Johnstown weekly Democrat. (Johnstown, Cambria County, Pa.) 1889-1916, 1890-06-27
SHAD0WED FOR WEEKS.
A LITERARY MANS PECULIAR ExPERl-
ENCE DURING HIS VACATION.

Didn't Know of 1t Until Four Years
!. Latcr-An Agreeable Companion.
"Were you ever 'shadowedT inquired
a prominent literary man of friend at
the Union league the other night
"No never was shadowed,' as you
call it. I've never done anything to get
shadowod for. But what's the story;
I'm sure taore is oneI"
ooh, nothing much. just saw in the
paper where the detectives were shadow
ing man, and it reminded me of an adj
venture, or rather an incident of several
years ago, when was shadowed for a
couple of weeks by the Pinkertons.
"You remember the Cummings ex-
press robbery of 1885, don't your 1t
created great deal of excitement at the
time, in ST. Louis particularly This
fellow, whose name, by the way, wasn't
Cummings at all, if you recollect, got
into an express car with a messenger
named Fotheringham on forged order
from the superintendent. After the train
was well under way he put pistol at
the messengers head, bound and gagged
him, rifed the safe of $75, 900 in cash
and n lot Of other stuff, and made his
escape. Fotheringham was accused of
having robbed himself, was arrested and
jailed, but meanwhile the detectives had
been set at work, and, stimulated by a
princely reward, were moving heaven
and earth to get tangible proof Of the
messengers guilt or the identity of the
self STYLED Tim Cl1m1ninUs
SUCCESSIVE scoops"
well, at that time was sub-editor
on one of the St. Louis morning papers,
and was anxiously trying to get exclu-
sive news bearing on the sensation of
the day. The detectives were Like clans.
They wouldn't give up word of what
they had done, were doing or hoped to
do, and were posing on the principle of
the well known adage about keeping
still and making people believe one
knows something. One morning, how
ever a few days after the robbery, we
received letter which gave us u great
SCOOP 1t was from Jim Cummings
himself. He said he had seen in our
paper an account of the arrest of Fother-
ingham, and merely wrote to tell them
that they weren't giving the messenger
a square deal. That he was innocent
aud couldn't have helped being robbed.
AS guarantee of his identity the writer
inclosed number Of torn express money
envelopes, with the request that we
present them and his letter to the ex-
press people.
"Well, | had charge Of the affair and
did as the writer requested. Say, the
express people threw up both hands.
The envelopes were identified as having
been among those stolen from the car.
The next day | got another letter in
closing lot Of jewelry, receipts, ETC.,
which the writer said he had no use for,
and some information regarding the To-
cation of a cache where he had hidden
some other stuff useless to him. Both
proved welcome and everything turned
out as represented. We We're 'scooping'
the country, the detectives were wild,
and all was merry as a wedding bell
This correspondence kept up for fort
night, the robber writing always to our
paper Once he sent a communication
in reply to an incendiary letter from
some crank roasting Jim Cummings
Again he inclosed a clipping from an
other paper in which it was stated that
man from Texas had been engaged as
an express messenger, but couldn't give
bond
60 Tell them to give him the job
wrote our aadacious correspondent; IN
go his bond. Seventy-fve thousand in
cash ought to be good security?
A UNIQUE VACATION TRIP.
well, the detectives by this time
We're hot in the region of the collar.
They hadn't turned up clew, and we
wouldn't give up scrap Of writing or
anything else; getting even on them,
see? Things We're at this stage when my
annual vacation came around. | had ar
ranged for trip to Chicago, thence to
Milwaukee, up around the great lakes
and back. 1t was to take two weeks, and
my wife accompanied me.
''Those detectives got on to my in
tended excursion and Immediately the
bright idea seized their minds that was
going to meet jim Cummings some
where to turn up some more romance of
the robbery. My wife and l started and
got as far as Chicago without incident.
We were leaving there on the boat and
was leaning over the rail as we went
out into the harbor, when gentleman
approached and entered into a casual
conversation with me. He introduced
himself as a Texan, then in the cotton
brokerage business in New Orleans, bent
upon pleasure trip. He was pleasant,
bright and companionable. We talked,
exchanged cards and became friends.
He said he believed he would take my
route for his trip all through. We were
pleased with each others company and
l gladly seconded his proposition Well,
sir, during that whole trip that man and
myself were rarely far apart, now that
think Of it. We stopped nearly always
at the same hotel, and smoked our pipes
on the decks of the steamers every night.
"He left u5 at Chicago ON the return
trip and / went back to ST. Louis. |
never saw him again. But about a year
ago / was in Pinkerton's Office on some
business when one of the men, looking
at me sharply, said: Isn't your name
--P / said it was
From st. Louisg
Formerly; left there three years
ago.