. when he got her
a curious thing happened. We had
man in the Central office by the nam
of Meehan. vino was in with an Els
side mob. He was broke about yea
atterward. Meehan had got wor
from the London gang. SO that he me
Young Calcott on the dock with fact
enough to send him up, and he mad
u straight offer TO him to stay with TIL
east side gang ii he dldn { want TO en-
his career for usefulness. What dee
Calcott do but hum and haw and so {
see some of the fellows, and indin
himself pretty we'll staked out. gives i
and opens fresh lay Of industry. Ii
said afterward that be intended to GU
'em the first chance he got. But h
never did. He got to he big chief i
as dangerous a gang as ever worrie
the men in Mulberry street. "
thought we had him two or tire
times, but he slipped through on
fingers. There wasn't clean job i
iron put up anywhere but it had th
marks of his tools on it. When th
war broke out he was in New Orlean.
and we lost track of him for five or 81