Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-10-17
A NOTED CROOKS CAREER.
Billy Connsli and Some Of the Crimes He Ras
Committed.

| MS srEPTArHKR WAS A THIEF AND H FOLLOWED
| IN TEE SANE LrNR-fxPEsrsNoE OF TIE poLicE
| AND COURTS HERE WIFE aIM--A nIMARxAnIx
LErrxl TO 4 JUDGE.
BILLY" Council, the noted thief, who has given
the officers Of this city considerable trouble and
who Jumped bail here last spring. win not be
brought back here for trial in the near future,
a. he 10 under Ave years sentence in the Indi-
ana state prison for burglary. Cornell vas born
In Richmond, where he began his criminal
career, but when young man he came to this
city with "Bilr' Mortimore, his stspfsther, who
was also . noted thief, and since that time
nothing is known of him to the police except
"crooked" transactions.
'Bili" Mortimore, the stepfather, lived in a
little two story frame shanty few hundred
yards from the old Aqueduct bridge on the
tow path. He kept with such people Is Jim
Denay and others. From this shauty over the
| hill there was foot path which led to GEORGE
| town not far from the Georgetown College and
1t was over this path that they travelled to reach
| the city so that they would not be seen by the
ponce. The police were constantly on the
| LOOKOUT Tor these men, and frequently they
| were overhauled and searched for plumber,
| APPEARED BEFORE THE GRAND JURY.
| SO'CAoA VI sucH ~ Ou6 time uOuneO their
good clothes and appeared before the grand
jury and laid their grievances before that
/ body. The members of the grand jury were
about to indict the officers when they acct
dentaiiy learned of the identity of the wit
| nesses and then the indictments fell through.
Mortimore was ono OF the men implicated in
the robbery OF Judge Fishers horse and car
rage. Later on he was caught by Policeman
Joe Williams endeavoring to get into jewelry
| store on 9Th street. In the pursuit Mortimore
| turned and shot the officer. Tho bullet struck
button on the officers coat and pressed it
into his body. When the doctor examined the
wound he drew the button from it, the bullet
| having fattened out into string.
Judge Olin was holding court when the pris-
oner was tried, and In sentencing him to thir-
teen years imprisonment told him that it was
| only a matter Of God mercy that the sentence
| was not one of death instead of imprisonment
The convict. in a defiant manner, told the
court that he could stand on his head that long.
FOLLOWING IN HIS srEPFArHER's FOOTSTEPS.
Following in the footsteps of his stepfather,
Council soon became noted thief and got in
the clutches Of the law. He was one Of the
desperadoes who figured in the robbery of the
paymaster on the Chesapeake and Ohio canal
when one Of the canal men was shot and dan
gerously wounded. The entire gang was cap
tured and one OF them turned states evidence.
They We're tried and convicted at Rockville and
given eight years in the Baltimore penitentiary.
Council In the meanwhile we'll az afterward
traveie1 under many aliases among them
being w. II. Lee, William McNalley and Frank
| Lade.
His last appearance in this city was signalized
| by his arrest OH q charge Of larceny from the
person. That was April II, when he found
man named James wilson seated on one OF the
| oenches In the smithsonian grounds asleep. 1t
IVA, was Al oroad dayiignt and ne robbed the man OF
| his watch and chain. Officer Weldon of the
zoo was IN the park ~ the time and he cap
| tureo Conneil without much trouble, although
companion OF the latter was near by at the
ume.
| JUMPED HIS BAIL HERE
He gave 81 OOO hal, for hi. .nneornnco IN
| oo,r. ~. - an
u' ".o" ane case was cameo IL was
o"."so '''"' ne nao jumped MS Dali. Inc
iscoshi%ance was iorIei'ed and pencn war
f" ~ issuea'
rested for the Evansv;iie hnrc,.rv ~ h,a a.
larized the house of SANDY Clifford in Evans.
vile, and did not leave a single clew behind
him. All the detectives knew when the case
was reported was that the house had been
broken into and robbed of a QUANTITY of iewelry.
A few days later he was arrested m Indian-
apolis, and then Inspector Swindells of the
detective corps in this city made an effort to
| get the fnoitive. Rnt he vas naarsr Evsrsv;,io
than here and they got him with the result
above stated, five wears in the penitenti,rv.
After his arrest i'm Indiananolis Detective
Reeves of Columbus recalled the fine when
Cornell, under the alias of Lee started one
| of the greatest poiticai scandals of The t;mns
in Columbus. lie was in the penitentiarv at
| the time and brought CHARGES AGAINST the man
agement such AS that convicts we're killed and
| their skins tanned and nsed for coverino cones
as we'll as in the manufacture of sboes, Con.
nell left the Evansville iail Monday OF this week
| for the state prison Before GOING he sa;J he vas
afraid he would not be treated right on ac.
count of his Connection with the Ohio nr;son
scandal and said he Thought thew wouid work
him 20 hard that il wouid drive him to snic;de'
| When be appeared in the EyansyiIle circnit
| court for sentence Friday he was asked what
| he had to saw why sentence should not he
passed upon him and he handed Abe court a
| paper which he asked be read aloud.
coxxr,,,s ,rrrrn "a ryv ,,-,,o
| o, -
a"e io''ei was "s iolo"s:
JUDGE RICHARDSON: Your HoNoR-While
awaiting the action Of the September term
of the court have carefully and bopeat,v g.
viewed the unfortunste history of nv life
knowing that I must appear before Won ard
| many Others as a stranger witbont fr;snds ~
| money, As a defense feel il hnt hit ~ In.
tice to myself to reveal some Of the snffer;ynrs
of my past life Being an unlearned son Of
Virginia parents, much OF my career has been
misery aha punishnient. When fourteen sum-
entered the conrsderra,s ..rv;ea 10y ,d heao
/