The Press., 1898-04-14
A CORK LEGGED MAN,
RY CHARLES B. LEWIS.

Of the six passengers Wno aIlgnteu from the stage coach at the Acorn inn. in Blissfeld, one April evening was man with a wooden leg. That sort of a misfortune is not rare, and yet the vic- tim, especially in a country town, al- ways attracts considerable attention. The stranger registered as John Gordan of Chicago, and when he gave out that he might remain in Blissfield for sev eral weeks everybody wondered what business could have brought him there.
 "The man with the wooden leg, as he came to be generally spoken of, had been in town about a week, when one of the leading merchants was robbed of about $I, 900 in cash. He had the mon- ey in an old fashioned safe, which opened with a key, and the safe had been unlocked. Entrance to the store, had been effected by way of the fanlight over the front doors. No suspicious characters had been seen about the town, and as the merchant and his son were the only ones having keys to the safe the affair was puzzle. The local con- stable did a great deal of talking, but struck no clew, and in his desperation he asked GordaH to assist him, believ- ing no doubt. that a government officer of any sort ought to be more or less posted in detective work. Gordan seemed to think the matter over for awhile and then replied:
 "The case is as plain as the nose on your face The merchants son took the money, and after this thing quiets down he will go off to St. Louis to have a good time. I'd stake my life he's got every dollar of the missing cash secure ly hidden away somewhere.
 The constable couldn't believe it of the young man. having known him from childhood, but be was bound by prom ise not to mention the matter, and after several theories had been worked out and exploded the matter was allowed to drop, or. rather. it was relegated for another sensatiou. Seven or eight days after the store robbery the postofiice was entered. That, too, had an old fash toned safe, but it held something like $2, 900. Of this sum about $500 belong ed to the postmaster, the balance to the citizens.
 The lock on the back door was bored off with brace and bit taken from a carpenters shop and this safe was also opened by means of false key. The ex- citement in that small town was in- tense, and men tumbled over each other to advance theories and suggestions. The robbery did not take place until after 10 o'clock at night. The postmas- ter and his assistant could prove them I., kIo,+ ( the burglars had driven into the village from point perhaps 20 miles away, and this was strengthened by the tale of farmer as to having seen buggy with two men in it pass his house twice that night. He saw nothing of the sort, but told the story from desire to "mix in" and furnish a clew.
 The sheriff rode all over the county in search of his men, but the days pass ed and no one was arrested. No one had advanced the theory that the robber was living among us, and if any one had he would have been laughed at for his words CCrIan, the government agent. was the Cnly stranger in town, and who could suspect him? He had little to say about either job, but when pressed for an opinion on the postoffice affair he re- piled:
 "Gentlemen, my line is not detective work, though 1 have seen a good deal of it and know something about criminals. Whoever did that job come from dis tance. There was likely two of them. They may have come 50 miles for all we know, but you can bet they were old hands and slick ones.'
 It was decided that the robbery had been committed by strangers, and after a search lasting three or four days the 1 officers gave it up. It was big loss to the postmaster and several citizens. but they had to bear it the best way they could. The postmaster was an old man and had little of this worlds goods, and Gordan offered to be one of the ten tc chip in $50 and make good his loss. The other nine did not come forward, but everybody in town said it was more than kind of the man with a wooden leg, and a dozen or more of the most prominent men shook hands with him over it. Ten CT l2 days passed, md then came a terrible tragedy.
 The richest man in Blissfeld was Squire Higgins He owned the woolen