Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1902-03-03
BURGLAR SURRENDERS TOOLS
Writes 70 Chief DOnahue that he Has Re-
solved to Reform.
AFTER THIRTY YEARS CRIMINAL CAREER
chief of Police says Tools Are I'm
usually Fine for safe Blowing,
for which Tbey Were Evil
IDENTITY Used.

Chief Donahue: Find herewith kit of
safe-blowing tools, which have helped me
make living for more than thirty years
AS l am now 60 years OF age and have
just been released from the penitentiary
up an these sSns toois which have awe been buried in
Omaha for FIVE years, and now send them
JAMES r. SHULTZ.
This is the glst Of letter which Chief
Donahue received by messenger late Sat
urday afternoon, and with the letter came
kit Of afe-blower's tools. The kit COM
prises nine pieces in all. some OF them Of
doubtful application, but all of the very
best chilled steel and OF masterful work.
manship. They we're coated with rust and
clogged with earth and fragments Of the
half-ro wooden clothes in which they
had been swathed for burial. The chief
considers this the most complete and in
teresting exhibit in his museum OF crlmi-
nology.
Here is an inventory: Three chilled
steel bits OF graduated size, a bracket
shaped something like a bootjack, fitted
with three thumbscrews: q brace for turn
ing the bits. four pieces of chilled steel
about the size of the bits. with the use Of
which the chief is not familiar.
The bracket is made to set astride the
knob of a combination lock on safe door,
and the thumbscrews are to stlnfen It to
hold 1t securely in place. 1t is perforated
with a hole just large enough to admit one
Of the bits. The evident purpose of this
is to steady the bit while 1t is eating its
way through the safe door.
Tools Come I'm a "shroud."
The tools came in the "shroud'' in which
they had been buried, and this consisted Of
three separate wrappers, all badly decom-
posed. The first was a piece Of heavy,
green felt, evidently part Of billiard ta-
BILE cover; the second was an old newspa-
per. bearing date April Z. 1897. and the
third was fragment of a gray-checkered
| shawl
"These came to the ONCE about 4:SO Sat-
urday afternoon" said the chief. "I was
expecting n package from a downtown
printing once, so when the boy came in
with this and laid it on the desk took 1t
for granted 1t was the parcel expected,
SO paid no special attention to the incl
dent. and the boy had gone some little
time when / opened the parcel, and, much
to my surprise, found these safe blowing
TOOLS The boy was not a regular mes
senger boy; at least he wore no uniform.
BY the package on the desk he left this let
ter:"
OMAHA. Neb., Feb. 2S.-Chief Donshue:
Dear Sir-Having read an article in an
| to convicts, and having been a law
breaker for thirty years or more, / can't
ees Ts h y0y Snd when he
such an anticle. Thieves and robbers, as
we are called. are not always such be.
cases. In defense OF this I win state how
begin with.
Refers TO His Home.
the 6f mans eSd un
in jail, although Innocent OF the crime
me and had me convicted of a crime Of
which / was as innocent as a nursing
When When j was released after serving ica on,
year, ! resolved to be straight But wa
mSht as well be- an outlaw as be beoSn Sasse
. and looked upon as such. Although II wal
hard for me to leave my home and parents
save them from further disgrace. For
want to tell you that even my class have
anyone But after leaving. home Il wal
not long before l was confronted by on
Of the old charges that hung against me
until It was in some way fixed up. Sine
: : that time have committed many crimes
: was doing and often resolved this woui,
, | be my last job. But my first arrest cam,
would do me to be right Gould you blam
but hSHSaod dsys SSuT S9iniSn sSd
the head Of the thieves that put me dow
I Il call those police thieves, because 1 fee
3 hood. / might have been a bank cashie
instead OF a robber. But my life Is bio
I'Hm nave e not 70 forgotten my old resolution I Z
some day try again and be an honest man
znd this time will fulnii my resolution.
Evidence of Good Faith.
I leave your great city tomorrow. and a
evidence of my good faith tender you m
Complete and best got up set OF hand
made tools ever handled in cracking
safe which Sa y0g Ssy Ssn SsSs STsSsiS & see by l9o
have made me my living for more tha
. two occasions. one of which was a 1--WE
! year term. from, which l have Just bee
: have done for which have not suffered
1 | I'm an old man now, but to show you tn
old story Of honor among thieves is some
: many cases. II they are given a heIpln
hand instead OF steel cage, turn thi
r late day to spend the Balance Of my mis-
erable life honest. Hoping you will us
On on the cSarge o Seiss the
3 ana hoping you will help a young man /
this position, am yours truly,
JAMES r.. SHULTZ.
The letter was written in a firm, Ieglbl
hand on two long sheets Of ruled yello,
paper. The handwriting and spelling wer
much better in proportion than the Eng
/ lish from which II is inferred that Shut
i dictated the communication to some one.
DimcuIty in Reforming.
Il
The article In an Omaha newspaper whic
he refers to was an interview with Chi,
. Donahue, published one day last weel
which dealt principally with the hardship
encountered by ex-convicts in trying I
reform.
II met an old prison guard named Ms
loney Saturday evening" said the chic
land had a talk with him about this cas-
q He was until recently guard at the Lir
: coin penitentiary. and he said there hs
! been an old 'cracksman' discharged froi
that institution within the last ten day
"a but that his name was not Shultz. Tn
= man was about so years old Maloney sal
A and had always been talking about reform
= ing. His home was somewhere In the cas-
> II is only natural that 'shultz' should ui
- an assumed name In signing such a con
a munication as he left with me. especial
; II he was sincere in his intention 10 T,