St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-01-05

44th semi-annual RED-FIGURE SALE
at The BoSToN, on Third street.
MADE LOVE TO THE GIRL.

How a Neat Piece of Detective
Work Was Rounded Up.
sour service has just etfecte one of
the cleverest pieces OF detective work
that has ever come to my attention"
said Col. w. w. Cooley, manager of the
st. Paul Office of 'Thiel's detective serv-
ice. 1T would furnish plot for a play
or 4 novel;" he pursued. "Gen. L. e.
Lonergan, our general agent at Chicago,
Just reported the case to me. | wish
YOU could have heard him tell the story.
For over six months freight-r0bbing
combination had been successfully
operated on the Lake Shore q Michigan
Southern road. Many thousands of dol
lars worth of goods were stolen from
freight cars while in transit. We
had several men on the ease. At first
the employees of the road were suspect
ed, and for two or three months they
were placed under the searching sur
VIGILANCE of our men. But the employees
were innocent. A few weeks ago the
railway company had about deSpaired
of our ever accomplishing anything in
the case, but we were positive that we
would ultimately unravel the thread
and apprehend the thieves. We volun-
teered to proceed with the work at our
own expense if we failed. One day we
had trap set. A big box OF silks and
valuable goods was packed and loaded
into a freight car. Two of our men
were Struggled into this car. and the
car sealed.
"Previous to this wehad patrolled the
tracks for 200 miles for evidence.
Finally one of our men discovered
splinter lying beside the track i'll a
lonely spot. 1t was on fill, admirably
selected for the purpose, for the pack
ages thrown out there would meet with
the least possible resistance. They
would 90 sliding down the decline.
Near the silver were wagon tracks.
Taking this trail it was found that the
track wound around bluff to a lonely
house, supposedly occupied by re-
spectacle family. 1t did not require
family. The man mad a marriage
able daughter, and it was brought
about SO that one of our
men, who is a vertable masher,
made the acquaintance of the young
woman. He became devoted, and his
attentions were manifestly pleasing to
the family. But he was given no con-
tidenceS, however. One night. when he
was making love to the girl, he heard
the Old man hitching up his team.
Making an excuse, he went into the
house and slipped out side entrance
unnoticed. He had three or four trusty
men within signal. aud he soon ac-
qualnted them with his discovery. They
followed the wagon to the fill, and there,
sure enough,a box of goods was thrown
from the car, and the old man ana sew
eral assistants hauled it up. They
were promptly placed under arrest.
Two OF the robbers were sub
mitted TO the Sweating" process.
and they confessed the whole thing.
Meanwhile the TWO men in the freight
car had arrested two other accompliceS.
The robbers had boarded the train at a
little way station, where the train had
stopped for water. BY means of rope
ladder they let themselves down to the
door, and then 1t was an easy matter to
break it open and to throw out the
boxes when the time came.
The Thiel agency" continued the
colonel, succeeded in recovering S10,0
worth of the stolen goods. Twenty ar
rests have been made and fifty houses
have been searched. 1t was, all in all,
one of the most difficult cases we ever
had to work."