Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1901-10-24
HIS NOSE FOR CRIME.
He Followed 1t All Day and Had Moth
ing 20 Show for His Work
Baltimore sun. }


Detectives are not gifted with second
sight any more than they wear false
|hiskers. despite the popular impression
70 the contrary, said Detective Joseph
+ Coughlin of the Baltimore force. the
other day. and they sometimes make
queer mistakes in shadowine peop'e who
they suspect may have designs upon the
eaCe and order of the commonwealth
one Of the most notifying finishes IL
long Shadowing expedition was thar
which happened TO Tile shortly after De-
rctiVe Armstrong came on the force. I
vas assigned 10 take Armstrong around
md show him the ropes As We came olt
Jf detective headquarters | noticed tive
Teil-dressed young men passing by. who
were evidently strangers in the city. Cas-
Ialiy watching them 90 up the street
saw them stop on the corner converse
moment and then separate, one going
iway and the other standing on the cor
Ter In q few moment the other one
-arne back and they moved away. lntui-
ton or something OF the sort told inc
hat the men had a scheme on foot. and
4 told Armstrong to join me in following
hem. They went BLOCK or two and
gain separated. one gong away for
.ew minutes and then returning, after
which the march was resumed This
hing Kept up until the middle OF the al
,rnOon, the performance being repeated
very few blocks. We soon found that
he man whose turn il was TO go away
always went into a saloon. and the way
n which they worked convinced me tnat
shey were nassing counterfeit money, so
Zach place they visited was carefully not
d for future reference.
After trailing them around until
thought enough OF the bad money had
been passed to secure conviction, proFiu-
ed they were passing bad money, deter
mined 10 drop into saloon with the
t:anger and see what his method Of work
vas. When the taller of the Two next
went behind the folding doors was risht
behind him. | watched him through q
lass over the bar as | slowly spped
rink and saw him walk around me
rnwdtd room and look at the pictures as
.hough he Were an ordinary curious Gus
lcmer. after which he went up to the free
unCh counter. At the counter he ordered
: bowl CT the soup which was bel'g
erved. and as the waiter bent his head
in dipping in Zip the stranger DEITY snip
ped a recently tmptied grass which was
standing on the counter from ITS former
lCsition 10 one beside the plate. lie then
consumed his soup and lett without pay
ng a drink. meeting his friend on inc
.o-ner.
The moment he moved the glass over
to his plate | knew that had been fol-
owing a false lead and that they were
merely free lunch 'grafters' on the
street | halted the two men and asked
hem what they had been doing an ne
aN, AT the same time tetlinS lHcI u!at
was i detective and had been following
them.
They Immediately confessed that they
we're grating ana said they were hat-
makers out Of work. who had come 70
Baltimore to get situations but had faiiei
Il first. though they were To go To WorA
The next week In the meantime tnei,
unds had run out, and TO keep body ana
soul together they were grating ire
unch until their first pay day To SUP,
.tantiate their statement they shower
etters which left no doubt of their truth
illness, and | let them so with a warn,
9g. | see them sometimes nowadays anu
Know that they are straight young fei-
VS. who were down on their luck at thal
irne -