The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-02-01
FOUND HIS MAN IN JAIL.
prykERTON DETECTIVE CONNECTS
WITH \ DIAMOND THIEF.

s+or,- of the Visit of a PinkertOn
,,an and His Discovery of an ''Un-
l.no,yn" in the County JaiI-Pris-
ouer Gave HIS Name. as West-Was
suspected by Local Detectives of
something Blythe PinkertOn
Wan Recognized Him at Once and
S,iJ lie Was Wanted for the Dia-
mond Robbery at Durham, n. c..
last summer.
,.p.nkerton detective was in Savannah
q few days ago looking up the story of
an cid prize fight. The mill was pulled
aa in 1876 Ii is not often that the Pink
arfons are called upon TO investigate cases
,oop which prize fights of such antiquity
nave any bearing, but in this instance it
y4s rue The Pinkerton man looked
,5roush the files of the newspapers and
found the story of the fight, after which
ha oaked up those whose names appeared
in Connection with it, getting the informa-
uou le wanted.
While he was in the city the detective
was taken in tow by some of the local
arms Of the law. AS would naturally be
,he case, he was taken to see the county
ialI Incidentally the de tective saw the
prisoners. one of them caught his eye.
Hello said the visitor, struck by
something about the man, who is that?'
"Oh that is a fellow we have been hold
ing here for some time on suspicion. His
name is West. We believe he has been
mixed up in something big"
"Why We want that chap" said the Wis
it0r He was mixed up in the big da-
moud and jewelry robbery in Durham, ~
C.. last summer. I'll take him along"
An arrangement was entered into with
the Pukerton man and the prisoner was
turned over to him and was taken TO
Townsville.
About three months ago a story went the
rounds that West was identical with an
individual who had passed through the
city short time before and displayed dia-
mouds hat were the envy of all beholders
and that he had offered TO dispose of for
the price Of a rag-time song. He had too
many of the brilants. it was Their
thought, and suspicion pointed to him and
marked him as a fair subject for the eye
OF the detective.
When he came back 10 Savannah he was
ulboed and lodged in jail. He was not
forced 10 content himself with the same
rough fare tina was given TO the other
"a soners. but was supplied from a lead
ing restaurant with the fat of the land.
He was never brought before the grand
jury, though at least two have assembled
since bis arrest 1t was altogether a most
interesting and pleasing episode, and the
spice of uncertainty as to what was to be
done with West and how long his confne-
ment was to continue without either trial,
release or his being carried back to the
place of the crimes commission became
an interesting study in the doctrine of
chances.
1t was supposed all along that West
was TO be induced to confess, if possible,
the location of the diamonds he was
known to have had and the names of the
other parties implicated with him in the
crime, or his own guilt, or some other
feature connected with the case. but just
what il was never possible exactly to de-
termine. The officials said that he was
suspected of burglary, but of what burg
larry they did not know At least they
would not say.
The question then was what had De
come of the diamonds. and so far as IS
known it has never been settled. 1t may
be that the trip Of the detective and his
prisoner to Thomasville was designed to
throw some light on the subject.