Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1899-10-14
\x|oman Infatuati0n
w :. For An Outlaw.

with a representative of the Daily Tele-
graph the other day, Mr.. w. II. Bosan-
quet of the firm of solicitors to the Bank
er's Association intrusted with the eluci-
dation of the PARIS Bank mystery, offer
ed his expression of opinion: From the
experience of the past l think that Amer
leans have probably o the job Stu
dents of criminal detection agree that the
United States has produced the biggest
bank thieves of the century,, and the life
history of the chief of a notorious
''crowd," or gang-a king in his way
cannot fail to be instructive to the young
er school Of officers who are year by year
filling the places vacated in the metropo-
Titan and city police ranks by the retire
ment upon pension of men of ripe eXpei'-
fence. The following facts are vouched
for by an expert of admitted rank IN the
detective profession, which he has follow
ed for many years with unvarying sue
cess. They disclose that the thieves most
to be dreaded are those who are cosmo-
politan, fitting from city to city. as the
opportunity for their plumber arises. For
obvious reasons the real names of the
rogues figuring in the narrative subjoin-
ed are suppressed.
label, to call the subject of my chat by
OIlC u Xix al o4IuSSH tAsAt az 1850 $3.50
said the expert, was born in a village
near one of the great cities Of the Unit
ID States, 70 which his parents had emil
grated from Germany. Little Abel in his
childhood days was very precOcious. full
of wicked mischief, and addicted to trad
ing with his school fellows in playthings.
On every deal he came out on top
About so years agO-Or rather eSS-he,
as a child of six, was educating himself
In this manner He was drawn into
trade by a bigger boy. who offered e
give him a brand-new penny for two old
ones. Abel thought hat SO bright and
clean a coin must be gold, and he there
fore gladly parted with two Worn copper
pieces for it. When he reached home he
proudly produced his bargain crying,
See, father. Amt I got the best Of him?
] gave him two dirty old ones for it, But
Abel received a salutary lesson in the
first principles of banking. His father
promptly whipped him soundly to get it
well into his head that in matters OF cur
rency old coins We're worth just as much
as those fresh from the mint. From that
day no one-friend or foe, honest man or
crook niger. Indian. or white, relative
or stranger ever got the better of Abel
in business transactions on the cross
or on the square
LAS a lad Of IA, Abel ran away from
home, and started a %vagabond life in
Boston. Rather less than 40 years ago
he migrated to New York city. and en-
gagged in the then prevailing art of
bounty jumping but on his third enlist
ment he was recognized as a proficient.
and was. in consequence, dispatched.
With others Of his class. chained together.
to the front, With the Army OF the Poto-
mae. It vas at the period when General
Lee Of the southern army issued a pro-
clamation to the effect that all federal
soldiers who would desert to the confed-
crate lines, bringing their arms with
them, should receive $50 from the con-
federate government. and also a free pass
TO cross the frontier back into the United
States by way of Virginia and Kentucky
adjoining. Abel was not the man to de-
spise these liberal terms, so one night he
deserted. in company With some others.
while doing picket duty. Three years
later he was arrested in New York for
having stolen a trunk from an express
wagon, and upon trial was sentenced to
three years hard labor in Sing sing
prison.
ABEL'S ESCAPE.
after serving IS months Of his time,
Abel made his escape from the stone
uuarries by means OF a drain which dis
charged itself into the railroad tunnel,
and he succeeded in reaching some canal
boats at a distance of a few miles, and IN
one Of t hem he concealed himself. A
tugboat drew the barge with the escaped
prisoner to New York. and fortunately 1t
moored in a lonely dock on the west side
Of the city. which enabled Abel, who was
still in prison garb. to creep in the dark
ness unperceieed to the house of a friend,
who supplied him with other cloths.
Once having embarked upon a career
of crime Abel--Who was Joined by his
brother-broke into the Office of a trans
;~ \nr- Nn1l- nd fnYnnT
open the double door of the safe, which
contained $50. 600 in gold. The money,
however. was locked in an inner compart-
ment. and the thieves failed to break 1t
open before the appearance of daylight.
In the same year the gang which had
grown up around the master mind robbed
the safe of an insurance company IN
Massachusetts of a sun of 5000 600. 4
compile of years later Abel. with two 9TH
e,s. robbed a Boston bank of $3.50. 900 in
United States bonds, in the following
manner: One of the trio acquired a bar
Der shop next door to the bank. He
pretended to sell patent medicines. The
thieves made a hole in the party wall.
which was covered up in the daytime by
false wainscoting, and when they reached
the iron railing of the bank vault they
began to cut through it with specially
made tools one Saturday night-in order
to work at the job continuously until
Monday morning. 1t was d hard task to
cut through the boiler plating, With which
the vault was cased. a hole large enough
to permit Abel TO pass through it. having
first stripped himself to the skin. He
slipped through like an eel, burst open
the tin boxes of the customers of the
bank. and the strong boxes which he
found, and possessed himself of the Sc
culities, with which the thieves decamp-
ed. By this time it was Sunday morning,
and Abel, elated with success, proposed
to return after night and break open a
safe containing $400. O00 in bonds and