The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1901-05-11
TIE WIRE TAPPER'S ERROR.
Miscarriage of an Attack on a
Big Roll.

NfeEete&oNe<S<
ffTHE corralling here the other day
l of that real smooth and glossy
boy, Chappie Moran, the phony wire
Taper, on n charge of extracting
1000 bucks, actual currency, from the
apparel of moonface who ached to
get rich(right quick, he didn't care
how-the[ mailing of the Chappie
makes me think of wire Taper
once knew who made heart-break-
ing failure of one of his jobs" re-
marked an old-time Headquarters de-
tective, now retired. 81 refer to
Lamplighter Barrett, who quit plough
ing these fruitful fields about five
years ago and died in Frisco from an
excessive use of the hop tot in 80.
'The main difference between Mo-
ran and Barrett lies in this, that Mo-
ran, although an expert telegrapher,
never really tapped n race wire in his
whole money-making career, whereas
Barrett, in the old days when wire
tapping was possible-which it dis
tinctly is not now-actually turned
that trick once in while when he
found the coin hard to gain on the
mere pretense of wire tapping. But
Lamplighter Barrett worked the imi-
tation tapping dodge with enough
skill to keep him in Turk cigarettes.
the best hop made in Chink land and
choice raiment, for good many years
around these and neighboring parts
that is, he stamped between New
York and Chicago and took in such
intermediary points as Baltimore,
Philadelphia, Washington, Detroit,
Buffalo and other unassuming little
places like those.
Although, as say. he really knew
how to wire-tap and to do it right,
and pulled Off number of those
tricks, he preferred the easier phony
method, and he was one of the pion-
GERS at 1.-THE simple scheme of TAX
ing the come-on to n quiet room, show
ing him lot of wires and clicking
keys, putting up the talk that it was
all fixed to take the results right off
the main wire, and thus coaxing the
dough out of the come-on's clothes.
to tell you about, however, so preyed
upon Barrett's mind-he was dubbed
Lamplighter, by the way, because he
once achieved q hog-killing on that
good animal-and touched his pride
so hard that he never lifted up his
head any more around here after
ward, and it wasn't long before he
streaked for the Pacific.
Barrett was standing in the bar
room of one of the Broadway hotels
much patronized by grafters and
sure-thing men, on fine forenoon in
June, '95, waiting for n good one to
come his way. His pal, Ed Fellows,
was with him.
Presently there walked into the
barroom from the hotel lobby, tall,
lanky man who looked uncomfortable
in his store clothes. BY the looks of
him he was obviously from Painted
Post, or Three Forks, or Ipswich, or
some place like that, and it was the
easiest thing in life to put him down
as one of 'em on his honeymoon tour.
He looked like new husband from
from the new wife for minute and
had just sneaked down to the bar to
throw one in for the purpose of reviv-
ing his tagging spirits. He wore n
dead new black sack suit, new black
derby hat of the up-country block,
new and squeaky shoes and white
string tie. He walked like he was
ptan,,nD Dyar furroxxo
Barrett and his pal exchanged
grins when they saw him walk up to
the bar, but, of course, they had no
idea that he was good enough for
them, Simply out of habit they
watched him when he paid for his
drink, just to see what he had. When
they observed him pull out of his
right trousers pocket n wad of the
yellow kind that would've clogged a
four-inch waste pipe they exchanged
glances of different sort.
"'Get next Ed. said Barrett, giving
his pal dig. Dye think there's a
bah of yarn or turnip inside of that
bunch?
"'Not in Million replied Fellows.
ITS the goods. Go after it,
"1'he tall, lanky man in the store
clothes peeled off fifty and hurled
1t on the bar, remarking that that
was his smallest, and then he leaned
on one prop and gazed dreamily at
his reflection in the bar mirror while
the barkeeper was making change.
swell, Fellows was sure there when
IL came to butting in. and two min
utes later he was purchasing drink
for the lanky man in the shelf