Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1905-11-11


natty and trim In his appearance. he
wore brown beard. cut in Vandyke
Fashion.
JUDGE. then. OF my establishment
when T was shown a man dressed IN a
particularly hashy style. Of the kind af-
fected by the sporting fraternity-a
cleNn shaven face. save for an inch or
two Of side whiskers.
"'Ah. Boynton. get me out Of this
quick
There is some mistake 1 said to
the policeman
HOwY asked he
Why. this is not Mr.. ROwley. This
Is not the gentleman came TO see
That soE Wen, this is the man
who gave me the note / sent up to YOU
AT this ! looked up at the man be
fore me and said:
What made you use Mr.. RowIey
manner
lie clutched me by the sleeve and
gasped out:
Why. man. what do you mean7
Do those clothes so alter me? Speak,
Il looked at him very keenly. and
gradually there davned on me that.
after all. this was my old friend Row
ley.
Heavens, Is Sc you. Rowley7
What are you doing here? Come. man.
compose yourself and let's get at the
bottom OF this
All ! could get from him was that
he had arrived the previous evening
In New York. bad euga ged room at a
hotel and had gone straight to bed.
About midnight be had been aroused
by violent knocking az the door and
on opening Il had been grufly told that
he was under arrest
Hurried by the officers, he had hesti-
ly dressed himself. protesting ,lseiessly
that the clothes be was hus lied into
were not his, and was hurried OF TO
the station
mo amount OF cross questioning
could set him 20 vary or enlarge his
story, nor could be give me the slight
est reason FOR his arrest. AS to bis
beard. owing TO a slight skin eruption
he had shaved Il on some time ago.
The next step was 10 get him baiIed
out. This l found was not so easy a
task
My nonrccogni.Ion at first OF my
friend was against him. The police Jus
uce next morning protested that this
prisoner was confidence man want
ed for various orenses. and that be
was certain Wilcox. alias Boucher.
alias Palver. alias Moroney. and scOn-
ingly declared hc would not let him
out under $1,000 bail
Il did not stay to argue the matter
out but I'm less than ara hour was back
with a couple Of friends OF well known
wealth and standing
Next morning my client was I'm a
state OF fever. / easily got a certificate
from my physician exaggerating the
illness.
He remained In my house and In
bed FOR nearly week. During that
time I found out enough 20 solve the
mystery 20 my moral satisfaction, but
not enough TO convince a Jury or even
any outsider. The solution OF the mys-
terry was this.
The man with many aliases had
come by the same train as my friend
Rowley. had registered az the same no
tel and had been assigned n room on
the same narrow corridor. BY some
chance my friend after supper had
been given the key OF Mr. Wucox's
room aud had zone straight 20 bed.
Mr.. Wilcox's keen mind. ever bent
on covering up his tracks. on finding
that he had been given the wrong kew
said nothing. examined my friends
valise. and then the Idea came 10 him
that Il would be n good thing n he
could pass out or the hotel as Mr.. r.
Rowley.
The probability was that he Row
ley was IN his room. To open the door
was an easy rick FOR the crook. Then
he must have taken my friends attire.
leaving his lu It's place. This effected.
he paid his bin as Mr. Rowley, saying
he was going 20 catch the 11:45 u. m.
night express for Syracuse. and so van
ished.
Ills resemblance IN Wilcot's attire
was SO Ike tie photos sent on to the
police and So unlike his own photos
that with the correspondence. papers.
cards and olds and ends which Wilcox
had either 'n haste or Intentionally
left In the coat and vest pockets and
which the police at the station had
seized when they had searched him,
shudderingly telt the chances were all
in favor OF n speedy conviction"
What did YOU dor" asked the young
lawyer.
What did do?T you ask. II snug
gled him or on n boat 20 Cuba and for
feited the bal He was. as I said. a
rich man. II vas the simplest way out
OF the difficulty and the surest Still.
my client, though perfectly Innocent, Is
now fugitive from Justice"