Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-08-17
WAYS OF EVIL-DOERS
QUEER WAYS Crooks CARRY ON
CORRESPONDENCE.
False Bottoms to Milk Cans and Cipher
kilograms Cleverly Used
A Long Search.
From the New York Times.


So elaborate and ingenious as to appear
almost incredible are the methods by which
professional criminals communicate with
their accomplices. Nobody knows bettor
than the rogues themselves that by sending
their messages through the ordinary chan
rsels they place both their liberty and their
plans in jeopardy. But 1t Is so important
that they communicate with one anothe,
swiftly and secretly, to elaborate some
scheme of rascality or to give warning Ct
danger from the authorities, that the clever
criminals set up peculiar post offices thai
are distinctly their own
Inc United States secret service agea.s
and the United States postal inspectors run
across a large number of varied systems of
TINS Kind From the stories they tell OF
post offices they have discovered 1t ar
pears that nothing is too auda cious for men
playing game the loss of which means for
tEem term in stripes behind the bars.
out In Iowa a few months ago. said a
secret service man who was transferred re.
Gently to the New York office myself and
four of my associates were detailed on a
banning case of counterfeiting. The state
had been flooded with spurious coins ANA
some less cieverly made bank notes ana
later 1t appeared that the same stuff was
going into all parts of the country We
couldn't locate the plant and it was evident
that the work Of manufacture and dis,ri-
button was being directed by master
mind that was wise enough never to &C
near the plant.
No Apparent Concealment.
There was a suspicious newcomer In .
small town on the Mississippi river who at
tracted our attention. He was a man OF
some education and very reserved. He
lived in fine style in one of the best houses
in the place. We watched him for nearly a
month There was nothing to give any
force to our suspicious, but we kept him
under eye. He never got letter at the
town post Office that he was not willing
that any one should see. In fact ha very
frequently read them on his way home and
then threw them careleSSly into the street
them. containing not a clew.
Every morning at about 7 o'clock
young milkman went to the mans house
and left quart tin of milk. The milkman
was a newcomer. too. He had arrived
about week before the other fellow and
had bought out small dairy with money
which he said he had left him by his father
upon his death. A stout cook at the fine
strangers kitchen always took the can of
milk and and handed the young milkman
the can that had been left the day previous.
False Bottoms to Milk Cans.
had false bottoms. in which letters were
ing newcomer The letters were from the
men who were operating the plant. which
we subsequently uncovered in a town
eighty miles away. and from agents in
various cities who were showing the
queer The answers were the master
minds instructions The milkman and the
cook were faithful accomplices. The milk
man had been set up in business there for
the sole purpose of delivering the corre-
soondence that directed the whole works"
The operator of a notorious get-rich-quick
concern eluded the police when raid was
made recently upon his establishment upon
complaints of score or more of persons in
several states that they had lost many
thousand dollars. He secreted himself I'M
der certain plain DISCUSSES in tenement
house in Elizabeth street. not more than a
dozen blocks from police headquarters
Several post office inspectors and central
Office detectives we're searching for him.
The fugitive had number of friends who
wanted to prevent his capture, one of their
reasons being that his trial would bring
out their names and show their completely
in the unlawful scheme they had worked
Defeated by Clever Code.
These men, however. were known to the
police. and 1t was impossible for them to
communicate with the man in hiding-who
may be called Logan Much more was it
out of the question for them to visit him.
But they agreed to keep a watch on devel-
opments in official circles and to serve Lo-
gan in whatever way they could Within a
week danger was lurking near for the fugi-
tive. and one of the watching gang heard
of 1t. He sent a servant to a telegraph Of
flee with this message to friend in Chi
cago:
"Your Aunt Helen died today"
Mastering his grief with an effort the
nephew went to a telegraph Office and wrote
this message. addressed to clothier in the
vicinity of Houston street and the Bowery:
Deliver at once to Henry Prescott DO
gan's alias, at - Elizabeth street, six
pairs plain black sox.''
With this the Chicago man sent tele-
graphic money order for an amount suffi-
cient to cover the cost of the articles or
dered.
The socks were delivered to Logan that
day. When night came he disappeared
from - Elizabeth street. The Chicago
man had told the fugitive when and in
what direction to go-the firm chosen. the
articles, their number and color all being a
part of a clever code which the hunted man
understood.