Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1897-10-09


That Had Never Been Reported.
Il never WAS III Mexico but once, and
then went us an amateur detective, .
said the mining expert cit happened
this way: a friend of mine in Pittsburg
had his confidential clerl-to whom he
had given an opportunity by trusting
him fully-sllip with $4,000. Holmew
where he was, just over the border
from San Diego. But he was safe, for
he kept religiously on the wrong side
of tho line. Several detectives had been
sent down there to lure him over, but
III some way no had detected tho detect
i've in them, for they often acquire a
professional air in spite of their best
efforts to the contrary.
Il knew that my only chance would
be to go and live there as fugitive
from justice myself and SO secure his
entire confidence l decided to be q
forgcr. / took up my abode in tho
wretched little town and in about 24
hours was so sick Of it that | Twas on the
point of throwing up the whole scheme
and going back. But my friend had
done me many favor in business, and
! in decency owed him some return. Of
course did not make the slick man S
acquaintance. l was determined he
should make mine He held off for sew
eral days, evidently thinking was
detective and expecting me to make, as
they had always done, approaches to
him. But kept away, as if l were sus-
picious of him. The fellow was dread
fully homesicll, and don't wonder, in
that place Hc used TO go out ON the
! desert and look at tho stars and stripes
across the border and wish he dared go
back. He evidently began to think he
was worse imprisoned than if he had
been in some penitentiary.
FINALLY one day he ventured to ad-
dress me- I replied very coldly TO his
salutation which only made him the
more anxious to know me. He began to
inquire into my business and find ont
what had come for gave him no spe-
cial satisfaction until one day said that
1 had come for change of air. With the
same kind of air in the United States
few miles away this was, of course, alb
surd, and he concluded as | intended
he should, that was there for the same
reason he was, but piled him with no
questions. Finally, i'll his impatience,
he burst ont with:
:" What's the use of keeping up this
pretense longer? l know and you know
that we are both on the same errand
down here. 1t is true, as you say, we
can't live over there'-pointing to-
ward the country over the border. Lets
own up and have done with the farce.
So we confessed to each other, he tell
ing me all about his crime, which
knew already, and l telling him all
about my imaginary iniquity.
THAT was as far as we got for
awhile, but it did him good. For it left
him free to talk He was very home
sick, and we both acknowledged that it
would be almost pleasanter to give our
StsNCS up ANU SCI OlAO JILL NSA4Ai-' e4A@AA
to stay there the rest Of our lives. once
or twice limited that was ready to do
so. But he WASH t, and knew that no
ordinary inducement would get him
where he could be taken But he had
no opportunity of investing his money,
and his cupidity naturally forced him
to sec that he had made very poor bar
gain if all he was to get out of his ras-
cality was to sit and spend it slowly in
that little hole of a Mexican town.
II had already interested him with
my stories of fortunes that had been
made in lucky mine investments, and
told him 1 knew of ono rich deposit
which I had never reported to any one,
intending TO invest the amount of my
forgery in its development if I could
get some more to put with it. told
him it was in an out of the way local
ity in southern Arizona, and that we
could get there without detection if we
would go Oh foot or burTo back and
avoid the railroads Finally he con-
Guided that he was willing to take the
risk if l would and go and look at the
property. The rest was easy. wrote
at once for an officer to be ready to head
us off while crossing the Colorado river.
We had travelled some distance without
being challenged or exciting suspicion.
1 threw off my pretended apprehension,
declared that we were safe from all in
reference and that we might as well
take it easy This proved contagious,
and 1 saw that would have no difficult
ty in getting him to the point had
designated to the officers.
eve were riding slowly along in the
hot sun of the desert when suddenly
from behind butte two men on horses
shot out and rode swiftly toward us and
We're upon us almost before we had time
to realize it. Although had expected
them, 1 confess l was taken by surprise
it was done so quickly and success
fully. Of course they handcuffed me as
well as him. But before we had reached
tie railroad station they had released
HE. and he understood how he had been
fooled. 1 expected he would burst out
in cures and rcproaches, especially
when they confiscated what he had left
of his stcalj lgs Bat he didn't. In fact
it was 70 great q relief that he made no
defense at the trial and took his SEN
tencc with great Indifference. would
hardly have been surprised if he had
thanked mo for the favor-ho was so
thoroughly sick of exile. Chicago
Times-Hcrald.