The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-01-15
THE BURGLAR And THE ARTIST
1T VAS GUN AGAINST PENCIL
AND PENCIL ZION OUT.
AZ First the burglar Had tho Advantage
and Plundered At Leisure, While the
Artist Lay Heipless-Then Sketch
F1abled tho Police 10 Catch tho Thief.


but hate to have any one think he's got
the best of me There's something crude
and inartistic In being walked on. That's
why followed him up
Il had hired the house at Manorville on
the Sound for ak weeks furnished. All the
plate he gathered up was Jorkins's. The
jewelry he got in the little dinky safe was
some old family stuff that Mrs. Jorkins
didn't care to sport at Bar Harbor. The
reason they never got IL back was that It
went into the melting pot next morning.
MY wife was away, too. She was doing
a weeks penance with her mother in the
mountains So. absolutely all lost was
my scarfpin and the money in my clothes
total, perhaps S4S or $50.
But / tell you there is nothing stirs up
the latent capabiity for rage in fellow
equal to lying in bed and watching one
single man calmly cleaning out the prem
ses simply because you know that If you
bulge you'll get a bullet through your
gizzard; you'll be dead and you won't have
harmed the other fellow one iota.
1t was the fellow rafting at the com
bnation OF the safe that awoke me. l
got up in bed and exclaimed
Who the devil are your
He was just as astonished as was He
had supposed the house was empty He
jumped up and reached for his hip pocket.
His pistol stuck. and that was my chance;
but the sleep was still in my head and /
moved too slowly, and the next moment
felt the ring OF the muzzle touching my
forehead.
DO youse want to croakT he asked.
Die. l mean; p'r'aps you don't savvy what
croak is. Well. see here. II you don't
you'd better keep still don't want to
do you this trip. Youse just lie still while
finish this job, an III let yer live. SeeT
IL said all right; would keep still.
told him to hurry up and get through TO
take what he wanted and wouldn't inter-
fere with him since couldn't
He told me l was wise guy and went
back to work. don't know how he did 1t.
but he opened the safe in few minutes.
There were some papers OF Jorkins's in It
which he ohucked on the floor: then he
gathered up the o d jewelry. Next he began
padding about the room, swinging hls
Iarts I'm from rig ittolc {
What do YOU wait nowF | asked i'm
pat snty
I'm looking for your buds. pardner,'
He found them and began emr tying
the poke :. An tee time. OF course. ne
kept facing me with ono eve on my figure.
which he could dimly see in the bed.
Leave me nv caTfaTe, said
Yes. to get after me quicker maybe
Mo- IN yer life.
He didn't He took every cent.
Then he began pottering ABOUT the
dressr table, and saw my scarfpln GO
[ saI nothing; what was the use! But at
inst his hand fell on my watch.
-'Dron HAITI shouted. sitting uD in bed.
He raised the pistol suddenly.
"Whahorp he asked, turning the circle
Of light full on my face. Youss had best
lay still il yer don't want me to yentilate
You let that watch be- shouted
angrily. mill making rs If to get up You
let it be, Take anything else you want
but that watch was my fathers and my
grandiather's and you'll never get away
with 1t while ! live
He came right up to me and covered M
with the pistol. with the lantern shining
right in my face
An right. pardner, said he, II you fee
so bad about it, I'll leave IT. It's only old
goin' down stairs for my pack. See? An
you lay still Il YOU move for ten minutes,
IN come back an do you. Seer
Go to - well YOU know where ! told
him to go.
to blow out the light, and "a he did 40 the
full flare fell on mis- face. Did | SEQ It!
Did ! seize its lines, We'll, FmnOt popu-
lar portrait painter for nothing
ne iccneu uir IntO the loom. ] started
to dress. for thought .youd have TO drop
out OF the window and run to the nearest
house. ! knew II was useless - shout
no one could hear me
Bat ! remembered the bathroom door
into the servants hall SO | crept down
stairs that way. He was gone, so got TO
the telephone In "A closet OIL the dining
room and raised Central. A few minutes
later the popping Of pistols from all the
houses around proved that Central had
spread the news. put on shoes and things
and joined the chaSe. but our man got
away.
Tho local constables sent me 10 New
York Police Headquarters. and there
told my story TO the detectives the next
morning. Their minds were plainly blank.
There WAS nothing characteristic about the
lob; the fellow had just walked through an
open window. There was no clue.
They took me down TO the rogues' gal
lery | went over the burglars and sneak
thieves: my man wasn't there. | described
the fellow, but all the points ! could give
about his height, build and features we're
too general 70 convey any clear idea; the
man had no strongly marked feature.
was going away very blue and full Of
blind anger Suddenly an idea came into
my head.
What a fool l am, said !, Give me
pencil and sheet Of paper, and I'll draw
him for YOU
They all crowded around quite interested.
l began TO sketch the face had seen in
the glare m the lantern. They stopped
over the tlh,e. I began with the fringe
of hair and the rim Of the derby hat gain
ing time to get the features strongly be-
fore my minds eye
Il marked the eyebrows. and as began
TO Ill in the eyes one Of the detectives gave
a sort Of exclamation and crowded next
20 me. Then came the nose. hooked with
flaring wings 10 the nostrils and cruel
sort of line starting from the corners down
toward the chin.
BY gum" said the detective,
Then | outlined the mouth. thin
Tipped hard affair. showing the two middle
teeth in a ratlike grin just "a he was on
the point os blowing out the light
Stop right there said the detective
I know your man. You needn't go my
further He turned TO the others to add
He's Mike the Kid. We've never had him
here and he's never been mugged But
I've been hearing things about him Of
late and I've been wondering what his
now and can get him inside m hour
He got him that nj ght II was Nike
the Kid all right. ] identified him the next
day The detective told me that when
he took him 10 Headquarters that morn
ing he showed Mr. Mike my sketch and
told him how he had been caught.