The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1898-02-15
BY CHARLES B. LEWIS

my Identity De1nR revealed ana watched
him for two weeks. There was oppor
tunity during his eight mile drive to
open the bags with duplicate key, but
l watched without result, except to be
satisfied of his honesty. Then / made
myself known to the postmaster and re-
oeived a warm welcome. He was very
much distressed about the thefts, and to
the best of his knowledge and belief all
had taken place in his Office. There
were only about 90 persons who rented
boxes, and all other mail was put into
| the general delivery. AS the father and
his two daughters were the only ones
handling the mail or having access to
one of the three must be the thief, and
yet could not bring myself to believe
that. / was given the fullest opportu-
nifty to investigate, and also did some
work outside unbeknown to the post
| master.
1 caused to be mailed to the patent
medicine people large number of let
tiers, with private number on each en-
velope. The first batch of ten came
through all right, but out of the second
two were missing. The whole ten had
left Denton in the mail bag, as well
knew, and the two had either been tax
en- en- route by the carrier or by some
one after their arrival at Shelby. AS
the carrier had brought over two pas
sengers in his cart that trip he might be
considered out of it. The mail had ar
rived at Shelby at 8 o'clock and been
called for an hour later. Next day a
batch of six letters came through all
right, and SO on the next, and on the
third ten were received. helped to dis
| tribute the mail and counted three let
tiers and recorded the number. Father
and daughter all knew this, and yet at
O'Clock three of these letters, together
with two for certain merchant, which
had particularly noticed, were missing
and could not be found.
That evening, after the Office closed,
we turned it upside down, as it were,
but nothing came of it. The old post
master was in the deepest despair,
while his two daughters wept and sob
bed over what they believed would be
the ruin of all. AS an inspector, and
with such evidence before my eyes, it
was my business to believe one Of the
three guilty. and yet had to reason
that they wouldn't be idiotio enough
to purloin letters under my very nose. l
simply didn't know what to think, and
next morning was knocked off my feet
to receive complaint from Washing
ton that three important letters posted
at Shelby ten days before for a city only
100 miles away had been lost en- route.
I telegraphed for enlarged instructions,
and upon receiving them / told Mr..
Harper I must let go of the case tempo
rarily for another. l shifted my quar-
tiers over to Denton, through which all
mail to and from Shelby must pass, and
made such arrangements with the post
master that every letter was counted
and its address taken. Imailed about 80
decoy letters in this time, and at the
end of IA days had the satisfaction of
knowing that II different letters had
somehow or other been made away with
at Shelby. This was adding evidence to
evidence, but l did not return to Shelby
to lay the matter before the old post
master.
went back there in the disguise of
farmers hired man looking for work,
and luckily for me no farmer wanted a
! man. I therefore loafed about the vii
lage and was in and out of the postoffice
half a dozen times per day-always
there when the mail departed or came
in. By looking through the glass door
of one of the boxes could see the gen.
eral delivery box, mail tables, etc., and
carefully scrutinized the conduct of the
three as they did their work. kept up
this espionage for week before any
thing happened. Then the mail came in
one afternoon while the father was tenn
porarily absent, and the girls opened the
bag and assorted it. As they picked up
the letters each pocketed one with sly
look, and you may believe me when l
tell you l turned away with heavy
heart. Instead of one thief there were
two, and those the handsome and win
some daughters of an honest and upright
old man. Itwould break his heart when
| he learned the truth but must tell him,
| and those girls must be punished.
| | went to the hotel, threw off my dis
guise and then returned to the postoffice.
/ somehow felt that the girls ought to
look guilty, but they did not. They
gave me cordial greeting, hoped had
come back to stay until the mystery was
| thoroughly sifted, and no persons could
have borne themselves more innocently.
That night after the Office was closed to
| the public asked the father to my room
and then went over the case with him.
There could be no manner of doubt that
a score or more Of letters had been pur-
Joined from his office. There were three
of them who had access to the mails,
and one of the three must have some
guilty knowledge of those letters. By
no possibility could an outsider reach
them. With tears streaming down his
| furrowed cheeks he acknowledged that
my assertions and declarations were
correct, but who was the theft Did 1
suspect him? Could l suspect either Of
his daughters? Then l broke it to him
as gently as l could-told him what l
had seen in the afternoon and what was
fact
For some time he argued that must
be mistaken, but finally told me to go
ahead and do my duty and never mind
his feelings. He had been father and
mother to those girls for years, and no
word or act of theirs had ever before
caused him moments uneasiness. If
they had taken two letters, they had
| taken all the others, and he asked me
| to go to the house and confront them
and extort confession. Hard hearted
as thought myself, hadn't the nerve
| to do that, but put 1t off till morning.
He gave me his promise to say nothing
overnight, and 1 was at the house soon
| after breakfast. | sat down with the
| girls and went over the case, as had
with him, hoping to break them down,
but they had only anxiety on their faces
as they listened Then l boldly stated
what had seen on the previous day,
and the shot told. Both blushed and
stammered and began weeping, and 1
took it as confession and told the IA
ther so. He couldn't speak to them for
his emotion, and when told him they
must consider themselves under arrest
and search made of their rooms he
simply bowed his head in aequiesoence.
/ wanted to keep the girls below while
I searched their room, and unfortunate
| ly for me l called in the village consta-
BILE to sit with them. He had to be told
more or less of the case, and as soon as
he was at liberty he went out to spread
l