Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1883-10-26
DINE.NOVEL MATERNAL.

A LARGE GANG OF YOUNG OUTLAWS UNEARrH
I'd AT JAMAICA REGULAR ORGANIZATION
FOR MAEING COUNTERFEIT MoNEY-THEm
HEADQUARTERS DISCOVERED AND THEIR OUT
PIT sEIzED-Two OF THE GANG N JAIL.
JAMAICA, Oct. %. The arrest and confes.
sion to-day of one or two young men, charg-
ed with counterfetiug, has brought out a most
unique story Of organized crime Acting un.
der information obtained from Merton G.
Clark, now in jail, officers of the United
States Secret Service and the local authorities
made an important discovery in wild and
lonely gulch in the mountains a few miles
from this village. They found the headquar-
tiers Of a criminal gang which for some time
has been coming spurious dollars aud commit
ting depredations on the surrounding coun-
try. Complete counterfeiting outfits were
seized including molds, boxes, kettles, plas-
ter of paris, bsmuth, lead, etc The most in
teresting part of the story is the history of
the gang, which had begun extensive opera
tons. 1t IL a secret society of the blood and
thunder variety, now numbering % members.
II was organized according to It's records June
Il of the present year. Its members are
young men Is to p years old, living in South
Londonderry, Jamaica, West Town bend and
Wardsboro, Vermont, and Ashuelot aud Win.
chester, New Hampshire. The baud was
GERS, secretary, judge Of firearms, and a
board of directors. They styled themselves
the United Birds aud Brothers They had
organized an elaborate system Of signals aud
secret alphabets to which the officers now
have the key. Their secret records were kept
by mystic system, which is translated ac-
cording TO the key by an arrangement of fig
ures, being represented by the figure b,
. etc. J, o; k, 20, etc. The members
who have confessed toll blood rr1I;rr, So,
ries about the process of initiation. Each APP
plicant was required to take the following
unique oaths
do You solemuly swear upon your honor by all that
is great and small to forever keep secret what
about 20 tell you, under the fear of being laid below
the rays Of the sun, moon and stars by the united
band Of avengers. So help You God
Second Olth.-"DO you soemuly swear upon YOUR
honor TO never tell TO be known by any being
except yourself and your nformers the secret we
have trusted to you under the fear of being avenged
by party OF which you know nothing Of at present.
So help you God
Third oath-"Brother, knowing our secret pur-
poses do you solemny swear upon your honor aud by
all that IS great and small, by the devil and all his
imps, hell and all its terrors, this world and all its
dungeons the United Birds and Brothers and all
their avengers never to betray to be betray-
Cd any one of our party, but 70 always defend each
and every one Of US, through thick aud thin, TO the
last upon the fear Of being shot dead in your tracks
or stabbed through the heart with nine-iuch blade
So help you God"
When the last oath was administered, SAYS
young Clark the applicant knelt, and cock
ed revolver, loaded with ball cartridges, was
held at his head On one occasion the revol.
yer was placed at the candidates head during
the administration of the first oath. He got
scared and started to run, but was brought
back, and the ceremony was completed with
some notifications. Thus far the gang had
coined considerable bogus money. 1t is of fair
workmanship. The officers have found the
source of their supplies of bismuth lead, etc
The gang has stolen horses once or twice, but
had not quite got ready for the wholesale ca
reer OF crime that was contemplated. The
leaders have fled and officers are in pursuit
Clark and Charles w Stone. also of this
place, were arragned before United States
Commissioner Waterman to-day, and in de-
fault of $1,000 bail, were committed to Jail
to await the action of the United States
Grand jury.
The above despatch appeared in the Boston
journal on Wednesday and was sent to that
paper by Mai. j. F. McIlrath, chief of the
New England division of the secret service of
the treasury department. 1t explains itself
and practically covers all the information
which the government officers have yet made
public in regard to the matter. The Clark
referred to is the young man whom our ia
maica correspondent referred 10 last week as
having been sent to Jail for horse stealing
He made an admission to Capt l.. n Sprague,
United States deputy marshal about the gang
of young rascals to which he belonged and
Capt Sprague having thus got his clew, in.
formed Mai. McIlrath, aud meantime hunted
out the headquarters of the gang and captur.
ed their plant on the mountain beyond ia.
maica. Last Saturday Col. Haskius L. S.
District Attorney, made out warrant against
. Stone, and on Sunday Capt. Sprague arrested
him. Maj. McIlrath came up from Boston
J. Monday ba n,I
went to Jamaica that evening. Stone was
examined and bound over that night and the
next day Clark had his examination at New
fame and was bound over in the sum of $1,000
The names of all the gang are known to the
officers of the law, but for reasons that are ev-
ident they do not divulge them. As noted in
the journal despatch, all these would-be ras-
Gals do not live in Jamaica, and several of
them who do live there have come to Jamaica
within a year or two, The leader of the
gang is j. Henry Myers, the young man who
stole a horse last week and has not vet been
caught. He came to Jamaica from Mooers
N. y, about two years ago. Stone came
from Gardner Mass. aud Clark from Oswepo.
N. Y 1t is evident that some of these fellows
from abroad had got some inkling of the way
to make counterfeit money and then came to
Jamaica as place suitably retired for their
purpose. They seem not to have succeeded
IN making any money" which they thought
1t safe to try to pass, not having got by the
experimental stage. Some of their product
was found and exhibited in the examination
before Commissioner Waterman. The edges
of the "dollars" were milled very perfectly
but otherwise the pieces were imperfect
Clark and Stone said their moulds "splutter.
ed" when the hot metal was poured in-the
trouble being probably, that they had failed
TO dry or bake their moulds (of plaster Of par
Isl sufficiently TO get rid of all the moisture.
Further developments will be awaited with
much curiosity. The interesting statement is
made that two members of the precious crew
live within reaching distance Of Brattleboro