The Bellefontaine Republican. [volume] (Bellefontaine, Logan County, Ohio) 1855-1905, 1900-06-19
NUMBER 40.
A TROPHY OF BURGLARY.
Drummer Carries a Gold Watch ~ .
Souvenir of His Deed.


Drummer Carries a Gold Watch ~ .
Souvenir of His Deed.
'This watch was part of the spoils
Of a burglary in which I participated
in 1884," said guest in the St Charles
lobby to reporter, drawing out q
handsome gold timepiece with curl
GUS spiral pattern engraved In heavy
relief on the lid. 1T was my first af-
fair of the kind, and l regret to say
bungled it and got caught almost i'm
mediately. What is the joke, did you
ask? There is no joke; it is perfectly
true. 1t happened like this:
"In the fall of 1881, when l was quite
young and green, l got job travel
ing for Chicago grocery house, and
one of the first places l visited was Q
small town in northern Ohio. arriv-
ed about II at night and went out to
take stroll aud smoke q cigar before
going to bed. Passing through q side
street, l noticed a light in the little
jewelry store and also that the door
was ajar. That reminded me l had
recently broken the handspring Of my
watch, and 1 sauntered in to E-.S1e II
for renair.
"As entered young man arose from
the further end of the counter. He
seemed startled, which was not un-
natural at such a late call, but he re-
gained his composure while explain
ed the purpose Of my visit and told me
he had closed some hours before, but
happened to remember some things
that had been left out Of the safe and
returned to put them back. When I
handed him my watch, asked him to
lend me another to wear in the mean
time. and he gave me one at random
from tray on the counter. This IL Il
on my chain now.
"Next morning." continued the story
teller, 81 was lounging in the hotel Of
| fee, when the town marshal tapped me
| on the shoulder.
"'Let me see your watch he said.
81 pulled it out mechanically and was
at once placed under arrest on the
charge of robbing the jewelry store. It
seemed that it had been burglarixed
during the night, and somebody in the
hotel had noticed my peculiar looking
watch and reported it to the police. It
was promptly identified as part Of the
stolen goods, and, needless to say, my
story as to it's acquisition was laughed
| to scorn. was obliged to admit that It
seemed little gauzy myself, and I
| can't say l blame the authorities for
declining to give it credence.
"At any rate, found myself IN the
deuce of a fix. My old watch had been
carried off by the thief, and there was
absolutely nothing to confirm my state
ment except the bare fact that none Of
the other goods was found in my pos
session. That, however, went for very
little, for it was argued that had had
abundant time to conceal my plunder.
In my agitation and excitement must
have presented a perfect picture Of
| guilt, and the townspeople came near
1 mobbing me on the way to Jail. They
kept me there for exactly three hours,
the agony Of which will dwell with me
If live to be hundred.
| meanwhile the sure enough burglar
had been bagged in an adjoining town
with all the loot, including my time
piece, in his valise, and when was
finally released he was bundled into
my cell. If he hadn't been caught, l
don't know what might have happened.
don't like to think about it. The au-
thorities made groveling apologies. and
the jeweler was especially abject. To
placate me he offered to let me keep the
new watch in exchange for my old one.
and accepted the proposition. l car
ry it as a sort Of tragic-comic SOU
venir."-New Orleans Times-Democrat.