The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1901-03-18
A DETECTIVE
FELL VICTIM.
Bob. pInksTion's Experience
With "knock-out' Band.
CALLED IT STUDENTS JOKE.
Thsy Had Drugssd aad Robbed q Campan-
Isa u Railroad, al Least 50
Il Appeared.

Bob Pinkerton. the famous detective,
has never objected 10 telling a story on
himself. even when the point OF It con-
sists In his having been made TO hold
the bag" says the Washington star.
When he was in Washington 10 keep an
eye out for shady characters at the last
Bennings race meeting he told OF how
gang OF alleged handlers OF Knockout
drops" had fooled him about year be-
fore.
II was travelling from Chicago 10 New
York" said Mr.. Pinkerton. wed only
been out from Chicago about halt
dozen hours when rly attention WAS at
tracted by the peculiar conduct OF
party OF four well-dressed and somewhat
lsrky voting men in the smoking COM
partment of tho car on which l was rid
ing.
From the beginning OF the journey I
had noticed that these young chaps had
been observing me pretty strongly, and
i caught couple of them pointing TO me
and nudgins each other-I saw the thing
out of the tail of my eye-when the con-
ductor approached my seat and addressed
me by name.
Therefore, when / happened to catch
sight OF a little game among the four
In the smoking compartment, | kept
them in good view, although i didn't
suppose they knew l was watching them.
L saw that quart bottle was being
passed around among them pretty freely.
Now. there was nothing unusual about
that. of course, but / Immediately form
ed strong suspicious when observed that
three of them were only pretending To
take their drinks OF liquor out of the
glass the porter provided, while the
fourth, a young fellow who had lot Of
exceedingly valuable jewelry scattered
about his person, was actually gulpng
the liquor down at a great rate, and was
obviously becoming foolishly intoxicated.
Now, II naturally struck me as a queer
thing. the cautious and furtive way the
three young chaps enptied their glasses
into the spitt0on, when the fourth young
fellow wasn't looking, and. in view OF
the latters possession of so much fine
jewelry. IL looked like a fair calculation
that they didn't mean him any good
Finally when the fourth man was
very much intoxicated. I saw the three
who had been humping their drinks tip
each other the wink. and then one or
them, after looking around with great
furtiveness. pulled a small vial out of his
vest pocket
"No didn't mutter Eureka like the
much disgusted Old Sleuth gentleman
does I'm the weekly thrillers, but L am
free 10 say that / possessed quite de-
gree of inward excitement over the pros
pect OF nipping such a braZen piece of
Knockout work right during the accom-
plshment thereof.
The young man with the vial signaled
10 one OF his pals. and the pal poured
out a stif drink from the fresh bottle
which the porter had just brought in.
Then the young fellow with the vial
poured about ten drops therefrom into
the glass of liquor Now, you might sup
pose Il was up TO me right then 10 cut
in but it wasn't
The youth who had used the Knockout
drops handed the doped glass of liquor
TO the intoxicated chap. who was mani
festly to be the victim of the three, and
he took II greedily and gulped Il down.
'Then he gradually ceased his bolster
Gus talking rested his head back on the
cushion OF his chair and. with his mouth
wide open, apparently yielded To the ef-
fects OF the knockout fluid.
las soon as he had succumbed-1 saw
II all in a glass pane i'm the partition be-
tween the smoking compartment and the
body OF the car--the three exchanged
significant glances. and then they leaned
over their apparently unconscious COM
panion and began to strip him of his jew
elry.
Il reached the door OF the smoking
compartment In two jumps,
"
showing them the gun had I'm my hand,
bat not leveling It at them. and l am
surprised that you be so foolish as 10
think that you could get away with the
goods m such raw way.
Now I've seen the whole game from
the beginning. and the three OF you are
10 consider yourselves corralled As per-
haps you know, 10y name Is Pinkerton,
and have the authority to put you un-
der arrest
"rhe young fellow who was being
robbed when ! broke in slumbered on
with his mouth wide open, and the other
three looked terribly alarmed Their
faces got red, and they began to re-
proach each other.
I told YOU he was Pinkerton. one of
them said bitterly.
! didn't want to get mixed up in this
Job anyhow said another.
Even N Pinkerton wasn't on the train
you idiots ought to've known how this
train was watched said the third.
Say. what are you going 10 do with
usg all three inquired of me nj once.
I'm going to take the bunch of you
of the train at the next stop and make
complaint against you | replied. and |
can give u TO you pretty straight that
you're all In trouble, and a whole lot OF
IT.
"Then the unconscious victim couldn't
hold In any longer He Jumped up ana
let out a roar that drowned the screech-
ing OF the engines whistle and then he
fell back into his chair and held his sides
and shrieked. The other three likewise
toppled into their chairs and just moaned
with Joy.
"Oh, well Il didn't need any end-on
collision 30 make me see how those four
young reprobates had fooled me. ] saw
e then. al right, while they fel back
into their chairs and rocked themselves
IN their glee. They offered mo drink
out Of the quart bottle. it contained tea.
secured by the porter from the dining
car
"Thc user Of the knock out drops
pulled the vial rom his pocket and drank
on the contents right before me, and
smackcd his lips. and remarked thnt be
hadn't tasted such rattiing good cstern
water FOR several months
The four young scamps we're univer-
sity Lads on their way East for a hi c'
"trip They had recognized me. from
pictures of me publishcd ln tho chicago
papers. az soon as they go' on the car,
and they had fixed up the scheme on me.
II hit. and ! biz hard. and that's all