News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1886-11-11
A QUEER HIDING PLACE.
The Story Told by a secret service De-
tective.


From the Detroit Free Press.1
In the spring of 1864 an army pay
master named Booth had in his employ
as clerk a young man named Theodore
Cushman, Il good looking, intelligent
fellow, whose parents lived in a small
town in Ohio. Booth had taken the
young man on the recommendation of a
Congressman, and was much pleased
with him. About the middle of May,
when Cushman had b en- employed
about six weeks, he suddenly disap-
peared, and with him went the sum of
$13, 900, taken from the paymaster's
safe. His getting the money was a very
bold thing. The safe stood open, and
in the Office sat the paymaster and a
friend, and there were two other clerks
besides Cushman. The young man put
on mis- hat and coat to go out, placed
the package Of money in his pocket I'M
seen, and had two hours the start when
1t was missed.
When l was placed on the case soon
learned that Cushman, honest and re-
spectacle as he appeared in the eyes of
his friends, = as really the cOnso1t of
many bad people. He drank and gam
bled, and was a general favoritc with
several female Adventures. Indeed,
even discovered that he had left Wash
ington in the company of a notorious
woman named Bell Grover. He must
have been planning a RAID on the pay
masters safe, and felt reasonably sure
of making a haul, for the woman was
packed up ready to leave, and both
were on their way to Ba timole within
an hour from the time the money was
taken. They had two days the start of
me, but l traced them to Philadelphia,
from there to Trenton, from Trenton to
Jersey City, and they crossed to New
York only two hours ahead of me. III
Philadelphia Cushman bought the wo-
$500 worth of diamonds. | had an idea
that they would plan to take a steamer
for Europe, and l had to telegraph to
Washington for help in the case. We
watched the ship Offices, oyerhauled all
the hotels, and five days slipped away
and we had not been able to pick up the
trail again. 1t was a question whether
they had not left the city almost as
soon as they had entered it. After the
first day there were four of US on the
case direct while the police were render
ing us all the assistance possible. We
had none of US met Cushman or the
woman face to face. nor did we have
Their photographs. We were trailing
them from descriptions, and faulty ones
at that.
Towards night on the afternoon of the
fifth day l was crossing Union Square
when l encountered a Young fellow
whom l at ouce spotted for Cushman.
He had shaved off his mustache, changed
his style OF collar and put on a new suit
of clothes, but had feeling that he
was the man l wanted. l turned and
followed him, and after bit he locked
about him IN such a way as to prove
that he was a criminal of some sort.
He went to a hotel and wrote letter
and inclosed a $50 bill in it. From
there he went to hardware store and
bought a revolver. Then he started out
like one going home and l followed
him to boarding house on Lexington
avenue.
Ten minutes after Cushman entered
the house | rang the bell, and it did not
take over five more to explain my errand
to the landlady. She volunteered to
lead me to Cushman's room, which was
up two flights. but she at the same time
Informed me that Mrs. Cushman had
left the house a few minutes before his
arrival. When I knocked on the door
| heard some one moving inside, but no
answer was returned to my summons. /,
/ waited five minutes and then broke .
the door in, bat Cushman was nowhere !
to be found 1t was an elegantly furn- |
ished room, and the pair had gone
straight to the house from the foot of |
Desbrosses street. looked out of the |
various windows, under the bed and be- |
hind the sofa, but Cushman was not to .
be found. He could not have descended .
to the ground, and made up my mind /.
that when he came up stairs he had en-
tered some other room, although
thought heard him move about after l
knocked.
was about to leave the room to make
a search of the house when 1 heard a
great suffering and sneeing, and tie
wooden mantel was pushed back and .
Cushman came out of the fire place. 1t
was Il mock fire CRATE, but so nicely ar /
ranged that | was deceived His quar-
tiers were terribly cramped, and the lime .
and dust had filled his eyes and set him !
to sneezing He was terribly chagrined .
and crestfallen over his capture, but
still worse thing was IN store for him. /
The woman for whom he had ruined .
himself had been entrusted to carry the .
bulk of the "swag.' and she had taken .
advantage of his absence to run away .
with it. We did our best to find her, /
but she got away to Europe with at least I
$40, 600 of the stolen money. Cushman
was taken TO Washington, tried for the
robbery and got ten-year sentence. not .
moro than half Of which had hnan
served when he died.