Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1886-03-24

| THE ''Boss" BURGLAR.
'.Who do you think is the best burglar
in the worldp"
''Dan Noble. He is at present living
against his will in Englan |. Dan was
caught in an attempt upon tho Bank OF
England. You don't know what man
he was.n
The lawyer shook his head sadly.
"How about Bill Vosburgh; wasn't
he clever burglarp"
'Oh' don't, don't mention such n man
in the same breath with Dan Noble,
cried the lawyer, with an express ON of
pain upon his face. at simply disgusts
me. What Bill Vosburgh compared
to Dan Noble! A common sneak thief
compared to the king of scientists!
Why, Noble could do. anything Many
time he's sat in tho very chair you re
sitting in and talked TO me. Some of
the great bank burglars become cleo
tricians and chemists. A man who was
once celebrated burglar. but who is ut
present an honored physic an, told me
when l was defending him that he could
go through a steel shutter with phial
of acid, piece of silk and spring saw
just as if he was cutting through SO
|
electricity in order to cope with patent
alarms.
HOW 1.-THE swAG" Is DISPOSED OF.
But there are some things in which
the poor burglar is misunderstood. He
seldom gets the lions share of the profit.
Take a sample case. I'll give YOU ono
founded upon fact that will illustrate
scores OF others. A burglar breaks into
a silk house and gets away with two or
three cases that cost tne owner. say,
5000. He has to pay at least two
confederates. Before the burglary he
had to hire floor in some che p tene-
ment house and an express wagon.
The silk is taken in the wagon to the
tenement house, for no receiver of stol-
en- goods or fence, as we call such O
person, would allow so many goods to
be carted to the receiving pla g. 1t would
attract too much attention. If the
wagon and horse belong to trusted
friend the burglar returns them; if
not. he lets them go in tho street
and don't bother his head about
them. Now, the next thing to do
is to call in three or four fences
to bid for the silk. 1t Is curious TACT,
but true one, nevertheless, that when
a man is robbed he always says that his
loss Is greater than it really is. In this
| case the merchant claims that the silk
I stolen from him is worth over 5000. in
! stead of 5000, its real value. The burg
lar reads the newspapers. for he mus.
always keep up sharply with the news of
the day. and gets from the merchants
misrepresentat ons an exaggerated idea
of what his booty is worth. Tho first
fence to arrive surveys the silk and
says, Mine friendt, dose goots arc wort
$1,000; / gif you $1,000, vor ] hat TO
sell vor 81, 800 to friendt of mine who
knows all apout dot roppcry' Tho
fence is perfectly honest in his state
ment, but the burglar doesn't believe
him and refuses to sell.
WHERE TIE DETECTIVE CONES IN.
Nov, what does the fence dop |
don't want to be too explicit, but
the chances are that within q few
hours a detective taps the burglar
on the shoulder. Say, wasn't that
curious burglary in So-and-so's silk
warehousep says the detective. Il
don know anything about it.. says the
poor burglar, who is now inwardly
quaking. Yes, you do says the de-
tectivc, and you've got the stuff Now
i give you till tomorrow to fork over
the stuff to the owner or I'll collar it
and you, too. You see the detective
/ doesn't know where the silk is hid, but
he pretends he does. What does the
poor burglar do now? He either sends
for the fence and sells the silk for
whatever he can get, or he agrees
| u,if hn lot 10, h. L.
to the owner for say $1,000 reward. II
the latter course is decided upon, the
public suddenly learns of very brill
liant p.ece of detective work through
which two detectives have uncarthed
the headquarters of gang of burglars.
The thieves managed to escape, but all
their swag was captured. Thus the
silk is returned to the owner, who pays
the reward, in which the burglar and
the fence share. You see what dis
couraging thing il is 10 DO a burglar.
A BURGLAR AT HOME.
"A man like Dan Noble sometimes
becomes prominent in his own COM
munity. Dan lived in Elmira and
owned trotting horses there ! have
often heard 1t said ulat he was so pop
ular in Elmira that the author ties
could not get conviction against him
there. Once when | was on my way TO
Binghamton to get famous burglar
out on bail ] met Dan Noble on the
train. He had whole section in the
car, had two splendid dogs, and was
waited upon as il he was u Prince. l
told HIM where l was going, and no
laughed. I'm on my way to my resi-
dencc,' he said. Its too bad that
people will get themselves in trouble,
! isn't itp' Noble, you will remember,
| stole over 1000. 900 in bonds from Mr..
Lord"
PRINCE OF SNEAK THIEVES.
"Who is another remarkable criminal
of your acquaintanceP
now"
The lawyer turned his head away.
Then there was q moment of silence.
Then he pressed o piece of blotting-
paper to his eyes.
''Chauncey was the most eminent
sneak thief that ever lived" he said.
He made over $500. 600 in his profess
sion, and yet he died beggar. Sad.
isn't itp Well, that is the way Of the
world. Chauncey once robbed the Fifth
Avenue Hotel. The story never came
out, but III tell 1t now. Every year
the New England Society had n dinner
at the hotel. When the comm ttee was
arranging for tho dinner one day in the
little room ut the back of the main
office Chauncey walked in. He was
elegantly dressed and picked his teeth
with q gold toothpick. The hotel pro.
prietors thought he was member of
tho committee and the committee
thought he was one of the proprietors.
There is a safe close TO the door OF the
little room, and Cnauncey stole the first
thing in it he could reach. When he
got home he found that he had stolen
very valuable papers belonging to an
English clergyman. The Clergyman
went back to England and. of course,
| nut In his claim anainst tho hotel