The Delaware farmer., 1883-08-24
A LITTLE INSIGHT INTO HIS DAILY
AVOCATION.
of His Business a Warning 10 Fas
Boys.
TFrom the Milwaukee sdn.I

I
to have an enviable position, one that
hundreds of men would be glad to Sc
cure. After talking for an hour on the
incidents of his business, we asked him
how he liked it. He looked long and
earnestly at the wall opposite where he
sat, choked up a little as some recollec-
ton came to him, then with tear in his
eye he said: "Well, George, there are
some things about it that are pleasant,
but there are some that are enough to
break mans heart. If we could
shadow train robbers entirely, men who
have no friends, no home associations,
there would be n certain romance about
it that could be enjoyed. But suppose
You have a letter containing money,
stolen from the mails. You report it to
the postmaster, and detective is put on.
He finds where the letter was probably
lost, and has his suspicion Of a certain
postmaster, or route agent, and that man
shadowed. Decoy letters are sent and
the poor fellow takes one that has money
in it. money that is marked. Then we
have to go for him. We have the evi-
dence before he is arrested, and his con-
viction is dead sure, and very likely he
breaks down and confesses the whole
thing The heart breaking part Of the
business Is going into quiet home and
taking the husband and father and tear
ing him from the wife and children who
do not believe that he is guilty, taking
him away from them, knowing that he
is doomed to felon's cell, and that he
is disgraced forever. To have the wife
of a man who has just commenced steal
ing, beg and pray with you to let her
husband go, and have her hold up her
little baby and ask you, for the baby's |
sake, to release the father, and to feel /
little children pulling at the skirts of
your coat, crying and pleading, is enough |
to make a man who has got children of 1
his own 60 out and club himself. But |
those who lose money must be protected
and man cannot give up to his feelings
though many times I have felt like pay
ing the money out of my own pocket,
rather than arrest a man. One of the
saddest things I ever did was to take
boy who was clerk in a post-ofiice, at
night. around his fathers house, to the
barn. where he had concealed a lot of
letters that he had rifed. AS we passed
the house the father and mother of the
boy. who knew nothing of the robbery,
were sitting by the freight singing
some good old Methodist hymns, and we
could hear them as we dug under the
hay in the barn for the letters, with the
boy showing us where they were. Then
we had to go in the house and break the
news to the old father and mother. As
we walked toward the house the voice of
the father was lifted up in prayer, and
we stood on the steps with uncovered
heads, waiting for him to finish the e
PRAYER. and it was the saddest scene I I
ever witnessed. had the thieving boy,
1r young man, by the wrist, and as the ,
.ather asked God to watch over their
,nly child, and keep him from tempta- a
ion, and deliver him from evil, the boy c
rembled all over, and broke down in a
iood Of tears, and was not much more a
than he was. I tried to think W
# some way to get out Of going in there, P
nut the boy had papers in his room that al
We must have, and there was no other m m
7ay. It is said that government officials al
eldom die, and never resign, but I W. y"
wear to you was willing to die OF re-
IGN, almost, at that moment, when the
Id gentleman got up from his knees,
fter the evening prayer, and went over of
) his dear old wife and reverently kissed !.
er, the mother of my prisoner, on the 5a
,rehead, and then began to sing,
Nearer, my God to Thee. I thought m,
my mother, and of my father, and Of me
y children. and if the boy had skipped PEI
1t don't know whether [ would have
I'd strength to catch him or not, but he ps
sver could have escaped. I will not
we'll upon the scene in that house. It lea
lunts me like a nightmare, and I never tFa
e a good old father or mother without A
if they have not got a boy erd !
at is going wrong. Well, George,
latever you do, don't be a government
tective," and the officer got up and cor
liked away with his handkerchief..to +bd
$ eyes. 7
If every boy in the land who has be- the
N To davelOD svmDtOns of sDeed and ADJ
IL " uoNeioP y u P'Oili9 u sPoeu, anu ono
10 is taking the first steps toward be- dec
ming thief, could have that picture {
asenfed to him as fha dotecfive mr. shll