Santa Fe daily New Mexican., 1897-01-25
THE STEEPLE JACK.

THE STEEPLE JACK.
Inspector Hookyer had served his a5
years on the detective force, and his col
leagues were entertaining him at little
farewell dinner in anticipation of his forth
coming retirement. The chairman having
eulogized the guest of the evening to an
extent that brought blush to the face Of
that case hardened official, the inspector
rose to reply, and at the finish he said:
"The chairman has said that I never let
a man slip through my fingers after had
once got on his track, but am sorry he Is
wrong. I am bound to acknowledge that
once an offender was too clever for me.
"Tell us about it, arose spontaneously
from almost every throat, and Inspector
Hookyer in response to the request gave
the story.
"It was good many years ago now
when had intrusted to me case of a
young woman named Eliza Thickbroom,
who had been found dead, evidently muir
dered by having her throat cut, in some
fields adjoining the canal near town in
Lancashire. She had been a domestic
servant, and was Of a very retiring, staid
disposition and bore an irreproachable
character. Her friends lived in quite an
other part of the country, and her mistress
had no knowledge of her keeping company
or anything Of that kind. For some time
had considerable difficulty in fixing the
crime or any reason for 1t upon any one;
but at last, after lot of inquiry, ascer-
tanned that she had been walking out with
a man named Lamprey, who lived near
Stockport in Cheshire, some 80 miles from
where Eliza Thickbr resided
"It seemed that the girl had been in the
habit of spending her holiday, when she
had a day off, In going to Stockport,
where Lamprey met her, and that she had
become engaged to him, but that, hearing
something to his discredit, she had refused
to have anything more to do with him,
and SO far nothing further was known to
implicate Lamprey in the crime; but /, Of
course, at once took train to Stockport and
proceeded to hunt up Lamprey and to
make inquiries in the town where he re-
sided.
II knew nothing about him except his
name, but from the local police and eau
tious questions of one and another ascer-
tained that he had been sailor and was
then a 'steeple jack and one Of the best
climbers known.
"HJack Lamprey cried one man to
whom had spoken. All, he can climb,
for sure, can Jack Why, he climbed up
to the very top of yon steeple, pointing to
the church hard by, which had spire re-
markably tall and slender and very hard
to mount. After the storm had damaged
the weathercock Jack climbed up and fixed
it all alone for the parson, and he refused
to be paid for it,
The man seemed to look upon Lam
prey's refusing payment as more wonder.
full than his climbing the steeple, and per-
haps he was right. Well, bit by bit,
found little things which, when pieced to-
gether, pointed Enthusiastically to Jack
Lamprey as the murderer He had until
recently been seen frequently in and about
Stockport with the girl, but for the last
two or three months she had not been OBJ
served in his company. He had been
jolly sort of fellow, but since the girl had
ceased her visits it had been noticed that
he had become moody and silent, and he
had taken to drink good deal, although
he had previously been most abstemious
man.
"He was away from his lodgings on the
night Of the murder, and on his return
early the next day he was travel stained,
as If he had walked a long way. His land
lady remembered that he told her he had
fallen down in some chemical works where
he had been on job and had stained his
clothes, and she recollected that immedi-
ately after his arrival home he had busted
himself brushing and sponging his gar
ments.
"There was sufficient to justify me in
obtaining warrant, but he was away on
a job-no one knew where exactly, except
that 1t was somewhere near Liverpool-and
1t was useless for me to leave Stockport,
where had the best chance of catching
him, on wild goose chase to Liverpool
without better information. My only
course was to wait and keep quiet till he
came back, which he was expected to do
the following day.
II took every precaution to prevent any
one knowing that he was wanted, but
some pal must have got to suspect 1t and
given him warning. The police in Liver
pool had been wired to and had kept
watch Of all trains in the direction of
Stockport, and toward the evening Of the
second day received the intimation that
q man resembling his description had
taken the train and was on his way. As
sisted by local detective who knew the
man, watched every passenger out of the
train on Its arrival at Stockport but no
Jack Lamprey alighted, and on inquiring
Of the guard 1t seemed pretty certain that
hc had got out OF Cheadle, a station few
miles outside Stockport
It was the beginning Of winter and
night had set IN, so that 1t was extremely
doubtful If we could follow the man, but
we took train which was just going out
Of the station, and in few minutes were
at Cheadle. there made certain that my
man had got out He had booked for
Stockport and had given up his ticket but
do all we could, we could get no trace Of
him. He had left the station Immediately
on leaving the train. No one knew him,
and we could find no one to tell US any
thing more. So, hoping perhaps to pick
up clew on the road, we walked back to
Stockport and on to the town where he
lived, which was few miles the other
side, but our tramp was In vain.
I'VE had left instructions at Stockport
for Lamprey's lodgings to be watched, but
by some blunder q man had not been sent
there for some time, and, much to my an
ger and disgust, when I arrived at his
house I found that he had BEEN there, Just
for Ave minutes, his landlady said, and
had left again with bag Of clothea IN
II was nightly savage, you may guess,
both with myself and with tho pollce OF
tho place for not keepinR = better lockout.