Evening star., 1895-07-27
A DETECTIVES STORY.
A Little Deal Which n Pawnbroker
NeE0tinted.

Negotiated.
"Once upon time," said a western de-
| tective to a Star writer, 81 had friend
| named Jo swartz. 10 was as crooked as a
dogs hind leg. His specially was paint
| ing diamonds. Jo could take an ordinary
salt crystal and by the time he had got
| through with 1t you would think it was
| the Kohinoor. But it was not about JOS
diamond painting I was thinking, 1t was
another little trick he turned
10 lived in Kansas City and does yet IL
his residence has not been changed to the
penitentiary. Down in the Bottoms, below
the bluff, in this city by the Kaw, there
abode Polander by the name of Wit
kowski. Wftkowsk was from Warsaw
and doubtless his ancestors shrieked when
kosciusko fell. After the family alarm at
the fall OF Warsaw's last champion had
subslded. they evidently emigrated. At
any rate. their descendant, as stated, had
business and social existence in that part
OF Kansas City known as the Bottoms. AS
a way to live he kept pawn shop, and he
knew 10 Swartz.
One day Witkowski came to Jo and ex-
planned how ignorant he was on the SUBJ
3ect OF watches. and he also told 10 he had
frequent opportunities to loan money ON
watches. and If 10 were willing he would
hke to form an arrangement of a friendly
sort. whereby he could bring these proffer-
before he loaned money on them. Jo
thought deeply. Jo. too kept a great, big
pawn shop and secondhand jewelry store
on Main street in Kansas City. After
khittng his brows, he advised Witkowsli
not TO loan money on watches but in every
possible instance buy the timepiece out
right. 10 advised-as Witkowski had him
self suegested-that as a primary stem he
bring all watches to him. He would tell
Witkowski their exact value and just what
he could afford to pay for them Wit
kowSki returned.
40 had about two bushels of cbeon oil,
yer watches which he had bought from
some Connecticut company outright to
make part of his stock. These watches
had not been good sale They were a
very cheap sflver-pIated sort. The next
day 10. through an agent, not known to
Witkowski. sent five of these watches to
be sold. Witkowsh deferred purchasing
until the next day, meanwhile insisting
on being allowed to bring the watches up
town to be valued. The man said he had
several hundred Of them. 10 looked at
them and told Witkowski he could easily
afford to pay SIS apiece for the watches:
that he, Swartz, would take them off his
hands at $3.50 and buy all he could of
them. Witkowski was delighted. He went
back and invested all the money he had
and bought some ninety odd watches at SIS
each. He was to make $3.50 profit on them
by selling them to Swartz for $3.50 This
would be nice thing for Witkowski He
SLEPT well that night.
The next day he went up to see Swartz
and told him he had purchased about two
pecks of these watches and paid the man
SIS each for them. He now stood ready to
transfer them to Swartz at an advance of
$3.50 per watch. Swartz said he would be
glad to get them, and that 1t was all right.
But said he, sinking his voice to
whisper full of gloomy forebodings, since
you were here some detectives have been
In here looking over my stock. They report
big robbery of watches in the east. They
say that over a thousand silver watches
were stolen from a factory in Connecticut
and description. 1 hope none of these
watches you have bought are a part of
this robbery; but we can very soon tell, as
l took a list of the numbers from the de-
tective.' r"
'.'Witkowski felt little chilly after this, !
and chillier still when after investigation |
1t was discovered that Joe had the number |
of every watch in his possession. 1t was |
indubitable proof to Witkowski that he had |
been buying stolen goods. 10 told him |
that he must wash his hands of the tram
saction and could not possibly buy the |
watches at any price; that he was afraid |
he would get into the penitentiary If he |
and tore his hair; he was ruined. At last |
10. pretending great sympathy for Wit |
koWSki, and because, as he confessed he |
had ways of working them off that Wit |
kowsk didn't possess. and could therefore |
handle them with more safety, concluded |
to risk s. a watch.
1T thus transpired that 10 gave Witkow- |
ski about $500 and recovered back his own
watches, which the day before he had |
sawed off on Witkowski for 81 500 When
the matter ended the sage Joseph had his
watches again and about 81 900 of the
money of the trusting Witkowski. Warsaw
had fallen again"