Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-08-05
BURGLAR TOoLMAkERs.

They Manufacture the Finest Imple-
ments of Their Trade.
From the New York Herald.
When Dutch Gus" one of the most ex-
pert and dangerous bank burglars, was
captured few years ago. the most COM
plete set of burglars tools ever made was
found in his possession, and it now lends
added interest to the collection Of burg
lars implements on exhibition at police
headquarters.
Dutch Gus said he made his tools him
self and could rival any toolmaker in
the country. In following up the sugges-
ton given by him when he was put
through the third degree. made famous by
former Chief of Police Byrnes, the police
learned that all the cracksmen Of the
higher class depend entirely upon them
selves for tools they require in cracking
safes.
The police were for many years at "a
loss to learn where burglars secured the
tools so nee essary to their trade. Although
complete sets of tools were repeatedly cap
tured when a noted safe worker was ar
rested, the next arrest would be followed
by the discovery Of an equally valuable
set of tools. 1t was not long before Steve
O'Brien, Phil Reilly, Jake Won Gerichten
and Charles Heidelberg discovered. quite
by accident, small cellar shop In Blocker
street wherein an old German toolmaker
ground out the finest implements Of the
burglars stock in trade.
Down in a basement near the corner Of
Mott street, and within stones throw
of police headquarters, this German tool
maker conducted a small and apparently
Improbable business. Finally the head
quarters detectives, whose duties took
them down around headquarters at night
noticed that the old German had many
customers after the tenement house dwell
ers had forsaken the sidewalks and sought
their hard and uncomfortable couc hes for
the night.
The detectives made a quiet investigation
and reported their discoveries to former
Chief of Police Byrnes, who was then
making the record for the detective bureau
Of the New York police force, which has
was not slow to realize what was going on
and although the law gave the chief of the
detective bureau no right to interfere with
the old mans business, moral suasion was
used and the trade pursued by the German
teclmaker was broken up, and nobody has
since tried to build up business in that
particular line.
George McCluskey said, when I asked
him where the burglars of the higher class
secured their tools, few days ago: 1.-The
burglars make their tools now, although
formerly they were made by various tool
makers about the city. The tools In use
today are far different from those which
were used to crack a safe twenty years
ago. Then it would almost take a truck
to carry the assortment of tools, but now
the bank burglar can stow away in a
corner of his pocket tools enough to
crack any safe in the country.
"Of course. when they require some tool
Of intricate design, they go to a toolmaker,
but the general run of tools they are
thoroughly capable Of making themselves.
Most of the fine work on safes now is done
with the diamond drill and dynamite A
hole is drilled In the safe door, just above
the combination lock, a charge of dynamite
Is inserted and then the combination Is
blown apart and the door opens. The dia-
mond drill and dynamite can be carried
in a mans pocket. Safe burglaries and
vault robberies have been few and far
between of late years>a most Of the really
clever workers are iS state prison, where
they are out of the way of temptation"