The Republican journal., 1901-01-17

slonally. Then should feel rather like
brute to interfere with the plans o1
this anxious young woman and her sick
husband; and lastly, it was an abomin
able night and / wanted to GET home
and go to bed. >
And SO within sight of the depot
gave her the required promise.
AS we drew up to the steps nv com
panion jumped out quickly, taking he]
Dag with her, for the train was whist.
ling only short distance away. Sud
denly remembering that she could have
no money, l unbuttoned nv coat and
took out my pocketbook.
''You will want something for vour
fare" | said alphabetically.
81 was forgetting about that" she
answered. Give dollars will be
enough. Thank you, will return it by
mail. Your name is"
CDR. Charles Littlefeld. Goodbye,
madam. You have my best Wishes
"Good-bye, DIR. Littlefield," and she
turned and hurried toward the train,
which was putting loudly at the other
side of the station.
The next day was an unusually busy
one for me, and it was not until even
ing that found time to set down and
read the morning papers. | was look
ing over the political news, when Lou
lisa, who was reading the evening pa
per, gave characteristic exclamation.
which she only uses upon rare occa-
sions.
Great powers and mercy, Charles,
we might all have been murdered in
our beds! A gang of desperate thieves
has been hiding in the Grayson house,
not five miles from here!''
| fro
was coming and held on to the arm of
my chair.
| "What do you mean, Louisa? Read
the article aloud" said family.
| ltSeemed that three nights before on
the 18th, the store of one of the largest
dealers in precious stones and silver
ware in Boston had been robbed of
jewels to the value of $4,000 The
Waterman had been overpowered and
chloroformed and the safes opened
| with a dexterity and neatness that evil
denced an experienced hand The job
was believed to be the work of Buck
| Flnneys" gang, all of whom were well
known to the police. The detectives
had lost no time in confirming their
suspicious. and had gotten a clue which
enabled them to trace the burglars, who
| were travelling by slow stages to New
York.
The account went on to say:
''Three of the men were surprised
and captured at nine o'clock last night
near Glenmore, in the untenanted
house which belonged to the late Mr..
GraySon; but the jewels were not found
in their possession. 1t is now thought
that they are in the keeping of wo-
man belonging to the gang by the name
of 'Madge Wilson, alias Blonde Bess.'
| | calculated something which | think
| must have been ''the deviP' for Louisa
stopped reading long enough to say re-
proyingly:
Charles, you forget that the children
are present. and then resumed,
'Madge Wilson, alias Blonde Bess.'"
| She paused again, and, looking across
| the room at me, asked impressively:
| Bess' and yet | believe you have some
times implied that my prejudice against
yellow hair was unfounded.''
! | was unable to make any reply, so
| Louisa went on reading:
"And who is supposed to be in hiding
| in Boston. The woman was at one
| time on the stage, and is said to be
| handsome and well educated. The Off
GERS brought their captives to Boston
on the freight train which stopped at
Glenmore at midnight"
Nervous excitement had accelerated
the action of my heart and induced a
profuse perspiration, which gave me an
! unpleasant clammy feeling, | made no
comment, but was thinking how much
information l could give the detectives
if l chose: for had not my respectable
buggy harbored Blonde Bess'' and the
bag, which l now felt confident con-
tanned the jewels, for distance of
five miles? Had not 1, Charles Little
field, NJ. d., assisted her to escape from
under the very noses of the officers of
justice, and had not given her of my
!, honestly earned money and paid her
compliments, and wished her well, and
promised anything she asked, and
what is the matter, Charles? Have
you taken cold? You are shivering as
though you had the ague.
Louisa's voice recalled me to the
present and l answered: 81 was Just
thinking that | must have passed the
Grayson place last night, while they
were there, criminals, detectives and
all"
felt that the time was past for tel
ling what ! knew to the police 1t
seemed to me that the recital would
only make me an object of ridicuie
without assisting in the recovery of the
valuables, for had no doubt that what
the woman had said about her intention
of sailing that morning was the one
part of her story that was true. She
was probably by this time safely out on
the high seas and on her way to place
of safely. AS time passed and the po-
lice failed to produce either her or the
jewels became convinced that had
been right.
The three men were tried and con-
victed on the testimony of the watch
man, assisted by much circumstantial
evidence, and are now serving long
terms.
One morning nearly six months after
my adventure | received by mail an en-
velope containing IS bill and bearing
the postmark Of a place in Spanish
Honduras, country, by the way, with
which we have no extradition treaty.
1t was addressed in a feminine hand
and | needed no one to tell me who it
was from, but l have never been able
to understand why woman who was
capable of making off with $4,000
worth of stolen property should have
taken the trouble to return the small
hot