Idaho news. (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1887-1891, 1889-12-21
IDENTIFIED.
BY AN OLD LocKsALrTH.


T came into the
shop to get Mr.. Searle, my employer,
to open safe, one of the keys of
which had been lost, and the possess
sor of the other being away for some
days.
Mr.. Searle questioned theman con-
corning the make of the safe, and by
his replies understood the character
of the lock, and being too busy to at
tend personally to the job he called
me, gave the necessary directions,
and told me to accompany the mes
senger.
| was at this time seventeen years
old, had been some two years at the
trade, was apt and had acquired I'M
usual skill in it for so brief a
period, and Mr.. Searle, pleased
with my progress and interest
in the b siness, had confided
much of his own secret knowledge of
the craft to me, and particularly of
his method of ascertaining the in
terror mechanism and arrangements
of locks of rival makers, by which he
was generally enabled to pick even
them difficult of those then in use.
| went with the man, who was a
messenger in a brokers' office on
State street where the locked-up safe
was, and on arriving proceeded at
once to my work. Several persons
besides the proprietor were present,
and all watched with much interest
my movements, for which did not
care SO long as they did not interfere
with my space and light.
The safe was one of the best
fire-proof makes of that time,
and the lock an excellent
one of the clever" kind, So
called; but in less than half an hourI
had flied key to it, roughly made
but sufficient to unlock it. and great
were the expressions of wonder and
admiration at my skill
Now, without making an effort to
do SO, had, during the operation,
noted the various persons present,
and among them was one young man,
who said very little, but watched my
efforts with marked interest, and
whom ] Judged to be a clerk in the
office. He was not over thirty wears
of age, was of medium height, of
light complexion, with nothing strill-
ing about his general appearance to
distinguish him from ordinary men,
but, as on one occasion he turned his
head asideto answer some question
of the brokers', Isaw a small, bright
red mole on the back of his ear, or,
rather, there were two moles joining
so as to form an outline of the figure
s inverted.
| had been taught by Mr.. Searle
that, in a job of this sort, my work
was accomplished with the picking of
the lock, and that it was no part of
the locksmith's business to afterward
OpCh bilC aOOls uhlto0 fIb tllt GUS
TONER'S request. Therefore | arose
and said to the broker:
"There, sir, it is unlocked. You
can now open it,.
He at once did SO, and revealed the
contents of the safe, which consisted
principally Of papers and books, but
/ noticed in addition-laid in one
corner where there was no shelyes-a
small steel box or chest, which
recognized as one which had about
a month before fitted u key at the
shop, However, did not wait, but
after the broker had given me an or
der to make suitable key for the
safe, which | could do, of course, from
the skeleton had made in unlocking
it, went back to the shop-but the
mole on the clerks eur still haunted
me.
About fortnight later | was one
light returning home from the old
National theater. | had just turned
from Haymarket square into Cross
street and gone few yards when, in
a dark part, felt myself firmly
seized, cloth bandape thrust over