Madison times. (Tallulah, Madison Parish, La.) 1884-1???, 1884-08-16

to ordinary men would appear like inn
passable mountains. Maj Pinkerton
was man with big heart. | don't
think he knew how to do a mean thing
He was one of those honorable, fair
minded men, who, while giving every.
body their due, exacted the same for
himself In matters of business he insist
ed on getting every penny that belonged
to him, and once he made promise it
was lived up to if it cost him every pen
ny he owned in the world. His likes
and dislikes were intense. Ifhe became
your friend no amount of calumny on
the part of your enemy could change his
opinion; but if he disliked you neither
argument nor entreaties could shake
him an iota.
Maj. Pinkerton's perseverance and
ingenuity were the secrets of his success
in all his undertakings. If he could not
accomplish his purpose by one plan he
Immediately resorted to another. His
mind was wonderfully fertile in expedi-
ents, and it was a rare thing for him 70
fail when he had once set his mind up
on success. You can form some idea of
his ready tact and capacity for planning
in the case of the colored murderer
johnson, of South Carolina, who killed
an enemy under the most brutal circum-
stances. Maj. Pinkerton was pretty pos
tive as to the mans guilt, but it was
impossible to obtain complete chain
of evidence. With the natural secretivs-
ness Of his race Johnson refused TO fall
into any of the man. traps laid for him
and make confession, which was Pin
kerton's object.
AFTER weeks of patient but abortive
work, a novel plan was hit upon. The
murderer was surprised one morning
when he went to take a plow into a
field to find it spattered with blood. In
the open field where he was to work
the murderer found little pools of blood
along the course he was totplow. When
he went back to the stable he was start
led by seeing the bloody imprint of
human hand on the stable door. Every
hoe, OF rake, or other farm implement
that the man pic,,ed up had blood on it.
When nightfall came the murderer was
so paralyzed with fear that his teeth
were chattering and he was afraid to go
to bed. He believed that the spirit of
his victim was haunting him. The de.
tective and his assistant noted those
symptoms, and were confident that the
right plan had been struck at last. 1t
had been after fashion, and there was
a horrible proof given the next day.
johnson was found in the barn with his
throat cut from ear to ear He had kill |
ed himself rather than endure the tor
lures of guilty conscience. 1 need not
explain that the blood marks which |
frightened the murderer's guilty soul |
were the work of the detective, and not |
of spirits.
''lt was in that Maj. Pinkerton excell-
ed. He could change his tactics so that |
the man or men he was seeking would J
be led into trap when they really -,
thought they were getting out of one.
There are scores and scores of such in |
but they have all Deen publish
cd from time to time as they occurred,
and l do not suppose would interest you. |
1t was one of Maj. Pinkerton's rules to
conceal nothing from the public of pub
lie interest, after the work was done; and |
it vas another inflexible rule to tell the |
public nothing before the job was fin
lshed or while it was in progress. From |,
this he never departed, and his sons
William and Robert, who are their
lsther's successors, will adhere to it as
rieidly as the founder of the agency
did,"