Durango semi-weekly herald., 1904-08-22
NEW YORK NEWS LETTER.

NEW YORK.-The reported disap-
pearance and mysterious recovery of
iewelry valued at $200,000. and be
longing to Mrs Ogden Goelct has
given the newspapers and members ot
select society welcome material for
gossip. The circumstances surround
ing the affair. II correctly reported,
are peculiar enough to form the basis
of the most sensational conjectures
and the gossips did not have TO strain
their Imagination to make their sto-
ries interesting. The authentic facts
in the case are rather meagre. A short
time ago IT was reported that jewelry
valued at 100000 had mysteriously
disappeared from one of the most
aristoeratic mansions Il Newport The
Pinkertons were engaged to investi-
gate the matter, and they sent out
description of the missing iewelry. 1t
was stated at the time that the treas
ure disappeared In some mysterious
manner on the 10th or 21st of June a
fewv days after the description of the
supposedly stolen jewels had been
sent out and the newspapers had dis
cussed the facts of the case, as given
ont. and their own theories at great
length. the statement was given out
that Mrs. Goelet had recovered her
iewelry, or, rather, had never been
robbed II was stated that, on com
ing back to her town residence in
New York she discovered that the
jewelry was safe and undisturbed in
the safe. The inference was that
Mrs. Goelet had completely forgotten
that she had left her iewelry at home
when she started for Newport to at
tend the wedding OF her son to Miss
Whelan.
How the rumor originated will prob
ably never be found out. but 1t was
openly discussed by the newspapers at
the time. that the jewels had been
stolen by some "raffles" moving in the
most exclusive set of New York socl-
ETY., and. for that reason, enjoying OPP
portuDities which common, ordinary
thieves could only envy The most
mysterioush hints were made as to
the personality of the thief. accord
ing to one story 1t being a prominent
society woman afflicted with klepto-
mania according to another story, a
swell" club man, on the most init
mate terms with the leaders Of the
Four Hundred. So persistent were
these rumors and so much mystery
was shrouding the obtainable facts
that when the announcement was
made that the jewels had not been LOST
l.,.f Haa n1l ha
rested in Mrs. Goelets safe in New
York, nobody was inclined to believe
that such was the case.
Some OF the papers printed alleged
interviews with prominent society peo-
pie, in which the latter openly eX-
pressed their disbelief. Since then
new theory has been sprung on an
unsuspecting and patiently suffering
public. Some clever Sherlock Holmes
has made the discovery that the dis
appearance OF the gems was directly
connected with certain fluctuations on
the stock market. which sent Metro
politan away up and made things de-
cidedly uncomfortable for the bears.
No direct accusation is made, but 1t
is strongly insinuated that the valu-
able gems were used by some one as
collateral security in a stock trans
action. which required large amount
of money or its equivalent Anybody
is entitled to draw his or her own in
ferences.
n the organization known in police
and newspaper circles as The Black
Hand Is not a mere tissue OF fancy
produced by an imagination strongly
affected by powerful drugs or an over
dose OF Conan Doyle, its members un-
doubtedly deserve the severest pun
ishment which the law inhicts upon
its yiolators. There is scarcely any
crime. from the mildest case of black
mail TO the most strocious individual