Evening star., 1901-05-18
M22mMham
eod%eD

cent recovery surpassed anything that ever
came my way. About a year ago / was
asked to visit a. farm out in Maryland to
in1 estigate the loss of a valuable gold
watch chain, which. besides having an in
trinsic value of about 500, had sentf-
mental value, having been left to it's
owner by his grandfather. The gentleman
knew that he had the chain in his pocket
when he was at his spring house, where he
was overseeing some repairs, and where
he had three or four men at work. A very
heavy rain fell. which suspended the work
temporarily. and the entire party ran to
barn to seek shelter. A few minutes after
arriving there the owner Of the chain dis
covered his loss. AS soon the rain
stopped falling the party started out on
search for it. AS he knew to certainty
the path he had taken to the barn from
the spring, he thought it would be no
trouble to find 1t, but after a most careful
search the chain could not be found One
of the men. farm laborer. was suspect
ed OF knowing something about the where
abouts of the chain from certain remarks
he had made. but there was little to go to
work on On arriving at the farm several
days after the loss occurred. / was told Of
all the facts about the loss, and from what
L learned about the fellow who was sus-
pected. l really thought that he knew
something about it and set a trap to catch
him. In the makeup of an old clothes
peddier called at his residence and made
efforts to sell some clothes offering to
take old gold or old jewelry in exchange
at its weight value. The thing did not
co. for he said he did not have any jewel
ry, old or new. though he was very anx-
ious to trade an old hunting dog for the
clothing. I looked up the other workmen
little but finally gave it up as q bad
1cb. Three weeks ago I was out to the
same farm and. curiously enough heavy
rain fell while 1 was there AS 1 was
about leaving / started for the spring to
get drink. the owner Of the place being
a few feet ahead of me in the path. When
about twenty feet from the spring he
stopped over and picked UP the chain. 1t
appears that the rain had opened up
gully In the path, revealing the chain
which had been covered up in a similar
guliey during the rain of the previous
year. That ended the mystery. The chain
was not bit injured by it's hiding in
mother earth for the year"
X X X *
A recent happening in the Police Court
when two persons were fined for carving
the same concealed weapon. an old revol-
yer. reminds me-" observed Police Court
officer to Star reporter "of the money
spent on pistol belonging to the old-time
Martin. alias 'Reddy. Welch, who was
known as the wickedest man in Washing
ton. In the case of this week a man was
fined 500 for carrying a revolver, and
three days afterward woman, who by
some means got possession of it, was fined
Stp lux lue same OIenSe. one of the piS-
tolls belonging to Reddy Welch figured in
at least a half-dezen arrests for carving
concealed weapons and netted Judge
SHELLS court in the way Of fines over $500.
Indeed. the Judge once referred to it as
fine producer and one of the resources of
the court. Each time the pistol was con-
fiscated by the police but in the sales of
captured and abandoned property which
are regularly held. it was bought by Reddy
or some of his followers. 1t was an ue1y
looking brass-trimmed revolver, one of the
chambers of which had been crushed In a
railroad collision at Four-Mile Run while
in the overcoat pocket of Weich Welch
ended UP his days in the Albany peniten-
tiary. having been convicted here of man.
slaughter. While there he wrote asking
that the pistol be secured at a sale and
presented to his friend, Charley Mortimer.
burglar. The night Mortimer got # he
went on a spree and was arrested When
the case came before Judge Smell. the
judge not only confiscated the weapon. as
usual, but to put an end to it took It down
personally to the iron foundry 14th and b
streets and threw it into the blast fur
mace. 1t is now component part of a
hitching post in front of the residence Of a
prominent Washington physician. and
think its career of crime is ended"