Smyrna times., 1891-03-04
FoReERIEs COMMITTED IN JAIL.
A California Convict Whose Career Of
Crime Did Not End In Prison.

Crime Did Not End in Prison.
BY some strange accident there has
been discovered in San Quentin prison a
crime as odd and uncommon as any that
GaOonaus fertile brain ever evolved.
In the ordinary prisons it is usually
presumed that once a criminal has been
securely lodged within the walls his
career OF crime is ended sor at least the
term of his incarceration. While this is
not entirely true of the California Deni-
tentiary, it has heretofore managed to
keep most of its occupants from the
commission of felOnies of which other
prisoners were the victims.
1t remained for Convict C. R. Bach
man, however, to distinguish himself in
a way that no jailbird before him ever
did, and by such ingenious improvement
of the opportunities offered him as to
mark San Quentin as one of the most
uncommon prisons in the world. There
Is a great deal of managerial method in
the administration of affairs at San
Quentin of the kind that carping critics
call red tape. Among the many forms
which are vigorously carried out is that
OF having envelopes, which are intended
to carry communications to the deputy
warden, printed with his name and title
in full upon the face.
When anything Of importance had to
be communicated to the deputy it was
invariably intrusted to a convict to in
sure it safe delivery.
Bachman, who is serving a long term
for arson; Failing, a life convict. and
Eat Jack" Kiley, who has about forty
years penalty to pay for a felonious as
sault, all had access to the deputy war
den's mail. These three prisoners en-
Joyed the privilege of reading all these
important communications addressed to
the deputy warden whenever it suited
them to do so, and all because of those
imposing and official looking printed
envelopes.
A supply of the envelopes was easily
purchasable. Whenever there was a
letter intrusted to a convict messenger it
fell into the hands of one of the trio. 1t
was quietly taken aside, the envelope
torn open, the contents read and noted.
and provided these critical readers found
nothing objectionable in the letter it was
placed in one of the extra envelopes and
delivered in due form.
In his mill, that is to say the deputy
warden's portion of it, Bachman one day
discovered that an old man. William
Phelps by name, who is serving a life
term for murder, had several hundred
dollars on deposit in the wardens hands.
Bachman had been spending his money
IN a royal, spendthrift way, and found
his exchequer in a low ebb. Here was a
chance to recoup, and to play a stroke
worthy OF his genius and opportunities.
He gained the confidence of the old
man, told him he had influential friends
and promised to get him pardoned. Then
the clever tirebug sent for a lawyer and
told him of the case and interested him
In Phelps. Later on Bachman gave the
lawyer an order on the warden for 1.
considerable sum of money, with Phelps
signature attached, and also a note of
approval bearing an officers signature.
The order was taken to the warden.
who wrote check for the amount, and
was about to give it to the LAWYER when
an officer standing by suggested that it
would be wise to send for Phelps and
see if it was all right The officer was
not suspicious, but simply familiar with
his surroundings.
Phelps was sent for and denied ever
having written the order. It was ex-
amined and found to be forgery. Then
the officer who had approved the order
was summoned, and denied as emphat-
ically that he had signed the note of ap-
proval. This was also found to be a
forgery.
A little further investigation was sug-
gested, and, although rather unprece-
dented, was carried out, and it was
found that Bachman was the author of
both of the forgeries.-San Francisco
Examiner.