Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1883-09-18

while here but enjoy himself. After |
left your Office so perempiorily. | went
down to the hat-boat, and the next
morning at daylight we cast loose and
fioated down the stream. Before we
reached the mouth of the Yszoo | had
my case ready. On the way, which oc-
crpied several days, we drank, played
cards and had good time generally.
Dnrnk the day | managed to take short
maps, but at night did not sleep wink
only pretended to sleep. and can tell
you did some hard snoring. The night
before we reached the mouth of the riv.
er as | lay snoring away in my bunk, |
heard them discuss the late robbery in
whispered conversation, how cleverly
they had done it. and how safe they were
even from suspicion. Their plans were
~ tie up the boat at the mouth of the
river, telling me that they had sold it to
party in Vicksburg on their way up to
Yazoo City, and would then take an up
river boat for the North. discovered
that they were regularly organized band
Of robbers. their chief man being an ex-
pert, and that they had adopted this plan
of buying barge of corn and selling the
same, in order to furnish a cloak for their
depredations.
They regarded me as good-natured
vagahoni that they would like to take
along and at the proper time convert me
to become a member Of the band | de-
termined not to interfere with their scheme
and to let things take their proper course.
On reaching the mouth oi the river we
iloated out en .Le broad Mississippi and
tied up on the bank. The next day, an
np-river boat coming along. was told
that the A,t had been sold to man in
Vicksburg. who would come up and get
it. The boat was hailed, and we all got
aboard knew if gave the alarm on
board there would be no waS oi proper
ly securing thea, and there being no
towp Of any size nearer than Memphis. |
resolved to keep qrle, until we reached
that place. We preserved our incognito
as n, ii,t-boa,men, aud took deck passage
which was pretty rough, but not az much
80 as when | worked ny way up the
Ynzpo. Our boat happened to be small
stern wheel affair, and the water being
low and the current strong, We were con.
,inually getting aground. and it Wa a
long time before we reached Memphis.
Upon my ar1iya, there at once made
NJ way u the police headquarters, where
was known, and getting detail of
four men we marched on board and Sc
cured the men before they had suspIc-
ion that anything was wrong. | then
wrote you and you know the rest
When he concluded. the whole thing
seemed to be a B.ron Munchausen story.
but the men were in Jail and there was
no room for doubt. | had heard of but
tons, drops Of blood, fragments of gun
wsddins and other things of similar
description leading to the detection of
guilt, but thought the mere possession
of Jimmy" was very slender cause
for suspicion, much less to produce con-
viction in the mind of a man sufficiently
strong to go to work to secure evidence
of guilt. At the ensuing term of court,
the four were indicted for burglary and
robbery. One Of the party offered to
turn State evidence, upon condition Of
getting his liberty, and in this way the
other three were convicted, and were
sentenced to ten years each in the peni-
tentiary. Almost all the money was re-
covered as they had had no opportunity
Of spending or secreting it.-From The
Ne,o Orlean Times Democrat.