The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1901-02-08
TRAPPED BY A TOOTH
A BATTLE WITH A BURGLAR WHICH
HAD AN ODD SEQUEL.
How q Miner Saved His Valuable
Claim Without Having the Courts
Pass Upon the Validity of the Dis
puted Title Thereto.

Pass Upon the Validity of the Dis
puted Title Thereto.
II had an experience in the mining
business once that was somewhat out of
the ordinary and rather interesting" said
a Seattle man who has made a good thing
out of Cape Nome. in 1880 | was do
ing fairly well in the commission bust
ness in Chicago. One night my bachelor
apartments were entered by burglar
who awakened me by his movements.
Being somewhat OF an athlete and a slug
ger. | jumped out of bed and went at
him. We hit and clawed and clinched
in great shape. but he got loose somehow.
He left no clew to his identity except
front tooth that | evidently knocked out
with my fist, | had heard his voice, as
he had not been at all delicate in his ref
erences to me as we strapped, but beyond
those few items we had no means of
identifying him.
Ten years later, with a pretty fair
sized wad, went to the Pacific coast to
try my hand in the mining business One
day an old claim showed signs, and with
in month it was turning out the dust
at the rate of 500 day with prospect
Of going to 81, 900. Naturally | was elat-
Cd, anu Wien l udu an OueF OF HlUO.UbO
for the claim began to feel like nabob
Then my trouble began, for when | at
tempted to sell fellow whom | will call
Fry swooped down on me with a title
which he contended was better than mine
and at once sued me for the claim. My
lawyers told me that | was likely to lose
the case.
"One day had talk of half an hour
|.
temper and swore roundly at my attor-
ney and incidentally at me. Something
in one of the oaths be used set my sus.
plcions going, and Immediately came
to conclusion fraught with important
consequences and involving a consldera-
BILE quantity of good cold nerve told
my lawyer what my suspicious were and
what proposed doing and invited him
to go with me the next day to call on
Fry at his hotel. where we could see him
alone. My lawyer was ready enough for
anything to beat Fry, and he accepted
my invitation willingly. The next morn
ing we were at Fry's hotel and sent M
our cards. Word came back presently
for US to come up, and we took the ele-
vator. When we knocked at the door
we were told to come in, and there we
found Fry lying in bed reading the morn.
ing paper. He was very much surprised
at our appearance. and not until we ex-
planned that we had sen: up our cards
did it occur to anybody that the boy had
evidently taken the cards to some other
room Luck was on my side that 1t
should have so happened. for Fry was
not attired for the day, and in a glass of
water on his dressing case | noticed a
tooth, and in his mouth was a vacancy
which it occupied during business hours.
He wanted to know what had brought
US around so early in the morning
i hope. he said to my lawyer, with
a sneering smile, that you have conclud-
ed to accept the offer | made you and
give up the property
My chent has the case. Mr.. Fry
responded my lawyer politely
YES. | said. little nervously and
sticking my finger into my pocket FOR
something | had there, i have charge Of
the case now, Mr., Fry. and before ac-
cepting your offer | desire to make a few
remarks. Skipping the legal aspects Of
the case, shall come at once to the per-
sonal matters involved. You will par
don me. hope, for allndng to your
toilet, seeing that we Internationally sur
prsed you before you had prepared your
self for our reception, bur may I refer
to that tooth in the tumber on your
dressing case. Mr.. Fry? must COM
pliment your dentist on the skill be has
displayed in supplying the loss OF your
natural tooth, but think he would have
improved the job If he had called on no
before undertaking the entire work him
self. Here taking from my pocket the
burglars TOOTH lis a tooth | think world
have beer even better fit than he made
for you. | got 1t one night in Chicago
about dozen years ago, snd e mis-
take not you might he able to recall some
OF the incidents OF the OCCASION
by the time had got that far In my
speech was so badly ratified that could
not stand still on my feet. but Fry vas
good deal worse, and don't think he no.
ticed what condition l was in. although
he stared at me as If he we're looking
into the face Of a ghost and were slowly
turning into stone. He had not apparent
ly had the faintest suspicion Of what
was coming at, and not until took the
tooth from my pocket did he fully real
lie what | was springng on him. Then,
Instead of putting bold face on the mat.
W. bcatIuS uOWD my Hluu, ue col
lapsed utterly and got as white as
sheet-whiter than the hotel sheet under
which he was lying. He tried to speak,
but could only gasp out few inarticu-
late sounds. and we had to give him a
drink of liquor out OF bottle on his Ia
Bile before be could recover sufficiently
to say anything. Then he threw himself
on my mercy and begged me for Gods
sake not to expose him. because he had
been living fairly honest life for six
years and had wife and two children
who knew nothing of his past anG loved
him. The result after that was plain
enough or course. | agreed to keep still
II be would throw up his case against me,
for | had no wish to ruin him utterly II
he kept his hands off what was mine,
but | warned him that IL | heard of his
getting mixed up In any more dirty work
j would tell my story. He promised me
that he would not. Whether he ever did
or not | cannot say. but | know that he
died years ago leaving $l50.000 to his
wife and two daughters. and the newspa.
pers 10 the town where he had been liv-
Ing devoted several columns to him as a
token Of their esteem for a distinguished
fellow citizen. Chicago Inter Ocean.