The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-03-02
GAMBLING HOUSE
ROBBER DEPARTS
Was Finally Recogaized as One
Of the PIayers-Leaves Town
at Request of Police.

They owed 1t to me and L got it. They
got it back, every cent of it, and they
would have had a mighty hard job finding
any of it on me. The game was played
out here, and tried ST.. Paul, but was
afraid that could not make a getaway.
1t wouldn't pay one way and I tried to
make 1t pay in another"
With less than $40, of his dangerously
gotten gains, the masked ho1d-up artist
who since Nov. is last has raided several
gambling clubs in Minneapolis, securing
between $4,000 and $500, left this city
yesterday at the invitation of the police,
after making the foregoing statement to
one of his friends. 80
For several weeks some Of the players
in Minneapolis have had their suspicious
aroused regarding one man. who was
steady player, but who lacked judgment,
although he was nervous and plunging.
It was not until the masked visitors APP
pearance at the Hoffman club that his
identity was in any way made certain.
When players at the AIbemarle club
were touched for SIT Monday morning
one Of the hfghWayman's close acquaint-
ances. who had just entered, recognized
his voice and the matter was reported to
the police, the compliments, however, re-
fusing to prosecute.
Employed formerly by a railroad COM
pany, the man lost 1lis position through
after he lost another job for the same
reason His attention wasa then turned
solely to gambling, at which he won for
several weeks, but finally he found himself
pennileSS. 9lii
His First Raid. 81
On the evening of Nov. lS he sauntered
into the Metropole club and noticing that
the members appeared to be Well supplied
and fashioning a crude black mask, he
returned. At the point 2of The weapon
the players turned their pockets inside
out, and the hold-up man left 500 richer.
On this he subsisted until it. was gone
: back into the game, when another visit
was made to the same estabh shment the
same course pursued and more money Sc
cured, without breath of suspicion, on
the. part of the members. rising against
their supposed friend. Again the money
|; went for chips which he lost steadily and
third raid was planned and executed.
! proprietors were not molesfed until his
luck turned and he lost his possessions.
Then he executed another raid
One OF his friends noticed this circum-
stance-that the holdup occurred every
time the nervous gambler went broke
and remarked it. to some other members
of the club His height was the same
as the masked man. and although his
voice differed, there was slight peculiar
1ty of pronunciation noticeable in both
cases.
i Two weeks ago there was party of
men sitting around a table in the Hoff
man club, in the Eastman block, discuss
ing the dangerous visitor, when one of
them drew a big A revolver from his
pocket and said:
IF the fellow came up here and touch
ed any of my money, one of us would
drop. The rest of you fellows can look
out for yourselves
looked at the weapon, and soon he arose
and left the room. An hour later the
masked man appeared and ordered the
players to stand with their faces to the
man who had shown the revolver leaving
two $40 bills on the table, in plain sight.
Knew What to Let Alone.
! A complete haul was made, but the
money of the armed man was untouched.
This was believed to be convincing proof,
and developments were awaited
When the Alberm2rle was ra1ded the
nervous man had left half an hour pre-
viously, and the proprietor followed a
few minutes later, taking with him all the
money in the house save ST.
When the unprofessional robber appear
ed he seemed surprised at the small
amount Of money in sight, but took it all
and left.
sitting at the table with him earlier in
the evening, laughed and said:
so our friend, the whist player who
is 50 nervous h has turned holdup man"
dozen Others who had not shared the
suspicious of the few.
why. that's the fellow who sat over
tice how he drawled out his words?'
And with the memory of the highway
mans conversation lingering in their ears,
his nervous handling of the revolver, the
identity of the robber was solved. Mon
day night he went to St. Paul and played
for some time in card game there, but
on account Of the location Of the rooms
he decided that it would be too difficult
to make a getaway, so he returned to
Minneapolis yesterday morning.
At noon he was Informed by detective
that if he didn't leave town that he would
be arrested for vagrancy.. He disappeared.