The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-04-09


him as Mr.. Hope Little Johnny
took the stranger into a cafe and asked
him things.
I'm the first place, how did you
know me?' he inquired of the stranger.
We'll, it appeared that Little john
ny had been pointed out to the Strang-
er by a detective who was so shady
that he afterward did time for secretly
extending aid and suceor to the enc
my. e., a famous band of New York
crooks.
well said Little Johnny to the
stranger, I don't suppose you're seek
ing my acquaintance for the sake of
being introduced into society or for the
enjoyment of my winning ways. What's
your graft?'
Then the stranger up and told him
what his graft was.
I'm the cashier of a bank up in
Westchester county, said he to Little
Johnny Hope. The directors don't
know anything about it, but I'm short
in my accounts. There's only one way
out of it. The bank'll have to be
robbed by professional craftsmen.
That will fet me out and in addition
I'll get my rake-off from the robbery.
want you to rob the bank. You'll
find $685. 900 in cash in it on the night
you arrange the job-Ill attend to that.
OF course 1 want my bit out of that
$10,0 900 at least. I've always heard that
you are square in these divisions, and,
therefore, I'll trust you to hand me my
share after you've done the job for
putting you onto it,
This sounds good enough to eat,
replied Little Johnny who wasn't
born next week, and who could see a
man-trap as far as a twelve-inch gun
will shoot. Fact is, it's SO sweet that
it's almost cloying. Now, I've heard
your proposition. You give me a couple
of days to investigate you and then
we'll talk business
"'They appointed another meeting at
the same place two days later, and in
the meantime Hope looked into the job.
He found that his man really was the
cashier of a prominent Westminster
county bank in a town not more than
half an hours run from New York. So
when the cashier called upon him at
the appointed time he was ready to
talk business.
You'll have a hard nights work,
said the cashier, for in order to avert
suspicion I'll have to leave the vaults
and safe all locked up tighter'n a
drum, as usual You'll need several as
sistants.'
You just pass those details up to
me- replied Hope. Every man to his
trade. They don't make EN- SO strong
| that 1 can't get into EN-.
Then all of the details were arrang-
ed and the robbery was fixed Tor a
certain night in the following week.
The cashier was especially solicitOuS
that he should get his share OF the
proceeds of the crib cracking. Hope
assured him that if there Vas $4,000
in the job $4,000 would be enough for
| himself and his assistants, and the
cashier would get the rest.
ION the night fixed Little Johnny
and three of his best men went up to
the town in Weschester county and
pulled off the job. 1t was matter of
four hours before the gang, after
overpowering and tying and gagging
the nightwatchman, got into the main
safe. They found it empty. They then
tackled the smaller safes. These, too,
were empty. Little Johnny was mad,
as can be readily imagined.
cit was the first and last time /
ever played the part of a good thing
in a Job like that, he said afterWard.
Now, that was pretty clever work on
the part of the cashier, wasn't il? He
had simply looted the bank himself,
and the robbery which he had arranged
was simply to cover up his own trail.
There have been 'Napoleons of finance
without number developed from the
ranks of bank cashiers, but L never
heard of a cleaner bit of work than
that 1t was, think, bit of absolute
genius.
"Of course, Little Johnny and his
assistants had only to pack their tools
and get back to New York They
weren't in a. position to say anything
about how they had been fooled. Lit
tie Johnny had to read in the after
noon papers the account of how the
bank had been robbed of cash and Sc
curities 'approximating 100000 in
amount and grind his teeth. The
banks failure was announced a few
days later.
1.-TWO months after that it Eel! to my
lot to handcuff myself to Little Johnny
and to take him up to Sing Sing ON
| New York Central train. One of the
| indictments against him was pressed
| for some reason or other and he got d
five-year stunt. The train we look for
the Sing Sing prison was local affair,
| and it stopped at all the little stations.
Little Johnny who sat next to the
window, looked idly out at * loung-
ers around the stations. At Gle of the
! stations not far from Sing Sing 1 no
| ticed his face suddenly darhen with
rage. and ! asked him what was Up.
He pointed out a slick-lookinS man that
was sitting in a dogcart beside the sta
! ton and he cursed him in q blood
curdling way for two minutes before
| he was able to tell me the story I've
| told YOU The man %. the dogcart was
! the cashier who had been crafty enough
/ to put it all over Little Johnny Hope
probably the most willy criminal in mis-
particular line who ever operated in
| this country The failure of the bank
! hadn't hurt the cashier at all in The es-
! timation of his townsmen-bank was
robbed by cracksmen, y see, and how
could the cashier help it? Oh, that
cashier was good, all right.
well, it wasn't up to me to say any
thing about what Little Johnny had
! told me, although 1 frequently saw the
cashier flying high in New York aftel
that. 1 lost track of him after cou-
| pie of years, however, and concluded
that he had struck out for the west u
somewhere or another, with his beau
tifully contrived rakedown from the
| Westchester County bank.
'He was the emaciated, plaisted OILS
vag 1 saw in Jefferson Market police
court last week"
An Artistic Mix-up.