The Evening dispatch. [volume] (Provo, City, Utah) 1891-1895, 1895-05-31
THE RETIRED BURGLAR.
One of the Most Remarkable Incidents II
His Variegated Career.


his Variegated Career.
"After had gathered III what
could find in the dining room, said the
retired burglar, tellir of his experience
in house in western Massachusetts,,
81 started for the parIor. This parlor
was just i'll front of the dining room,
and there were heavy curtains between.
pushed these curtains one side and
went in carefully, so as not to mar the
furniture by kicking it, feeling along
for the table which 1 knew must be in
the center. l came to it presently and
found it very solid feeling, with a sort
of molding or carving along the edge
had struck it on side apparently,
and so felt toward the dining room
until [ came to a corner of the table,
and then felt along the end for the
next corner to get the dimensions of it.
| struck the other corner so quick that it
made my hair raise right up. 1 knew
there was only one thing they build of
such shape, and that's coffin.
81 turned my light ON it, and it was
a big oak casket, one of the kind they
make now days, square and solid, and
it had three silver handles on each side.
! didn't dare look in, but l felt as
though 1 ought to have them handles.
The head was toward the front of the
house and the foot toward the dining
room. l set my lamp down and got my
screwdriver out of my bag and began
on one of the handles nearest the foot
I suppose must have felt a little easier
after I'd got that one off and into the
bag. know I went around the end and
then up the other side pretty prompt,
getting 'em off smooth as could be, and
around the head and started down the
other side where I'd begun. l got the
handle off by the head on that side, and
then went at the last handle, the one
in the middle, In turning the last
screw out of the handle l dropped my
1T seemed to me as though it made
more noise than an iron telegraph pole |
dropping inside of an empty iron oil |
tank. 1 just lay down and waited. I
didn' t dare run. 1 expected a million
people would come pouring down the
stairs and from ali around, and l just
waited, lying on the floor, but there
didn't anybody come. You know, the
fact was that dropping that screwdriyer
hadn't made noise enough to wake up a
mouse, but it seemed to me like the
greatest racket you ever heard, and it
scared me most to death. But when no.
body came l picked up the screwdriver
and tin the notch Of thescre again,
and I'd just got that handle off when ]
heard somebody say:
Don't you think you're crowdin as
here a little, my friend, carrying away
Them handles?' 1t was the dead man
sitting up and looking down at me. l
suppose he'd been in an epiIeptic trance
II something of that sort, and dropping
hat screwdriver had made just shock
enough to start him into life again.
I was SO scared l dropped the han
lie, but grabbed my bag-I suppose
instinct made me do that-and started
nut through the dining room again and
Lown cellar and out by the window
anne in by 1 didn wait to see if any
'ody was coming this time.
l got $117 for those five handles. II
eemed pity to lose the other one, but
t was always great satisfaction to me
o think that I'd woke the man up ~
Jew York Sun.