Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1886-06-15
MISCELLANEOUS.
The Burglars Story.
Ho,o They We're Taken in ON a Neu
Safe Lock.

SuJe LOCK-.
1 don't pretend to say that Jim
KeZevin was a reputable acquaintance.
In fact, he was q very tough subject,
considerable portion of his life hav-
ing been spent in jails and peniten-
tiaries when he was not in worse
employment. f r
met him in Chicago shortly after
he had been out of Joliet, and he re-
lated to me, among other things, the
particulars of disastrous attempt he
had once made to rob bank in Texas.
"Three of u.s. he said, chad gone
through train down thar. T'other
fellers I'll. call Jack and Bill. They
may have gone into congress or took
to preachin' afore now, and wouldn't
want to pull 'Gm down.
" 1t was little way west of Tex
arkana that we struck the train, and
we went through it as easy as rollin'
off a log, though we didn't get enottgh
to let us retire from business: We
stopped off, divided the sTag, changed
our duds and took the next train on
to Austin. OF course we didn't sit
together, and were strangers to each
other. .tf...tr
81 sot alongside of sorter bright
young man who was fond o. shootin'
off his mouth, and naturally got to
talkin' about the train robbery, and
that led to other things, such as
breakin' into houses and stores and
banks.
"I gave him some interestin' p'ints,
but he gave me one that was the most
Observation-Disclosures to me.
'Pm cashier of a private bank
said he, 'in little town near Austin,
and we've got safe there that I'd
defy the best burglar that's made to
git into. 'Tain't much of safe,
either; but we keep pile of money
in it, and jest go away and leave it
thar every night, without watchman
or anybody in the buildin'.' "
60 axed him what made him so
sure O. the safe, and he said it was
the lock ne had invented and put on,
which lie was goin' to git patent fur
the same.
" Young man," thinks I, I" I've got
you jest whar want you. No man
livin,' let alone sech greent as you,
kin make a safe lock that me and my
pals can't git away with, and yoh'H
know to your sorrer afore long.
SO got few more p'ints from
him, and arter a few nights me and
Jack and Bill went to that small town
to take in his little old bank.
wn In Ia ~
any trouble, and we jest laughed
when we turned the bull l's-eye into the
safe and took notice of the pint it
didn't haze. 1t was the poorest ex-
cuse for safe ever sot eyes onto,
and thar warn't the least bit O. doubt
of our bein' able to handle it. The
only fear had was that the young
feller might ha' lied about the money
that was kept in it.
eve allowed that the cheapest and
easiest way would be to bore hole
into the lock, put little powder in
and blow it off, and so we bored the
hole.
"Soon as it was bored thar came
out O. the hole the rottenest smell L
ever smeIt. 1t must have been a
mixtur' of asafetida and sulphur with
some other stink that was wuss'n both
o. those put together. Carr'n warn't
patchin' to it, and you kin bet that
we plugged up that hole mighty sud-
den.
as reckoned that we'd struck the
secret o. the cashiers safe lock, and
that we needn't worry it any more.
So as soon as we'd kinder got over
the effex o. the stnff, tse took sec
tional jimmy and started TO prT open
the door.
THAT job was done easy enough;
but when the door opened, OH Chris
topher ColumbusI That Internal,
rotten, sickenin' smell rushed out
and knocked us flat afore we could
begin to get out of the way. Twas
a million times wusser'n eff we'd
knocked hole in the roof of den O.
skunks. I'm keen to sw'ar that thar
never warn't nothin' like it this side
o'-you know whar. The three of us
keeied right over, and all the sense
we had was to lie thar am throw up
our very in'ards.
e How long We was stretched out