Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1880-04-15

uosaiieo 10 look up the Rogers gang
OF counterfeiters, I had then but one
clue to begin woIls on. One of the
clerks in the dead letter Office had
saved and sent to the chief the fol-
lowing letter:
PIrTsBUsG, NAY 8.
Friend Ned have got rid Of oil the
queer" which l brought, and shall be in
Parkersburg next week for further supply.
| have found snd will bring with me first>
class engraver. The postal currency passes
right along, but ! have had some trouble
with the Is and 5's Look out for NV arri-
val Dick.
| We had for whole year been try.
ing to find the headquarters of half. a.
dozen coun!erfeiters who had banded
together under the control Of a man
named Edward Rogers, formerly EN-.
ployed as bank-note engraver by a
New York establishment. He had
flooded Cincinnati, Pittsburg and
other cities with counterfeit postal
currency and national bank notes,
and, first and last, ten or dozen de.
tectives bad failed to find the head
quarters of the gang and break them
up. Several parties had been arrest.
ed for Showing" the counterfeits, but
they were saloon-keepers and show.
men merely acting as agents to get
rid of the money.
we argued among ourselves that
Rogers and four or five (perhaps
more) engravers aud printers had
headquarters in Virginia, Ohio or
Pennsylvania, where they printed
their money. and that they employed
a general agent to take it from them
and sell it TO such unprincipled per-
sons in towns and cities as would en-
ter into the speculation. 1t would
not help US much to arrest those who
at last passed the stuff out, but we
could only stop the business by ar
resting the engravers and printers
with their tools and stock.
We had once sent a detective TO
Parkersburg, and had had them in
other cities where the money had
been most freely passed out, but they
had not been able to get clue to
Rogers headquarters. The letter
really amounted to nothing. sDick'
might have made previous arrange
ment to meet "Ned in that city, but
the fact that the letter had not been
called for was proof to seyera. of
the detectives who were looking over
the case with me, that Rogers was
not IN that part of the country. Had
ne been, he would not have allowed
the letter to remain uncalled for.
No matter what my comp auions
thought, / had an idea of nv own.
Among all the complaints coming In
from the cities and towns, we had not
received single one from Parkers-
burg, although towns twenty miles
away from there were sending in
complaints almost every day. This
made me believe that the gang were
located at or near Parkersburg, and
refrained from uttering any of their
notes there in order not to alarm the
local authorities. At any rate, |
might as well 60 in that direction as
any other, as must start out blind
folded, and let luck furnish me a
clue, or abandon the case as Others
had done.
took the letter along with me.
read and re.read it so often that /
could repeat every word, and the
cramped characters were before nv
eyes like photograph. 1t is no new
theory that one can judge something
OF the looks of man, as well as Of
bis character, by studying his CHR
ography. l never see a line of writ.
ing, from a man or woman, without
holding up an imaginary photograph
of the writer, and l have often been
quite correct. As / sat on nv seat
in the train, l made up nv mind
about how "Dick" would look, and
was determined that if ever ran
across an individual resembling nv
mental photograph, I would watch
his movements until satisfied that he
was an honest man.
/ arrived in Parkersburg in due
time, and registered myself at the
hotel for a week gay Ia the mama
Of "John Fay slp.siaa;. New Ter
sey." had sea- CT, Rachel writing
the line when The t.quss,,,ve landlord
asked where my "show' was, and if
/ intended visiting Parkersburg with
| it
Ireplied that my circus establish
ment was travelling in New England.
and that my health being poor bad
made up my mind to hunt and fish
and do q general s'loafng" business
for two or three weeks, choosing
Parkersburg because I had some ae.
quaintances back in the country.
These explanations were entirely
satisfactory to the landlord, and he at
once proceeded TO make me at home
To carry out my plans, pur-
chased rifle. ammunition and fishing
tackle, and for toe first four DAYS was
in the woods among the hills the
greater portion of the time. In
truth / did and yet do love a ramble
in the woods, and did not have to
force myself to take the long iaunts
which / did. | grew tired, however,
after the fourth day. and lounged
about the hotel nearly all day, closely
watching the guests and townspeople
who came in. Toward evening
walked down to the landing, and at
ter be ng gone half an hour came
back. / was just about to enter the
door when some one came out.
Looking up | saw familiar face
one had seen q dozen times before.
out could not remember where.
"How are you ?" exclaimed hold
ing out my hand. 81 remember your
face like book, but hang me if can
recall your name"
81 don't remember that / ever saw
you BEFORE" but accepting my hand
and giving it hearty squeeze.
"What may ! call your name %
| gave him my assumed name and
stated my occupation, as had given
it to the landlord; but after CONVEX
sation of ten or fifteen minutes we
failed to make out that we ever had
previous acquaintance. He stated
that he bad travelled in the north q