The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1884-01-23
GENTLEMANLY BURGLARS.
A FEW or THEM PICKED OUT or
VERY LARGE BATCH.
RoRues Who Ape the Ways Of Fashionable
Life aud for u Time Live In Clover.
From the Now York Honr.l

I From the New YORK HOnf.I
In the play Of the "Silycr King
cultivated gentleman Of distinguishe
appearance, who has the entrce OF man
swell" houses, is known to his bushes
. associates rs "Captain Spider" and j
called from delightful party at Lad.
Blanche Somebody's" TO pick the loci
Of a safe, and, incidentally, to shoot thu
safe owner. He is afterward seen taking
his ease in atastefully furnished country
villa, and is heard telling his charming
and extensively attired wife that his
possessions are tie results OF his pa
lience aud industry. The critics de.
clarcd the character untrue to life,
though why they should have done 50 Is
not clear, for, between the gentlemanly
cracksman and great many other per
SONS, not always gentlemanly, who,
through methods that law is still too
imperfect TO obstruct, take all that a man
has without giving anything in return,
the difference IL not great enough to be
discernble.
The burglar who was shot a few nights
ago at Woodside, New Jersey, by gen.
tleman whose house he had entered
without first observing the trihing for
mality Of ringing the BELL was evidently
Of the Captain Spider class, but he had
improved upon his models so far as to
have no associates. He appears to have
dressed well, conducted himself with
prOpriety in his limited social relations,
and had no bad personal habits. He did
not live in the fashionable quarter of the
city, but there were prudential reasons
for that; man cannot live and move in
fashionable circles without exciting
much curiosity as to his financial re.
sources, among managing mothers and
sagacious fathers. Spider fell because
he had cOnfederates, for thieves are
bound to fall ont sooner or later, even
If they are as safe from the laws threats
as If they stole nothing but railroads.
But no dangerous character seems to
have known the Woodside burglar, even
by sight; neither did the police know
him, although there is nothing strange
about this, for did not Porter, of late
on trial for murder, and his friend
Irving go for months unmolested to and
from charming residence on the out
skirts of Brooklyn2 At every ferry there
are plenty Of policemen, and detectives
arc supposed to be there too; the por.
traits Of Irving and Porter were in the
"Rogues' Gallery which every officer
IN Brooklyn and New York is supposed
to have in his minds eye; yet, for
long time Porter and Irving safely ran
the gauntlet OF the officers at the ferries.
in tho streets and on the cars, and were
captured only after being seen in com.
pany with other criminals, who. being
more common, were better known.
Their home was found to be luxuriously
furnished; the grounds were tastefnlly
'laid out" and planted, and on the lawn
the gentlemen and their wives were
frequently seen playing croquet and
lawn tennis. There is no possible legal
or moral objection to n burglar and his
family playing fashionable out-of-door
games; indeed, the community could
well afford to support such people, if it
could also pledge them to devote their
entire attention to croquct and lawn
tennis. The only strange thing about
the Porter Irving set is that they were
entirely unknown 10 their neighbors
and the police, and there was none TO
modest them or make them afraid.
Among other well.known gentlemen"
whose doings were not regulated by n
law-abidmg spirit was the forger GRAY.
whose financial operations, on the basis
OF names not written by the men who
owned them, We're the wonder and terror
OF many bankers in America and Europc
Gray was fond of other peoples com.
pany as well AS their money, and he
never fnilcd to be prominent in society
wherever he might be. He married we'll. |
although it is said he married too fire,
qnehtly, and ut one time he even be-
came Magistrate in his English home. |
His last capture and incarceration may !
he traced more to his social proclivitics |
than to any lack of shrewdness on his
own part, for he was so well known by
SIGHT to thousands of intelligent people
that when once described hundreds Of
acqualniances recognized him by the
New York has had its share-more than
It's share, some people insist of gentle.
manly criminals. One prepossessinp
Young man, not of bad family, was n few
'ears ago accused OF "making his ex-
lenses by scquestrating silver spoons
md forks at evening parties: others
ave been known to rifle the pockets Of
Vercoats left in gentlcmcns dressing
D"ms ut large private entertainments.
wo or three are believed to have earned /
leasing incomes by appropriating brio. i
-brac during the course of evening |
llls. G
The qualifications of successful zen. s
thief are not necessarily nu. n
erous. Any man without regular k
cans OF support and with IN unvarying d
ltipathy to work comes naturally by {
he Willingness to steal; he then merely
cks opportunity, and this he can |
nj IN hundred ways II he happens to +
IN society. Pawnbrokers' shops are
numerous as churches, so the booty i
Jay be disposed OF easily. If any single (
'tcle brings but little money, the TEN. r
orary owner las the consolation of i
moving that it cost nothing, and that u
enty more may be had at the same n
rice. The ease and success with which +
ealing may be followed as livelihood h
young men who have "the run" of a,
he best private residence should sug. =,
EST to some fashionable circles the h
instability of looking more carefully "
to the credentials of gentlemen with.
1t visible means of support. OF course,
len any youth of good family is de. y,
'ted IN the act of appropriaiing the n,
opcrty OF Others the plea of "klepto- Ia
min" will lnYn In La nnnn.,Lol -LuL -.