The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1881-11-16
How Jay GouId's "vicfim Went to
Work and Failed.

hthliou was MNUc yesterday Of the at
tempt by Colonel J. Howard Welles to ex-
tort points on the stock market from JAY
Gould. The threat OF assassination. the
attempt at blackmailing, and the subse-
Nuent arrest Of the man WelIes has created
the greatest sensation in New York social
and financial circles.
Il appears that Welles adopted shrewd
means TO communicate with Mr.. Gould
and at the same time preserve his incognitO,
but the patience and cunning Of Inspector
Byrnes, in whose hands the matter was
placed, fOiled his plans and eliminated in
his arrest just as he was dropping one Of
the letters in a street mail-box. The first
letter written sounded very much as il il
had come from 4 religious crank. and
merely announced that the writer intended
70 shoot Mr.. Gould on the first opportu-
nifty, Is the latter had spent his life in swim
ding people.
Mr.. Gould showed the letter to Mr.. Con-
nor, his broker, who communicated with
Inspector Byrnes, and these two gentlemen
arranged plan by which ''Yictim" should
be ensnmed. 1t was some time, however
before the plan succeeded. "Victim !"
would not hear OF any mode OF addressing
him except through the Herald personals,
while he always sent letters addressed TO
Mr. Gould. These personals and letters
were exchanged daily. Those sent from
Mr.. COnnOT asked that "Victim" would
allow Mr.. Gould to give him a check
making good all claims. This the man
would not hear of. Mr.. Gould wanted TO
stand the risk Of speculatiOns in which he
was to give the required points. "Vic-
tim' wouldn't have this either. Then the
man sent the following cipher code to Mr..
Gould for the stocks he wished to be in
formed about, and also said that uptown"
would mean Il rise i'm a security, "down-
town" a decline; Western Union, "Wind-
sOr"; Texas Pacific. "White"; Union
- Salvation Metropolitan Elevated,
"Dislike"; Missouri Pacific, "railor" !;
Erie, Spoons; Denver and Rio Grande,
Profit -; Delaware, Lackawanna and
Western, "TOdd"; Pacific Mail, "Cor-
cord Hannibal and st. Joseph common,
" Wednesday" Hannibal and st. Joseph
preferred. " "Tuesday"; Michigan Central,
. French -; Peoria ID. and f.. "COm-
mand"; Ohio, Hayes; Northern Pa
ciiic common. "Wheat"; Northern Pa
clnc preferred, "Com"; Lake Shore,
" Exchange; New York Central, Ber-
The following is a type OF one Of the ci-
pher personals sent to "Yictim" and Civ
ing him points:
ISCOGNITo.-Salyation, yes keep Windsor; let
go Concord. Give me the cost Of salvation.
Thus did they play the wary fire for
many weeks. giving him some real points,
on which he made a good turn or two, for
the purpose OF drawing him into the net.
At last the discovery was made that the
letters We're all posted from Station L. Fiji
ty carriers were set to watch the boxes, and
finally Colonel J. Howard WelleS, iauntily
dressed, gentlemanly in appearance, walked
up and dropped in the box one OF the let
tiers addressed to Mr.. Gould. He was then
arrested.
Mr.. Connor, on being interviewed on the
subject, said that Mr.. Gould was not at all
alarmed by the letter, but he had been get
ting so many OF this kind that he decided
TO make an example Of one OF them. Not
more than three weeks ago Mr.. Gould re-
ceived two letters in one day. one threaten
ing 10 kill him ii he did not put the market
uD, and the other promising him with death
il he did not send the market down. Mr..
Gould read them both, laughed, and said:
"Well. il seems have got TO die anyway;
and that is about rs much attention as he
ever paid 70 any such communications.
Colonel Welles boarded in handsome
place on Fifth avenue where he was very
popular. He frequently spoke OF his stock
speculations, and at times complained that
he had lost heavily. He always said that
he had travelled abroad good deal, which
is probably true. He was quarteImaster
i'm the United States amy during the late
war. and by breyet Northumberland.
He was stationed in Baltimore, and had
many intimate friends among the promi-
nent gentlemen OF this city. Judge Hugh
Bond recollects him well, and is surprised
that he should stOOp TO such dirty work.
Mr.. WelIes is stated TO have made a large
amount of money in Baltimore Just after
the fall Of Richmond by dealings in gold.