Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1896-06-11

tapped inc Icl6prhpn WlFeb sUu lne ID
& o. railroad mile and half east of
Newark made rich haul from the
at Barkesdale. Harry II.
Sutton, section boss, and the men work.
ing under him, saw the wire tappers at
work and talked with them but the
strangers succeeded in allaying sus-
picion and worked their scheme with
out molestation.
Shortly after O'Clock Friday morn
ing two men got out of the cars at
Newark and walked east on the track.
They were looking for convenient
place tn tap the Barkesdale wires east
of Lumbrools, platform stop for way
trains, they met Section Boss Sutton
and inquired how far it was to the
next town. also as to an outlet from
the railroad to the county road. SUIT
ton gives the following description Of
the two men: 1.-The one who figured
as the boss of the gang was about 30
years old aud had dark hair and NOUS
tache mixed with gray. He was of
medium height and well rounded, like
a man who lived well and enjoyed the
table. His address was very pleasant
and winning. With him was young
man of % or 30, with very dark com
plexion, black moustache and rough
skin, as if marked by smallpox. He
had grumpy manner and secretive
countenance: looked like broken
down sport y
A half mile east of Lumbrook, where
the lane ON the Elliott farm crosses the
track tho men found place that
exactly suited their purpose. An un-
trimmed osage orange hedge, bordering
wheat field, offered the necessary
-, Houin,r lonufad Tho atonf fhaU
went up the lane to, the farm house oc-
cupied by James Pierce and hired him
to 90 with his team to meet their con-
federates. The "boss'' of the gang
easily pulled the wool over Pierce's
eyes. His oily tongue explained that
he had in his charge gang Of mon
testing the long-distance telephone
wires, which had been greatly damaged
by the cyclone that swept through St
Louis. Beginning at st. Louis he had
been testing them from point to point
and he would continue the work until
he got to Boston. In consideration of
81 bill Pierce, accompanied by the
"sboss,' wont with his team to the
| Newark depot and a little before noon
brought out the other two men belong
ing to the gang. They had heavy
bundles, containing the necessary ap-
paratus for setting up temporary tele-
graph office under the hedge in the
lonely wheat field. ~
The gang promptly went to work,
| tapping the wires, making the ground
connection and fixing their batteries
and instruments. Sutton, the section
| boss, coming back after dinner, cav
them at work and was suspicious. He
demanded to know what was being
done. The boss" of the wire tappers
gave him the same long-distance tele-
| phone story and Sutton believed it.
| The "b0ssn also told Sutton that his
men were inclined to be talkative and
| when he was absentl to neglect their
work for conversation. So he asked
that the railroad men be kept away
from them. Being promised that thoy
should not be disturbed the "boss"
loft his tappere at work and Farmer
| Pierce, who did not suspect what was
going on in his field drove him to
Barkesdale.
John Perkins, track walker, also had
a nice little conversation with the wire
tappers and found them 'clever sort of
chaps and smooth takers. F." He also
was told about the necessity of testing
long distance telephone wires. The
operator explained the leafy bower in
which he was hidden in the hedge by
saying that the hot sun was making
him sick and he had threatened to give
up his job if they put him to work
where his head had no protection from
tho heat. Perkins mentioned Barkes
dale to them and found them entirely
ignorant of it and on 80 INNOCENT.
Barkesdale!" they SAID, '..Where is
Bariesdale? Is it a county fairf"
Superintendent of Telegraph Griffin,
who has his headquarters in Whining
tom had for some reason his suspicious
about overlapping on Friday. Be-
tween 2. 80 and 3 O'Clock he won't over
tho road on one of the trains, Keeping
a sharp look out at tho wires and for
temporary telegraph offices in the fields.
but thero was nothing for him to see
from car platform. The connecting
wiro had boon run down the far side of
the telegraph pole and the operators,
with thoir little ticking machine, were
completely sheltered in the hedge.
There they remained undisturbed until
after & o'clock, when they came to
pierce's farm house. Pierce brought
them to Newark. leaving them at their
request noar the Centre station of the
Ponngylvania road. Iheir further
movements are not known.
No one except the bookmakers at
Barzesdale can tell how many thou
sands OF dollars this gang got out of
the wire tapping. Like all professional
gamblers, the bookmakors keep their
losses as secret as possible. The little
machine in the hedge was used to
dolay tho telegraphic report of races
run in other tracks from the Barkes-
dale bookmakers who were selling
foreign pools. The confederate at
Barkesdale of the wire tappere was
given advance information of the horses
which had won races. Ho placed his
bots after he had full information of
| the winners and, of course, he slaugh-
tered the "boolies. " As there is prac-
tically no limit to the game played at
Barkcsdale there is every reason to
suppose that the wire tappers in
Eliott's hedge stole good sized for
tune from the bookmakers on Friday.
A cut wire and broken connection
told the tale Friday night. Superin-
tondent Griffin located the break Satur-
day morning and the linemen repaired
it in the afternoon; but that does not
make good the shrinkage in the book