St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1892-06-23
WHAT A MAN!
Tom O'Brien, the Crook, Hood
Iyinks a PinkertOn.

The city had for a guest yesterday aft
ern0vn the famous Tom O'Brien.
prince of bunc0 steers, gold brick
sw;ndlers and "all-round high roller"
He left the city very suddenly. His
equal in his peculiar line is not on earth
al the present writing, and al
though he came near being nabbed
at the Wet hotel. the bluff he
shrew into 4 Pinkerton sleuth
was so cold that Mr.. O. Brien was per-
mitted to pass unmO ieSted. Now, how
ever. he IS being anXieusiy looked for,
but MINNEAPOLIS will KNOW him no more.
As a bOdyguaTd he had the meek and
Christian Ike three card monte shark
Ed Hayes. The officer who should az
rest those worthless would be daring
man indeed. Last evening the local
police were looking for TOmmie. but as
he always preserves ''baGk front" 1t
is likely that he would be taken by the
MINNEAPOLIS copper for the president or
2 railroad, instead OF q much sought for
criminal.
From the detective, who arrested
O'Brien in the West, the following was
learned:
Several months ago. by the means of
persuasive argument, Mr." q Brien
Induced wealthy citizen of Troy, y.
Y, to part with 5000. Tor which he was
given an elaborate gold brick by an In
dian. 0'Brien was merely advance
agent, and negotiated the deal. The
Indian was in ali probability either Ed
Hayes or George Post, educators
OF the verdant and unsophiS-
ticated. The individual who pur-
chased the brick" showed 1t TO
his friends, and on realizing that he had
been victimZed he grew quite angry
and called himself hard names. How
ever, lie offered 4 reWard-a large one
end Mr." O'BrieH concluded that a
trip to 1.-The other side would be bene-
fetal. He landed in Liverpool and was
at once arrested. He employed the best
of attorneys, but eXtradition was asked
for in such vigorous way that O'Brien
was turned over to two New York de-
tectives, aud set sail Tor the land of the
free.
On arriving in New York, he was
placed III the baStile and ''Sweated,"
but he failed 10 diyuige anything. He
was given a preliminary examination
and was held. influential friends got
him out on habeas corpus arrange
ments. and with the assistance Of Hayes
or Post, he nlied the jailer CT the Dane
mora prison with coffin varnish" to
such an extent that the jailer fell
by the wayside. 0'Brien escaped to
New Orleans and took passage on the
steamer MarselleS and reached France,
where Ire was again arrested by the
native NidCcqS. While in ''hOcK" he
secured the COCA wishes Of the Havre
gendarmeS, who thought. no doubt. that
O'Brien was too good a man to be in
durance. so they let him out to ''see a
man" since then O'Brien has been
missing.
He arrived in Quebec ten days ago.
where he was again tipped off in some
mysterious manner He left for Port
Arthur with detectives after him, and
before they caught up with him he
rec ched Duluth. The st. Paul and Du-
Iuth train brought him to Minneapolis
today and he went TO the West. There
il was that he was asked to step over to
the Central. O'Brien fr0Ze the Pinker-
ten man with one of his char
acterisIic stares. He was dressed
in the height of fashion and
sported diamonds, several carats in
weight The Pinkerton man had the
right tip, but the bluff was SO very
strong that he ''wilted." When he Sc
cured his second Wind O'Brien was
missing. The description of the man
who vouched for 0'Brien and who
claimed he was interested in the Mes
saba iron mines, fits Ed Hayes exactly.
Had that PinkertOn man held oil TO
Tommy ne would have received re-
ward of $4,000. But he didn't. and will
now probably be made to travel beat.