The Grant County herald. (Big Stone City, Grant County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1883, 1879-09-20
AN OLD CRIME.
The Robbery and Murder Fourteen Years
Aga Lawyer Thinks He Has Found One
Of the Gang Who Committed the Deed.
Philadelphia Times.

fhiadeipbla Times.
On the morning q. October !, 1865,
James Needs. tie eoforpd porter EN-
pipNtd at $. S White. dental depot, 52S
Arch street, a4s found dtad. gagged and
bound. IN the office, nn the second floor
Of the huil,lng. and the safe robbed ,a
$4,000 worth Of gold, silver and plaiina.
| used n. material in tie Manufacture oi
artificial teeth One arrest aa- made.
but the evidence Na- not rn-itlse enough,
aud 4lucc lt.en t.t case ha- slumbt red IN
police pigeon holes. bidding fair to re-
main i mystery. Yesterday the tragedy
was revived In u very strange manner.
Mayer Stoseig received letter from
john + Vincent. attorncv-ai law 1T Erie,
Penn. under date oI August 9th. To this
effect: "Na- Il private or public watch
man murdered nj the corner of Arch
and Ninth streets. in your CITY,
about twenty or twcnty-tour years agol
II SO was any one punished for the crime
or suspected oft lfthe murder alude
!, To was the one committed il WAS in den
lists Office on a Sunday orning. 4 mar
III this county, when under fear Of death
from severe illness, confessed the commits,
+ q
! fasehood true it must be in Your
power 10 verify the fact as TO whether u
not the crime was commtten. The man
said that 81 600 was offered tor the dctec
tion oi the murderer Vincent refers Ia
Honorable Henry Rawle, the Judges oi
the Supreme court and many other gentle
men Of Philedaphia, AS vouchers for bis
| own reputation. The police folks are not
inclined to place much reliance in this
story on acconnt of the discrepancy in
time, the White affair having been
fourteen years ago instead Of twenty, war
on Saturday, not on Sunday, and the
scene on Fifth and Arch streets instead
of Ninth II is, however, possible that
these are Incidental to the lapse Of time
in etfaclng circumstance from the mem
ory. There IL no intimation convened
~ the letter as to how the LAWYER
came IN possession Of his information or
the name OF the reator The murder ot
Needs created great excitement 1T the
time OF its commission lie Was coloreu
man. residing on Pearl street near Elev-
enth, and Was engaged to be married the
subsequent week. The safe in which the
material Was kept was upon Il platform
at the back portion Of the second story
| room, Mr.. White also occupying the up
per floors At night a watchman was in
charge, who had to register his visits
on each floor every hour. Every morn
ing at six O'Clock Needs went TO him, got
the keys from the engineer, opened the
place, took the trays Of precious natal
ou, Of the safe and deposited them under
the counter ready for the foreman The
men who plann,d the robbery had doubt
less reckoned upon the regularity of the
porters habits 70 accomplish their de-
signs. When he asscndcd the stairs they
are supposed to have followed him noise
ltssly. and, having removed their shoes,
crept upon him. He was then felled by
4 sudden blow with a hammer or clnD-
presumably the latter. as blood stained
hickory stick was picked up. lie was then
gagged and bound TO prevent noise and
carried, insenaible as he was, to the back
part Of the room. Then the thieves