The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1893-01-19

HOW IT WAS DONE.
In this department of mechanics was
John Clare, alias John Gilmore,
truly scientific cracksman, who is now
In temporary retirement in Conse-
quence of being found In possession Of
. number Of cleverly constructed i'm
plements evidently designed for use in
his Cuisines
WGilmore, who is now q handsome,
ssell-preserved man of so, began life as
, photographer, but for the past
thirty years has devoted himself to
career of crime which has not been
without its reward. He is q person of
refined appearance and manners,
dresses well, and usually affects
arooping mustache and long flowing
side whiskers of the Dundreary type,
which give him rather mild and BEN
evolent aspect He first came into no.
toriety in 1865, when he was arrested
In Baltimore for shooting and killing
Henry b. Grove, was convicted apd
sentenced to death. He succeeded,
however, in getting a new trial, which
resulted in his acquittal, For nearly
ten years aft6rwafd he was the asso.
ciate OF such eminent felons as 1Re
Marsh, Jimmy Hope, big Frank Nc
Coy and "Eddie" Geary. His master
stroke, which gave him his unique
fame and only failed Of complete sue
cess by the merest accident, was made
In 1874.
In the early spring Of that year q
dapper, smartly dressed, glib-tongued
young man, who introduced himself
ss John Gilmore, recently of Boston,
entered into negotiations for the pur-
chase Of the premises at SO Eighth
avenue, with the view Of opening
frst-class oyster and chop house, He
paid SO, 600 down, and gave q mortgage
Tor $4,000, payable on Aug. ]. The
owner said he would have no objection
to extending the mortgage, but Mr.. Gil
more replied that he guessed business
would be good enough to enable him
TO clear off the mortgage. Tie
next day he took possession and a
force Of carpenters, plumbers, and
decorators was set TO work to trans
form the store floor into q restaurant.
Business prospered, and it was wonder
full what a popular man Mr.. Gilmore
became. The neighbors swore by
him, and certain timid depositors in
the New York Savings bank and the
New York County bank in the big
brownstone building at the corner of
Fourteenth street, next door to the
chop house, even went to the length
of declaring that the close proximity
Of such respectable man as Mr.. Gil
more actually added to the security of
the two institutions,
Pretty soon Gilmore leased the
building at 800 West Fourteenth street,
on the other side of the bank building,
and opened billiard hall. The billiard
room had passageway leading to the
rear of the oyster saloon, SO that he
had the bank building comp etely SUR
rounded Toward the middle of June
a big truck drove up TO the saloon door
and boiler and q fve-horse-power
Upright engine we're dumped on the
sidewalk. Jocular customers asked
Gilmore whether he was doing such
big business that he was going to have
his oysters opened by steam. Gilmore
smiled softly and said that the engine
was TO run dish-washing machine
and q set Of ventilating fans At that
the customers said!
''Enterprising man, that Gilmore. I
tell you, he's daisyP
He w,asl
In due time the boiler and engine
were erected in the cellar and then
Gilmore had double plank partition
erected across the cellar. He said that
Il was TO deaden the noise of the en-
CINE
II happened that year that July 4
fell On Saturday, and that as this
you'd leave all the banks closed for
two days, the police, as is customary,
tfere directed TO exercise special vigi-
lance There was no reason why Po-
1ipepan Keller should have been spe-
Nally anxious for the safety Of tho two
bdhbs, but as he passed by shortly
after midnight July his ear
esught sound like the whirring of
knachinery from the basement Of Gill
more's saloon. II WINS probably, ne
thought, only Gilmore's engine, but
ON listening again he was convinced
that he detected the sound of drill
Hurrying to the station-house, he
noon returned with Sergeant and o
squad OF men, In The bank all seemed
quiet, but the sounds continued. A
sharp rap at the door Of the saloon
brought the proprietor 10 window
on the second noor. "Hello, sergeantf
he cried, whats upY Hold on min
uio and IN be down" Then he closed
the window and the police waited Tor
uspfly. eys wlputoe before II aAwped