Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-02-27
EGAN WAS THE DETECTIVE.
The Remarkable Story Of the Exposure
Of Pigott's Villainies.


ties detected and exposed the conspiracy
against them is highly interesting. 1t was
told in London yesterday by one Of the Par
nellite counsel Up to July Of last year Parnell,
his counsel, and colleagues were wholly at sea.
They knew the letters were forged. But the
forgeries were so adroit and the text of the let
tiers, to say nothing Of their penmanship, was
SO like the habitual phraseology of both Egan
and Parnell that it was clear the crime had
been committed by some one having access to
the correspondence of both. But although the
most astute detectives and the most ingenious
of English solicitors were in the case, every eff
fort to discover the forger proved futile, and
Parnell and his confidan were, if not hopeless,
at least depressed and disheartened.
One day last July young Irish-American
priest, Rev. Maurice J. Dorney, of Chicago, ac-
companied by Rev. Herbert Dunn, of the same
city, sent his card in to Mr. Parnell at the house
of commons. When they met Father Dorney
informed Parnell that he had package to de-
liver placed in his hand the night before he
sailed from New York 1t contained he said,
the evidence that would reveal the forgeries
and identify the forger of the letters printed in
the London Times. Father Dorney explained
that the package had been committed to his
care by Patrick Egan, who had learned acct
dentallv that he was coming to London.
Egan explained the nature of the contents to
Father Dorney. and impressed upon him the
great Importance of guarding the package with
the utmost care and delivering it safely into
the hands of Parnell. He told Parnell he had
carried that package with more solicitude than
If it had been millions, for If it were lost all the
gold the Irish race could send to help him in his
trial could not replace it. He expressed to him
the anxiety of Egan and Sullivan for the safety
of the package and when it's real nature and
lnestlmable value became apparent to Parnell
the home-rule leader was deeply affected. The
depression which had been visible on his pale
face for months began to soften, and during
the recital of the story he yielded several times
to his emotion.
EGAN BEGINS HIS INVESTIGATION.
A series of interviews TO flowed, participated
in by Dorney, Parnell, Sir Charles Russell,
Lewis and Labouchere.
The discovery that Pigott was a forger was
made by Egan in Lincoln. Neb.. while detec-
tives an d experts were vainly trying to find
clue in Great Britain. Egan writes that he
was sorely perplexed by the forged letters fac
SMILES OF which he got in the London Times
The signatures to those attributed to him were
remarkably good. Expressions and odd abbre-
ylatlons peculiar to him were in the text He
considered as the possible forger each of the
several men whom the Parnellites suggested
or suspected. But none of them could have
had the letters from him which would have
made the spurious connections possible. He
recalled Richard Piggott, but he had been SO
long dead in politics and covered with accu-
mulated shame that Egan dismissed him from
his mind. He remembered, that Piggott had
been in forgeries many years before. But the
idea that he might be concerned in these
seemed absurd.
In scrutinizing the forged fac-smiles he
finally discovered that one signsd with his own
name was written avowediy at aSertain address
in Paris and the recollection flashed upon him
that Plggott was the only man to whom he had
ever given it, Piggott bad written to him ask
ing for a confidential address to which he might
send important information. and Egan, con-
Guiding to learn what 1t was. secured this ad-
dress, which proved the key to the forgeries.
THE FIRST CLEw.
Egan, who is methodical in habit. had saved
his correspondence for years. Instead of keep
ing letter press he had been accustomed to
writing on the fly leaf of letter received his
answer to it and then copying the answer to be
sent to his correspondent. Thus he had letter
and answer together. He searched his volumes
of letters until he found Piggott's BY compar-
ing them with the handwriting on the forged
letters he saw that he had the forger. He sub
mitted letters written b. Piggott to experts. to-
gether with the fac SMILES of the forged letters
They Immediately detected characteristic
pecullarltles which were confirmed under the
microscope. Egdn had Piggott letters and the
forgeries photographed and started for Chicago,
where he placed all the papers before his
friend Alexander Sullivan, who is also a
solicitor.
PIGGoTTs FORMER FoRGERIEs.
The brief was drawn up by him and Sullivan
in the latter's Office in Chicago. 1t related the
chief incidents in Piggott's career and showed
that he had been forger before. Years be-
fore, when Piggott tried to sell the hisaman
newspaper to Parnell and Egan, he furnished
an inventory apparently authenticated by we'll
known Dublin accountants, showing the value
of the property of the concern. Egan proved
no URN ole and hal
forged the accountants signatures to it.
Piggott was caught in another similar trans
action. In the Office of Piggott's newspaper
was a man who contributed to the Boston Pilot
his nom de plume being Leo. After his death
relative discovered that Patrick Donohue
then editor of the Pilot. had RENTED to Leo
draft, which his family never received. and that
Piggott had opened the letter, taken the draft
intended for Leo, forged bis endorsement and
drawn the money. Piggott was compelled to
disgorge.
PIGGoTr's INGENIOUS METHOD OF FORGERY.
These facts Egan committed to writing He
had meanwhile ascertained the process by
which Piggott made the spurious letters He
found among his papers some letters written
by him in which entire sentences appeared
that were also in the forged letters Piggott had
traced these sentences carefully word for word
Then he interpolated or added other sentences
or phrases, completely changing the meaning
rity of portions. Dates were also changed to
make the criminal interpretations applicable
to illegal events.
Egan also found letters by Parnell which had
been similarly used. Photographs of all these
and Plggotts begging and Matchmaking letters
were inclOsed with the originals in the package
with the memoranda. recalling to Parnell all
the circumstances attending the writing or re-
ception Of each. This was the precious piece
of luggage the young clergyman fetched to
Parnell. Until it came the Times case was in
vulnerable as fraudulent. No hint of the con-
tents of the package ever became public until
Parnell himself in the interview he had with
Piggott i'll the presence of Labouchere and
Lewis. asked Piggott certain questions which
disclosed to the culprit that evidence was Sc
cured convicting him of the crime.
WHY LIE CARoS WAS PUT ON THE STAND.
Piggott either reported his fears to the Times
or was watched by its detectives and traced
into Parnelrs presence. Then he had to par
TALLY confess to his employers, and the attor-
ney-general and his colleagues then compelled
LeCaron to testify and be as malignant as pos
Caron that he favored armed revolution and
that Alexander Sullivan got him GeCaron)
into a secret revolutionary organization This
was for the purpose of breaking the force of
Parnell's information about Piggotts antece-
dents.
But Piggott had no suspicion of the over
whelming completeness of the knowledge con-
veyed in the package to Parnel, and did
realize until he got into Sir Charles clutches
that no calumny could impair the fatal effect
upon him and ON the Times case of what