Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1883-03-06
~GIE. Yosr.



Yesterdays Tribune announced the
fact that some OF the men engaged IN
the SIS 900 Icwelry robbery at La Porte
Ind, had been arrested in Chicago,
and that quantity Of the plumber had
been recovered. From Detective Billy
pinkcrton complete history of the
ease was yesterday obtained, together
with history Of one of the captured
crooks, Gilbert Yost--"Gil' he is call.
ed--who enjoys the reputation Of being
the most skillflil and daring burglar In
the country. He has reduced bur.
glary toa fine prt, and would not for 4
moment think of doing petty pro.
fessional Job, or OF asaOclating with an
ordinary thief. His arrest so soon
after the La Porte burglary was due In
"A great measure Ia certain events
which had previously transpircd. The
story as
TOLD By billy tuNRERToN
Is about rs clear an.l interesting ne IL
can he made. II was, ns near as his
language cnn be recalled as follows:
About three months aga my
brother Bob and | were walking on
West Randolph street, when we saw
a tall, stout man with Il full red beard
turn corner ahead Of W.. We ut once
recognized bins az Gii lost, Of whom
we had heard nothing for several
months. Knowing him 10 DC one OF
the most experienced and accom-
pllshcd burglars in the entire country,
NC resolved 10 follow him and learn
where he wa- quartercd. But right
here might tell you something of his
story. He is now about ~ years old
and has wife and Two children the
former being perfectly familiar with
the manner ia which her husband gets
the nccessaries oil life. He wus edu-
Gated for burglar by Alex McGrcgor
and Jim Barnes, who died while aofy-
ing iiftcor-ycar sentences for a s39000
bond robbery in Pennsylvania. Yost
proved an apt pupil. He WIS thor
ongh mechanic, M expert blacksmith
and filter, and Is one OF the few men
who understand
THE USE or THE A1R-PuMr
ia connection with dynamite for blow
ing safes When he needs burglars
tool he makes ii himself, and lie never
allows himself 10 be seen In the com.
pany OF u crook except when planning
or doing some bigjo He committed
some daring burgIaries in Central
New York several years ago aud serv-
I'D u short term In the peuitentiary
for one of them. Then he went to
New York City ana rented II fine resi-
ncncc on Patchin avenue. About that's
dime numerous extensive burglnres
were committed ia New York and
Brooklyn and no trace of the culprits
could be discovered for months. Fi-
nally the burglaries were traced Co
what afterward became known aa the
'l'ntehin avenue gangp-mnde up OF
Gil Iost John Porter, Jimmy irving
and Tom Draper. They were all ar.
rested In Yosts residence. Draper
was taken 10 Northampton, where he
was wanted for taking a hand iuthe
famous bank robbery IN that town.
The others were confined In the Brook
lyn Jail, Porter and Irving broke Jail
before their trial came Off The form.
or WAS soon after arrested In philu.
delphia and sent down for doingn
Job there, and Irving wns recaptuled
and sent to Sing Sing. where he Is
now doing time Yost escaped
through negligence on the part ofthe.
prosecution.
ITO resume the story,
RON AND I Su Allowed YosT
10 No. 200 North Carpenter street, aud
learned that he was living there with
his family, passing himself as n trav-
cling salesman. Feeling confident
that Yost would soon be wanted for
somc work, ! took Detective Elliot, of
the city force, into my confidence, and
we resolved TO raid tile house as soon
as an opportunity offered itself. Two
weeks ago Monday ! received n telc-
gram from II. Vail x Son, of La Porte.
jobhing and retail jewellers, announc.
ing that their store had been broken
into and riIlcd OF Sl5-000 worth of
iowciry. The jcwelry had been left
in the safe and the safe had been
opened by means Of drilling holes
above the lock and then driving the
lock- In. | sent operatives 10 La Porte
and Instructed them To make deligent
inquiry along the public highways
leading To the city for any mysterious
men who might have been seen by the
farmers. One farmer, about twelve
miles from La Porte, told an operative
that the morning following the bur
glsry four men came To his house and
loafcd about there the entire day.
THEY HAD SMALL vALlsRS
with them and claimed to he survey
ors, while one of them said they were
hunting stolen horses. They took
their departure M soon ~ nigh, came
on. The description given by the
farmer of one OF the men answered To
that of GIL Yost, Mr. Vail also gave
a description of II man he had seen
tounging about the store for several
days preceding the burglary, aud this
description likewise answered 60 that
of GIL fost, Satisfied that he had par.
ucipated In the burglary, resolved
10 arrest him at his home, found,
however, that he had moved about
Two weeks previous from No. 200
North Carpenter street, aud taken up
his residence somewhere on Fulton
street-7none of the neighbols could
give his new number. sent
operatives along Fulton street ia the
guise Of dictionary canvassers and at
No, GT2 one of the 'canvassers' was
told that Gilbert Iost, travelling salcs-
man, occupied the house. Then put
shadows ON the house, Nost, though,
has been behaving very quietly Re
seldom Went out alone, generally talk
ing one of the children with
him, and never visited any
crooked resorts. Finally il
sent for Vail and gave him an oppor-
unity 10 see Nost lie AT once ideuti. I
fled him MS the man who had hung (
about the store. Then | lecidpd To 1
make the arrest, aud sunday morning /
Detectives Elliott and Wiley, ex, /
sheriff Hitch N nn,rnn az =, pa,,, /