St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1884-11-28

To the Editor OF the Globe:
On the night Of the 18th of November.
while guest at the Byrne house, OF this city,
was asleep in his room two sneak thieves en-
tered and stole his overcoat. The guest wss
awakened by the noise, and as he jumped
from his bed the thieves decamped with the
coat.
The coat being a very good one, search
was Instituted to, if possible, discover who
the thieves were and to find the coat. On
tho oath day OF November the gentleman
who lost the coat, latter searching in St.
Paul with the aid of the police, and failing to
find it,, visited Minneapolis and made en-
quires in the pawn and secondhand stores
for the missing garment, but could get no
satisfaction from any of them. The matter
was reported to Messrs. QuinlaH and Glea-
son, detective officers of Minneapolis, and
in two days word was sent to the owner of
the coat to call at police headquarters in Min
neapolis and identify his coat. He at once
repaired to the headquarters, and among
some others was the missing garment. Now
comes the sequel, or rather the Joke
The owner OF the coat bor-
rowed one, the day being cold,
to go after after his own. After recovering
his own he started with his friends coat on
his arm for the depot, and had determined
to ascertain il the second hand shops were
as unwilling 20 buy stolen overcoats as they
pretended to be few days previous. With
this object in view be entered one, and found
they were perfectly willing to buy and ask
no questions, but as the gentleman would
not state price, after he left the store,
the virtuous shopkeeper, informed the police
that man with stolen oVercoat bad just
left, as he had refused to buy stolen property.
The officer tracked the supposed thief, who
Was by this time block away
and arrested him on tlie information given.
On the way to the station they met the chief.
who upon being informed Of the facts, Or
dered the release of the supposed crook.
The gentleman proceeded to the depot and
boarded the train for st, Paul. Seeing a
nan with two oYercoats. q passenger asked
| If he would sell one; he replied, don't care.
yes, will sell; how much will you gives On
the opposite side of the car sat a sheriff aud
detective from Dakota, who overheard the
conversation. Instantly they were ON the
alert. Crossing over the detective asked,
will you sell that coat my friendl Eyeing
him moment, and thinking be was some
would-be detective, be replied yes 1 will;
how much do Won w=nta
! Forty-hVe dollarss The detective
subsidized, but his lynx eye and that of the
sheriff did not lose sight of the man with
the coat. Our friend arose from his seat and
stepped out on the platform for little air.
Instantly the eyes OF the officers were on him.
As the train slowed up coming ito the depot
he prepared to step OF but at the door Of
The car watching him was the sheriff OF
Dakota. Disguised At being watched and
suspected, ne jumped from the train aud
proceeded rapidly up Sibley street TO Third.
Passing up Third street upon looking back
he saw the sheriff in pursuit. To avoid
further annoyance he stepped into business
house and thought be had eluded
his pursuers. Vain hope, for while
relating his disagreeable experience TO a
] friend, there entered lone of the fnest'' OF