The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-08-11
FIND STOLEN GOLD
ROBBER OF THE SELBY SHELTER
ASSISTS THE OFFICERS IN
THE SEARCH
WAS PLANTED UNDER WATER
OF the $2sO,OOO Stolen, $14I,OOO Has
Been Recovered, and Further
Search VIII Probably BR!ng
Up the Rest.

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 10-Jack Win
terS, who was arrested as q suspect in
connection with the Selby Smelling
works robbery, has confessed, and so far
$l41, 900 worth of bullion has been recov-
cred from the bay where he had sunk It,.
For three days the detectives have tried
all sorts of persuasion to make Winters
confess but apparently without effect.
Finally he asked to see Supt. Ropp, of
the Selby works, who, he said, was the
only friend he had
In his conversation with Ropp, Win
ters manner indicated that he knew
where the gold had been hidden. Ropp
told Winters they had a strong case
against him and that he would be sent
to prison for thirty years.
Winters finally weakened and told Ropp
that he had taken the gold and would
take him to the spot where it was hid
den. Winters, In company with Supt
Ropp, and a force of detectives, left on a
tug last night for Crockett. There they
waited all night for low tide. Winters
pointed out the place, at the end of the
railroad wharf, beyond the coal bunkers
at the head Of the Vallejo ferry slip.
When the tug first reached Crockett
Winters pointed out the spot in the water
where he said he had thrown the gold,
Supt Ropp marked the place on the
wharf and the tug steamed away to wait
for low tide This morning Winters got
into the mud and water up to his neck,
and for an hour and a half groped for
the missing bullion.
FROM UNDER WATER.
Up to 10 o'clock s141, 900 worth had been
recovered. This includes the four bars
of fine gold. Winters had put some of the
bars in bags. He said one of the bags
had broken and some small bars had
dropped out. 1t Is now only question OF
careful search to find the rest ef the
$3.50 900.
Winters claims he did the job all alone
lie says he made fourteen trips from the
vault to the wharf from which he drop.
per the gold. The smelter officials, how
ever, are positive that he received assist
ance from some one, while the detectives
think his story is correct
The tug, with the detectives and pr1s-
oner returned to this city this afternoon.
Winters, when he had made up his
mind to tell what he knew about the
crime, was exceedingly willing to give all
the information necessary toward the re-
covery of the bullion. He practically as
sumed charge of the operations and led
Capt. Seymour and Supt. Won der Ropp
to the dock. He acted more like one OF
the detectives employed on the case than
prisoner AS soon as he arrived at the
waters edge he called the superintendent
to his side and said: Now watch what
am going to show you. Be careful that
you get the locations right"
STOPPING, ne picked up three stones and
pacing forward, he tossed one of them
into the water. 1t fell to the south OF
the spot at which the prisoner stood.
another stone fell to the east and the
third was thrown directly in front of
winters stood at which point nail was
driven.
That" said the prisoner, will mark
the water boundary of the place where
your gold is hidden"
Stepping to the left Winters drew
nail from his pocket and asked for
hammer. He then paced OFF a few
yards to the right and drove another
nail in the timber.
The gold,' he continued, will be be-
tween these two nails, somewhere in
line with the spots marked by the stones
just threw into the water"
A small boat was secured and into II
Sheriff Vale, Detective Kimball, of the
P1nkerton agency, and two laborers were
loaded. Winters assisted in the search
for the bricks. He talked glibly all the
while. The deep mud finally put a stop
to operations, and it was decided to build
Golfer dam before trying to recover the
rest of the treasure.
STORY OF THE ROBBERY.
Winters told the officers that he
planned the robbery long ago with
minute detail. He had been two or three
months working on his little tunnel. 1t
had taken two nights labor to cut
through the brick wall of the smelter.
Most Of the boring in the bottom of the
vault had been done in the night when
the gold was taken. He carried the
plunder, which was very heavy, from the
IrIf 70 ho Tor nd
the water was from three to six feet
deep at low tide The distance from the
vault to the cache was about a quarter