Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1878-12-01
TAAHEAGE AMONG THIEVES
He Describes the Criminal Glasses and
AScertains new They do Their work
life OF Woman Who EARNS
Her Bread as u Clerk.

New York Sua: The fact is that all mu-
steal instruments are to be brought in for the
service of the Lord, said MIR. Talmage, yes
terday morning Just before Mr.. Arbucke
pealed forth a sonorous AUe Maria, and Mr..
Morgan executed fantasia that required all
the organ stops and the bell chimes. The
text was from Luke:
"A certain man went down from Jerusa-
lem to Jericho and fell among thieves, which
stripped him OF his ralment, and wounded
him, and departed, leaving him half dead
"'Give me two stout detectives for this
nights work. / said to the chief official;
men who not only look muscular, but who
are musclar; and | said TO the detectives,
Have you loaded pistols and clubs? Show
me crime! Show me crime! Snow me the
worst class of people to be saved by the pow
er of Christ gospel The officer proposed
should take a disguise lest | should be as
saulted. | answered, No, l am going to
take the risk
People spoke to me, Why do you net
look after the criminal classes of Brooklyn?'
l answer it was not for lack of material.
There Is every kind Of crime In Brooklyn,
from manslaughter to a chicken thief.
Laughter | do not know that there is any
place in the land where you can more easily
get your pocket picked your house burglar
ICED, your signature counterfeited, or your
estate sTindled than ia Brooklyn. But the
great depot of crime for this cluster of cities
is New York
Mr.. Talmage spoke of the respect which
crime pays to law, and told how Inspector
Murray, although a man of comparatively
slight stature, sometimes single handed ar
rests four or FIVE desperadoes, all because he
is backed up by omnipotent justice.
MIR. Talmage then described bar-room in
to which the officers took him. The officers
told him wonderful stories of the desperate
men at the different tables. The preacher
walked from one end of the pulpit to the
~, i
scublDg the different groups Of criminals
whispering and connecting dreadful crimes.
Here are men talking over last nights
exploits. They drink, but not so as to be-
come unconscious. They keep the eyes clear
and the hands steady fer the nights work.
They tell how they escaped by the basement
door, or the second story-how the bullet
grazed their headsl What is this bandaged
hand? That was cut 10y window-glass as
the burglar thrust his hand through the
fastening. How did that man lose his eye?
1t was destroyed by the premature fash of
ganpowder in the store lock-"
What are those men planning ut the
other tabieP They are in COLLISION with a
servant girl to leave one OF the back windows
unfastened. They know the time when the
wealthy man will leave his place of dissipa-
ton and start for home, and they intend to
| lie Ia wait to bring him down with a slung-
shot! Who knows how many false keys,
brass knuekles and revolvers are here?
Rum tney must have, to prepare them
for murder. Not ordinary rum, but rum
| poisoned four times. First, by the manufac-
turer; second, by the wholesale dealer; third,
by the retail dealer, and fourth, by the sa-
loon keeper. These men calculate to TIE
| quarter Of glass how much to take for their
work. They must not take drop too much!
There are twenty-three or twenty four
hundred of these professional criminals in
this cluster of cities. They are as thoroughly
trained IN crime as for good purpose medi-
cal colleges train doctors, law colleges tram
lawyers, theological colleges train clergymen.
They have gone through the freshman, soph-
omore, Junior and senior classes, and gradu-
ated with diploma signed by all the faculty
of darkness. Applause.
"These men are no uuskillful murderers,
plunderers or blackmaIlers. They must have
something difficult to do; something of peril;
some chance for bravado. There are about
sixty professional bank robbers, who will get
concealed IN a bank and spring out" Mr.
Talmage sprang out sat the watchman, Sc
cure him and examine the cashiers books at
their leisure, to see whether he keeps his ac-
| counts correctly. Laughter.
Here ale the men who steal cancelled
checks and practice on n mans signature I'M
til they get one as perfect as the forgery of
c. Vanderbilt's signature in 1870, on which
seventy-hve thousand dollars was paid at
sight.
Here are the pickpockets. six hundred of
them. They sit beside you in the stage and
pass your fare. They help you look ever the
goods when you are shopping. They weep
beside you at the funeral. They sometimes
| bowitheir heads beside you in the house of
God. They do their work with such adroit-
ness that your affection at the loss is soft.
ened by your admiration at the skill of the
operation. [Laughterl. The most skillful OF
these pickpockets are women. Some of the
| pickpockets take the garb of clergymen and
| look like doctors of divinity" Mr. Talmaee
| simulated prim ID They dress with
white cravats and look as though they were
about TO pronounce the benediction, and all
| the while they will be watching where your
| portmonnaie is" Laughterl
Mr.. Talmage described the shopliters-
| exquisite ladies dropping goods into crcco-
| die pockets large enough to swallow every
| thing, and the description of the crocodile
| pockets was 80 vivid that the congregation
| laughed. Then he described the thieves who
| break the windows of jewelry stores, run off
| a block, turn around and look innocent, and
join in the crowd, crying Justly, ''Stop thief"
| Laughter
''Do these men accumulate much? No,
most of il goes to the geeeivers of the stolen
| they live poor and die poor.
"A gentleman sitting IN this assembiage,'
Mr.. Talmage continued, ''this morning told
me that an employer said to young woman
IN his store, You must dress better. She
said: How can | on six dollars "a week?
pay four dollars for board, and have only two
dollars week for clothes ard car-fare.' The
employer replied: You must get it in some
other way | do not know how that incident
affects you, but when it was told to me IL
made my blood Jingle; every drop OF It, from