The Beaufort tribune and Port Royal commercial. [volume] (Beaufort, S.C.) 1877-1879, 1877-04-12
A CONVICT'S STORY.
Pardoned Out Of Prison for Good Conduct
and Trying to Get Back Again.

An OIQCer IN New 1OrK IOunQ an OlQ
man tugging at the knobs of store doors
one Sunday, placing his shoulder to the
doors, looking through the keyholes and
examining the windows and gratings i'll
desperate efforts to effect an entrance.
He arrested him.
"Hanson," said the magistrate, "you
are charged with attempted. burglary;
"what have you to say ?"
"I am guilty." quickly responded the
prisoner, in strong Danish accent.
81 did it SO that could be sent to State
prison."
"And why do you want to 60 to State
prison, Christian ?" asked the Judge in
astonishment.
The man hung his head and seemed
for a moment disincined to answer, but
encouraged by kindly word, looked up
and said with an earnestness that wa
deeply impressive
"Judge, I have only just come from
Columbus, Ohio, where I served ten
years in State prison for burglary. I
was pardoned out by Governor Hayes,
now President of the United States. My
original sentence was for twenty years.
Ny life is wasted and I am wreck.
God knows intended when l came out
of prison to live an honest life. 1 was
pardoned out on the fifth of February.
I went to Cincinnati and tried to get
work, but failed. From there I went to
Pittsburgh and met with no better sue
cess. Then I tramped it all the way to
New York, where had friends, trying to
get work from farmers on the way, sleep
ing where I got an opportunity and eat
ing whenever a charitable person gave
me crust. My friends here who knew
me before I was q criminal refuse to
recognize me. I can't get work; 1 have
lived in the gutter and been kicked
abeut I dread to kill myself, and SO
with the horrors of prison life still be-
fore me am obliged to go back. There
is nothing else left for me.
The sympathies of all who heard the
earnest words of the broken down man
were deeply touched by the recital.
After some further questions the Judge
ordered him to step aside until after the
adjournment of the court, when his case
would be disposed o..
While the prisoner was thus waiting,
a reporter questioned him as to the lead
ing incidents of his eventful life. He
gave them freely, concealing nothing ex-
cept the names of his associates.
"T was born," said he, "in Copen-
hagen, Denmark, in 1884. My parents
were poor, but respectable people, and
they gave me good academic education.
Hearing of the advantages of the New
World came to America in 1868, land
ing in New York. Two days afterward
enlisted in Company K, Seventh Vol
unteers, and went to war. 1 served In
several engagements, and was under
Generals Grant and Meade. I was
wounded in the shoulder before Rich
mond. After the war [ went to Clncln-
natl and obtained employment as
laborer on railroad. Up to this time 1
! was an honest man. Losing my employ
ment began to frequent the Buckeye"
saloon in Cincinnati, where fell in with
gang of burglars. Being out of work l
listened to their proposals to join their
number. They had plenty of money and
got me to drinking, AMI 1 became one OF
them. Our first job was the robbing OF
the First National bank of Cincinnati, at
the corner of Walnut and Fourth streets.
We got S4O0, 900 in United States bonds
and S., 900 in greenbacks.
"Well, you want to know how the job
was done, eh? We hired basement
adjoining the bank, giving it ont that
we wanted it for saloon. On the tenth
day afterward we had everything in
readiness, an on the night of February
8, 1866, we cut a hole through the wall
into the basement of the bank building
and then dug our way through the cell
ing to where the safe was. At this point
the bank watchman came upon us, but |
and another of the gang quickly bound
and gagged him. We then blew open
the safe. The concussion stopped the
clock. It was half-past three A. NJ.
"What tools did you use in drilling
the holes asked the reporter.
"Good cracksmen don't use tools,
answered the burglar. "Ill show you
how to blow open any safe in New York
without any tools. Just take me to
safe"
There happened to be safe in Judge
Kilbreth's private room, and the writer
| acquainted the magistrate with the prison
er's proposal "By all meaus," said
he, "let us learn )" and in a moment the
room was filled with spectators.
The prisoner knelt beside the safe,
which was locked.
"Look," said he, cat this door. 1t
fits SO tightly that no instrument can be
introduced in the cracks and powder.
cannot be inserted. So far so good.
The burglar simply sticks putty all along
the cracks except in two places, one at
the top of the door. and one at the bot
tom, where he leaves about an inch OF
space uncovered by the putty. At the
lower place he puts quantity of pow
der. and he sucks out the air from the
upper place, either by suction pump,
which is the better way, or by his mouth.
The vacuum created in the safe draws IN
the powder through the small crack be-
low. The entire work does not occupy
more than five minutes.
"We got $780, in bonds and
SIS, 900 in greenbacks out of the safe.
We then left the building and secreted
ourselves in one of our old haunts. The
following night I went to Eph Hollands
gambling saloon and lost 81 600 IN gam.
ing. On the second day the hue and
cry became 80 fierce that we determined
to leave town. The booty was divided
among us, but being novice they
cheated me, and got only SIC. .OOO.
eve went to Richmond, Ind, where
we remained until the seventh of Marc
following, when our leader planned the