The daily morning journal and courier., 1899-11-20

money be refunded. There was quite a 1 little fracas about it, and the pool men got frightened and closed up, and Mul- ligan went to Boston, where he has re- mained.
 MT. Thrasher expresses good deal of satisfaction that neither the opera tions of his detectives In Bridgeport for several weeks nor the visits which have usually been by messengers rather than l in person to MT. Fessenden in Stam- ford, the chief justice in Litchfeld and Judge Wheeler in Bridgeport, nor ! the opening of the court and the issu- l ing of the warrants was in any way de- tected by anybody in sympathy with | the lawbreakers.
 | The chief difficffiulty in making sue cessful raids is to get to the places without being observed.
 It was learned yesterday that MT. | Thrasher so distributed him men that they came upon the Fairfield avenue
 place unobserved and that the first sig
 nal of disturbance was when McClair went through an unopened door be- tween McGuinness' saloon and the
 stairway leading to the pool room at
 the head of which was another closed
 door with peep holes, behind which the
 so-called inside watcher is always on
 guard, and who is supposed to closely
 observe every man who enters the place.
 It is matter of great surprise and
 comment among the pool men that Me-
 Clair and his assistants were able to get by the lower guard, as the door leading from the saloon to the stairway is always locked and guarded; the
 doorkeeper standing ready to admit the elect and to keep out such objectionable persons as agents of the Law and Order league but two agents of the league had already preceded McClair in the capacity of sporting men, they having passed both guards-ln fact, having been recognized as habitues of
 the place.
 There were about forty men in the room and gambling was brisk. The
 breaking of the door below was the signal for the two agents already in the place to make known their authority and prevent panic.
 The crowd made q break for the open windows, but was held back and fin a few seconds McClair and his as- sistants reached the scene and order was restored when it was learned that only the principals were to be taken.
 As soon as the arrests were made the crowd was permitted to- go quietly, greatly relieved, as they had had visions of the court room and the jail.
 After the men had gone and the pa- raphernalia of the place was being gathered up by MT. McClair and his assistants, it was noticed that the tele- graph instrument had disappeared. On inquiry no one had seen 1t go. yet a few minutes before it had been doing it's illegtimate work on a table in front of Terrence Hunt, the operator A close inspection revealed the fact that not only the instrument but the wires had disappeared and no trace of any telegraph!c connection could be found in the room. Somewhat nonplussed at this MT McClair began more thorough search and in the corner of the room, under the carpet he discovered loose section of the floor, and on lifting 1t out saw the telegraph instrument con nected with q coil of slack wire still in operation, ticking off the races on which hundreds of dollars had been staked and in this instance lost. It was neat plan for destroying the evidence. The instrument could easily be taken out and put on the table for business and at the first alarm quickly conceal ed. It is evident that the agents of the league did their work thoroughly.
 There was a rumor in Bridgeport yes terday that the man who worked up the whole case for the league Is an agent by the name of Reed, who ap- peared in Bridgeport few weeks ago with story that he was looking for a fellow who eloped with his sister, and it is said that he got the sheriffs, detec- tives and policemen all thoroughly in sympathy with his hunt. Another ru- nor has it that local detective and one Of the city sheriffs were worked by this fake and that they took Reed into the pool rooms and introduced llirn to the whole outfit.
 As has been already published the men were taken before Judge Wheeler and placed under heavy bonds to ap- pear for trial on Monday, November 27.
 Mir. Thrasher was seen yesterday and said that the papers had got the main facts in the case and that lie did not care to discuss the matter. The incl dents as above reported were talked over and he admitted that the story was substantially correct
 Patrolmen H. McKeon and McAllenf of the Grand avenue station at S:45 last evening found Philip Smith doing busi- ness at his saloon at No 3S St. John street Smith was arrested, as were also two men found in the saloon, Will liam Ryan of 43 Carlisle street and Thomas Hanrahan of No. 43 White street..