The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1882-06-02


swing, for the evidence is most conclusive,
part Of the stolen property being found in a
secret drawer in his hOme''
'Did you say the money abstracted was in
gold 90 inquired the lawyer
Eyes, but the pieces have been identified" ."
"How2 One guinea is 50 like another
True, but mark the finger Of Providence
Along with the guineas were ten foreign
gold coins, Dutch ducats, which were alsoin
the safe, These have been sworn to by his
deputy, and viii hang him See here 20
The clerk opened his desk and took from
it small box, committed 10 his custody for
production at The trial of the accused. and
poured its contents into the hands of the
seemingly wonder-struck lawyer, who exam
ined them attentvev, piece by piece. and
finally returned them and took his leave
THAT EVENING THE lawyers CLERK
was observed to 90 on board Liverpool
/ packet, which sailed half an hour afterward.
! Some weeks later the prisoner was brought
/ to trial With much feeling he pleaded
/ ''not guilty." He declared that the rouIpaux
! Of farthihgs found in the safe had been there
! for years. and that he had received them
/ from his predecessor at the value indicated
/ by the ticket attached to each packet he
/ had never opened them. Costelloe only
/ sighlv examined the witnesses. who denosed
to the preliminary facts, and the accused
[ bank clerk began to look very serious, and
] even to shed tears. At length the examina-
tion in chief or the deputy cashier took place.
, He swore that he had frequently seen the
/ identical ten Dutch pieces in the safe, and
/ again identified them. COsteIlOe seemed to
pay little attention to the examination of
this witness, and gazed steadily into his hat
which stood before him on the desk just
as the deputy cashier was about TO 90 down
the lawyer for the defense. rising. exclaimed /:
''Stop a moment, young man. And so,
sir, you accuse vour friend Of robbery2''
81 am sorry that my duty compels me to
/ give criminatorv evidence against him.
''And you swear that those identical gold
pieces in vour hand at this moment.
/ Were are they ."
They were again handed to the witness. -
CosteIloe continued
''You swear that those pieces Of gold in
your hand were in the prisoners keeping?'
'T do swear it."
"Hand me those coins" he said. ''You
have sworn positively, and it viii be well for
You if truly. Here-take your
''BLOoD MONEY
He stretched out his hand, and missing
that Of the witness, by the mprpst accident
let fall the mass Of gold into his own Dat in
front of hrm. Then taking out single
piece he went on:
"You insist IN swearing that this piece ot
money, the property Of Mr.. Gleadow, was IL
the DrisOunr's custodv 90
The witness took the ducat. looked at it
and said, positively
It swear it.
"And this also-and this-and this o.
continued CostelIoe, to the number of ten.
The witness swore To each
''And this-and thfs-and this P'' sait
Costelloe, producing from his hat twenty
other pieces of a similar kind
The witness was dumfouudpd, the counse
for the crown looked blank, the Judr,
: smiled, the case was abandoned, ard tht
thief saved.
The way I'm which the shrewd lawyer had
t managed was this. After his scrutiny O
the ducats at the Crown Office. which ena
} bled him to fix IL bis memory their date
and effiCies, he had gone to his home T
the evening of the same day his confidential
2 clerk sailed for Liverpool From there h
e went by mail to London, from London b,
, packet to Rotterdam. where he bought NJ
D twenty of the ducats Of the dates indicated
by COsteIIoe. These coins the LAWYER bro
{ to court in his bat. His letting the othe
I ducats fall into it was not an accident, but
: clever trick, and if not as wonderful as tn
e hat trick of the modern magician, had th
- greater merit of saving a mans life who
e rogue though he was, hardly deserved hang
ing for his crime.