The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-05-20
GOLD BRICK SELLERS
--A--
MOST NOTORIOUS GANG IN THE
COUNTRY RUN TO COVER HERE.
Their Headquarters for Three
Years Past.
HAVE CLEANED UP $15O,O00
DAVE MURRAY GATHERED IN BY
THE SHERIFF. LAST NIGHT.
"Red" Austin, Frank DaggOtt and
Others of the Gang Succeeded in
Getting Away.

At o'clock last evening Sheriff Shufel-
ton, of this county, and Sheriff George
Slessman of Sandusky county, Ohio, drove
to the residence of David Murray, at SO
Ruckle street, and placed him under arrest
upon a requisition from the Governor of
Ohio. which had been honored by Governor
Mount earlier in the day. 1t develops that
Murray, who has lived here some years
and has been a saloonkeeper on West
Washington street, is a member of
the most notorious gang of gold
brick and tin-box swindlers in the
country 1t further develops that for
three years Indianapolis has been the head
quarters of this gang, composed of Murray,
Louis Ludlum Kid Waddell, Tom Brewer,
Frank Daggott, Big Charlie" Adams, Pete
Conlisk and the famous Red" Austin,
whose right name is Patrick Henry Davis.
Waddell was killed a year ago in Paris
by Tom O'Bren, who is now sewing a life
sentence for the killing at New Caledonia.
The gang has been making its headquarters
with Tom Brewer, who, until a month ago,
kept a roadhouse and gambling hell on
West Washington street, near Eagle creek.
Rec Austin and Frank Daggott were seen
at the opening of Irons new summer re-
sort Tuesday evening, but they got away
yesterday.
During the past three years this gang has
been working the blocks-of-three all over
the country, and has gathered in an even
$150,O0O from guileless farmers who wanted
to engage in gold bricks or engage in gam
bling enter rises with the tin-box attach
ment Brewer acted as legal representative
ard general "fixer'' for the crowd, putting
no; of =
''pinched" and bribing officers to leniency
when possible. When Austin and Daggott
were caught at Pittsfeld, H., a year ago
he put up $1,000 cash bail for each of them,
and it was forfeited.
The arrest of Murray was effected
through the work of John T. Norris, of
Springfield, O., who has been trailing the
gang for years and has a list of jobs they
have accomplished that foot up $780,
900. Among them are number in Indiana
Illinois and Ohio. They are wanted in Ohio
for beating John Bright near Troy out of
5000 on the tin-box scheme; for catching
William Jones, near Chillicothe, for $1,000
by the same method for swindling Mrs
Dinley, near Sandusky, out of $4,000 with
a gold brick; for catching John Grole, near
Toledo for $4,000 on the box game and a
farmer ndIueQ MeTCeI, near 1IuAoll, III
IS, 900, and John Druckenmiler near FREE
mont, for So 600, by the same game. In In
diana they sold gold brick to a farmer
near South Bend for $1,000, and have worked
the following people with their favorite tin
box racket: Oliver p. Brown, Montezuma,
for $1,000; John Gait, Greenfield, $4,000; a
farmer near Bloomington for $4,000. They
got William Dick, near Champaign, ILL.,, for
5000, and have other indictments hanging
Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York, New
Jersey, Connecticut and Vermont.
The particular job upon which Murray
was caught was that at Fremont, o.. where
Murray, Austin and Daggott did" old
Farmer John Druckenmiler out of $1,000
On April % last these three worthless turned
up at the Ball House, in Fremont, and reg
istered as b. F. Cook, of Cincinnati; l.. M.
Smith, of Philadelphia, and ]. W. Brown
of Centralia, Ill. Austin drove out to the
farmers house TO buy the farm, and in
the road they ran across one of the
sharpers, who engaged them in a
game of cards. The farmer matched
the $4,000 put up by Austin, and all
the money was deposited in a tin box,
which was replaced by a substitute, and
the schemers got away. Norris was called
in, and succeeded in locating it upon Aus
tin, by his handwriting. Murray was traced
to Cleveland and thence here, where the
whole gang was found. Norris has been in
the city couple of weeks getting his evil
dence preparatory to making arrests.