The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1883-01-31
A FAMOUS oLD.rrME DETECTIVE.
Popular Delusion Concerning ChIoroform
The Bank Clerk Who Dragged himself


The Bank Clerk Who Dragged himself
"A Hammer Dent Betrays a Robber
you can put it down as an established
fact in medicine" said Buffalo doctor to
ST. Louis Post-Dispaich reporter. land I've
had ON experience of over forty year,, that
it's beastly, uphill job, il not well nigh
impossible. to drug Que with chloroform in
mid-winter in the open air. 1t evaporates
very rapidly, indeed, and its power is about
gone before it could have time TO act. I've
made a great many attempts in an expert
mental way. ana hence feel as if l knew
what was talking about. I've known quite
a number of cases in Army practice where it
required many minutes of persistent effort
to get a patient under the control IF the
drug. The common impression that chlorO-
form is instantaneous in its effect is all non
sense. 1t is much more rapid than ether
and also more dangerous, and for that reason
the fraternity are generally adopting ether as
a safer resort.
But" continued The Doctor, ''iet me
give you a story combining medicine and
detective work, with a dash of chloroform
III il. Just before the War there was a
banking house in Buffalo By the name of
Brown, Keep Il Co. They were private
bankers. of course. For about q dozen
years they mad had in their employ a
trusted and confidential clerk. who knew all
the secrets and carried The keys. Among
his other duties he was Obliged to sleep all
night in the bank. Well, one night the
town was Mortified TO learn that the bank
had been robbed of some thou sands of dol
lars. The amount was not QElte % to the
standard required in fashionable circles
to-day, but il was a fair haul for IN use .prim-
tive times. They called in Ham Best, one
of the most rfmarkable detectives who
ever lived. and turned him loose on
III. - II
man was that he had allowed eli old
friend, whose lsIdlady had demanded his
key, to share his bed With him that night
that he was very tired, had gone to bed early
and must have been drugged in his sleep
with chloroform. There was no doubt of
the chlorofornl, because q small vial of il.
was found only few feet from the bed
While the clerk was under the influence Of
the drug, the foul villain bad cut the glass
in the bank window and rifed the safe.
well. Best went quietly TO work on the
case, and at the end of the first day he in
formed the Directors that he had the man.
| He said ii was Mr.. Clerk. Then did they
all with one accord begin TO crowd him with
EXPLANATIONS of disbelief. But Best never
jumped till he was good and ready. He
| first observed that the bank glass had been
cut from the inside. Next he telegraphed
| To DIR. Frank Hamilton, of New York (the
same one who attended Garfeld), and got a
sTstement by dispatch that chlorofcrm can't
be administered 20 sleeping patient with
out waking him up. The clerk 'fessed up.
and nesrly all the money was recovered.
His friend had been simply an accomplice.
by the way, while Pm at ii, might as
well tell you an Old story that illustrates the
detective powers of Ham Best. Years aga
it created quite 4 stir in st. Louis. One OF
| the banks in your city lad occasion 10 send
1 IL. a.
was before the War. The route east was
then by way of Chicago. Well, when the
gold arrived at the place of destination the
| Hartford bsnk discovered that the box had
! been opened, aud that some hundreds Of gold
had been scraped from the tor. Complain.
was made TO the Express Company, and Best
WAS called in. His first move was to get the
names OF the men on the men on the runs
| between st. Louis and Hartford, and to
learn as much as possible about their past
business, what they had been engaged at.
| etc. In less than no time he exon Grated
every agent between Chicago and the East
The robbery was committed west of Chicago
and | think ] have the man. said Ham. He
got leave to travel on the express car with
the suspected man, having the opened box
| in his pcs ession. All got along an
icably I'LL the sgcnt produced q
small hammer, which, be remarked,
was quite handy ct times. Best al oUct
bought forth the box, and asked Mr.. Agent
ii he would not be kind enough TO tit that
hammer to dent in the side of the box
The fellow stsmmered and turned pale, but
complied 1t fitted like the paper on the
wall. He had found his man. This small
dent in the box was the only thing to indi
cate that the box bad been opened. No one
but an expert could have done it. In run
ming over the former occupations of the
various agents Best had found that the man
in question was the only one of the number
who had previously been q carpenter, and
hence the only one likely to know that you
can pry open wooden box with wooden
| wedge and leave no marks. The unfortu
nate slip of his hammer furnished the con
Meeting link. Dead? Oh, yes; Best died
fifteen years ago. | ehould think. while
| Chief of the Buffalo Police. He had a very
wide range of information and was as modest
as school girl. He said the work of de-
tective was merely applied common sense
The trouble with our detectives of to-day is
that they have no common sense and
| wouldn't know how to apDly il if thew