Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-12-17
NTRUE DETECTIVE STORIES

of the package in the express messenger
safe III Is a fact that no human tower
can tear two pieces of paper in exactly
the same way; the ragged fibers will only
Ut perfectly when the two original parts
are brought together. There remained no
doubt, when this test was made in the
present case, that the piece of paper found
on Conductor Danforth's east-hoiInd train
had been torn from the draft in TIE ex-
press car robbed the night before on the
West-bound train. Unquestionably some one
hdd carried That piece of paper from the
one train to the other. In other words
some one connected with the crime of the
previous night had ridden back to Chicago
twenty-four hours later with Conductor
Danforth.
Mr.. Pinkerton at once ordered a search
made for the missing valse, and also an
inquiry regarding the passengers who had
RIDDEN en- Conductor Danforth's train be-
tween Davenport and Chicago on the night
following the murder. The yalise was found
on the ash heap where the conductor had
thrown It, and in the course of the next
fe| days the detectives had located or ac-
counted for all passengers on Conductor
Danforth's train. with the exception of one
man who had ridden on free pass The
conductor could only recall this mans fea-
lures vaguely; and, while some OF the pas
sengers remembered him well enough, there
was no clue to his name or identity.
80 great was the public interest in the
| three separate. well-organized investiga-
| tons of 1t were undertaken The Rock
Island railroad officials with their detec-
yves, conducted one; Chicago newspaper.
with It's detectives another. and the Pink
| ertons, in the interest of the United States
Express Company. third
Mr.. Pinkerton concluded that the crime
had been committed by railway men The
railway officials were naturally disinclined
to believe III of their employees, and an In
| cldent occurred about this time which
| turned the investigation In an entirely new
/! direction and made them the more dis
| posed to discredit Mr.. Pinkerton's theory
| This was the receipt OF letter from
| convict IN the Michigan City penitentiary,
! land railroad officials. saying that he could
furnish them with important information.
| Mr., st. John, the general manager of the
! road went In person to the penitentiary to
+, take Piunketts statement which was in
effect that he knew the men who had COM
| mitted the robbery and killed Nichols and
| was willing to sell this information in ex-
! change for full pardon, which the rail-
/ road people could secure by using their In
| fuence. This they promised to do Ii his
+. story proved true and Pfunkett then told
/. them of n pot that had been worked out a
| year o. so before, when he had been
| grating with q mob of pickpockets at
county fairs. There were with him at that
/ time Butch Mccoy, James connors
1 fknown as .Yeftowhaulmer'' and man
/ named jeff" whose surname he did not
| knox. These three men, Piunkett said had
planned an express robbery on the Rock
Island road. TO be executed IN precisely the
4 Sdho way shitd d. PiSNiStiS siiiS Same point
/ on the road, as In the case In question
|
The story was plausible. and won Mr..
| ST. Johns belief. 1t won the belief, also.
| of Mr.. Melville T.. Stone. publisher OF the
| Chicago newspaper, ard forthwith the rail-
! way detectives, working with the news
paper detectives. were instructed to go
ahead on new lines, regardless Of trouble
or expense Their first endeavar was to
| capture Butch Mccoy. the leader OF si,e
| gsEg. Butch was a ptckpacket burglar
ard ail-around thief. whose operations kept
| him travelling all over the United States
The police In various elites having been
S.esie finally decided 10 40 thing the Ike
Of which no newspaper pee nFietor pnrlaarz
ever undertook he1ore hat 81 atart on Il