The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1889-11-05

put In nine years III jail. II were
10 aggregate the plumber of all the
jubs it would not equal what l could
make by one years work at China
mans wages. Of course there is
nothing in stealing. | knew that af-
ter my first dose, but l don't stop to
think of consequences, and that's how
| get back. Stealing don't pay me,
and don't know of any thief in here
that owns houses and lots, or has got
a bank account"
John Sansome, who is under life
sentence for being an enemy to Wells,
Fargo Il Co., is happy over the pros
pect of a chance to get his case into
court again. Mr.. Sansome is a gen.
tlemau of nerve, intelligence, and has
had experience enough to make his
opinion valuable.
"Does honesty pay? Well j am
free to reply that, suppose, by
saying that dishonesty does
not pay, as that answer comes
more within my ken than a declars-
ton that honesty does pay. Can /
imagine any plan of dishonesty that
will pay? might if could invent
some sort of jobbery which
would enable the perpetrator to escape
a clash with the police, but know of
none. l have tried the wrong way,
and l have given il the best trial |
could, and can't figure out any way
in which l can make dishonesty a
success, even from a business stand
point. l would like to remark here
incidentally that 1 am innocent of the
charge (robbing the Auburn STACEY
which has given me this last term
here. l have had sufficient experience,
however, to be able to state positively
that no man can make the wrongful
confiscation of property prove sue
cess. No man who leads a crooked
life can associate with straight, honest
people. He is bound to seek his own
kind. 1t is a favorite charge with
criminals that everybody is crooked,
and that the big crooks and hypocrit-
ical crooks escape because they have
influence or wealth, or are more cum
ming than the officers of the law. The
first section of the charge is erroneous,
the latter is in a measure true. If
man has talent and understands the
intricacies of the law he can commit
some forms of theft that will make
dishonesty pay from a dollars and
cents standpoint. Generally speak
ing, it does pay to be honest. Any
body behind the bars will say so, at
any rate, land the average stripe.wearer
will 60 further, and say that dishon-
esty does not pay as business propo-
sltion.
Joe Fsgen is big English sailor
who is doing his third stretch. He is
called a bad man by the police, and
they pushed charge of robbery
against him so vigorously that he has
twenty years in front OF him.
GA man that steals with his hands
is fool, because he can't make
living at it. If he steals in business
then it might pay, but | dent know
anything about that, because l was
never in business. The old saying
Of thieves about the world owing
them living is nonsense. The world
may owe them living. but they'll
find that they have got to work to
collect it. This collecting it Without
asking permission is a failure in the
long run. I've tried both ways.
When was honest l didn't have to
work half as hard as l do now, and i
was a-sight better of. Why did i
come back the second and third times,
Well, luck had a good deal to
do with it. | didn't want to steal
naturally and especially after realizing
how proitless i! was, but l got crowd.
ed a little, and the first thing I knew
l was behind the bars again"
James Jones, who has lost the real
name bis good old Southern nanny
gave him under mountain of aliases,
is the colored philosopher of San
Quentin. Liberty has charms for
him, but a juicy ham has a fasclna-
ton beyond his powers of resistance.
"Be jes as homes as 20 kin, my
young fren' an you'll never need to
ask such quesshuns agin. Course
hones'y pays-big int'rest on the
'vestment too. Man gifts into truble
mos allus through weakness. Some
times it's cause he amt smart, an
its cause he gifts a chance to
git in truble, but its mostly through
weakness. Every man has got his
weakness. My weakness is hams.
Yes, sab, hams is what gifts me to
wearin' these stripey clothes. When
1 sees ham [ wants it, an if 1 kin