Omaha daily bee., 1902-10-27
CHARGE OF MAIL ROBBERY
Two 0olOred Boys Brought from San
Francisco to Answer It
INSPECTOR SWIFT HAS A LONG CHASE
Finally Gets His Men on Race Track
In Golden Gate City and Has
Them sent Here for
Trial.

Wise In the ways Of the race track. but
not wise in the ways Of the United States
mail service, Albert Lee and Edward Jack
son occupy a cell at the Douglas county
Jail awaiting trial in federal court on a
charge OF having "unlawfully, knowingly
and feloniously torn, cut and injured one
certain mail bag or pouch with intent to
steal the mail therein" The bag was
stolen at Big Springs, Neb., the FIRST sta
ton beyond Ogallala, on the Union Pacific
road, early on the morning of October 1.
Albert and Edward are each colored and
about II years old. They haven't studied
Greek and they wouldn't know a square
root II they saw It in plain daylight, but
they know every running horse from Saw
able to Buck Keith's selllng-platers, for
that's their life work. They we're in
the east at the tracks all summer massage
ing the legs OF the speedy and riding when
they had the opportunity. In the fall they
started to the California tracks with a
palace car load Of fast ones to do the
grooming on the way. The car was coup
led into Union Pacific train No. 5 the last
day Of September, Immediately behind the
mail car and baggage coach. The story is
that they sat In the car door with their
feet out in the air, at the urgent request
Of the others in the car, and that this re-
suited in their present predicament.
Force Discovers HIS Loss.
At Big Springs the station force is about
the size Of the prohibition party in Dead
wood, and the postal clerks have to throw
the mail pouches OF onto the ground and
permit them to lie there until the force
can get around to that part Of his duties.
On this particular night the pouch was
thrown of as usual and when the train
came to full stop 1t was almost directly
under Albert-Edward's feet. At the race
track they had been taught to pick UP any
little piece Of information they could, and
1t is charged that this instinct was per-
mitted to sway them at Big Springs; that
when the train pulled out of Big Springs a
moment later the pouch was still a part of
its freight. struggled in between the two
boys in the car door.
Eventually the force at Big Springs dis
covered the loss and t~elegraphed his re-
grets and coincidence to headquarters. Head
quarters telegraphed Postof1ce Inspector A.
o. Swift OF the Nebraska district to pack
his nightie and toothbrush for a long hunt.
Swift Investigated and found a man at Big
Springs who suffers with insomnia and had
been down to the depot the night Of the
@~AN @-Ae AAEL -oAt AV hRd nONh WI DON6
lift the pouch into the car. A travelling
man from Denver verified this story. Mean
while the Quilted pouch and some Of the let
tiers, also disembowled. had been found at
the side OF the tracks Ave miles out Of Big
Springs.
Following the Horses.
Inspector Swift learned the destination
OF the car of horses and followed them
to the Sacramento track. Then he went
to the Frisco track. In fact, the inspector
became such a constant habitue Of the
tracks that he was alarmed lest some one
take him for a tout or a sure-thing man.
Finally he found the Albert-Edward COM
bination and had 1t Jailed. The hunt oc-
cupied nearly two weeks, and, as picking
out two particular colored boys at a race
track IL like picking out two particular
maiden ladies at a mothers conference, he
felt much pleased.
The boys were taken before United States
Commissioner E. H. Heacock Of the north
ern district Of California, sitting at San
Francisco, and held under bail OF 81, 900
each. As neither had $1,000 available at
that particular moment, and as the Judge de-
clined to shoot craps for II, they were given
to Deputy United States Marshal George H.
Burnam for delivery to the officers here,
where their trial will be.