Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-11-19
securing a large sum of money and sue
cessfuly getting away with 1t.
Migration of the Tramp.

Migration OF the Tramp.
Now that winter is nearly here. with its
chilling blasts and flying snow, the tramp
fraternity including the thirty third-degree
hobos known as yeggmen, are fiocking
southwark, where the climate is more
/ balmy. On their annual pilgrimage to the
sunny southland many of these wit work
ers' a veteran detective has christened
the classes who live by their wits, stop
over in Washington for a season. Some of
these manage to keep out of the meshes OF
the law, while others fall into the hands
of Major Sylvesters men and go down TO
the farm to don official lawn tennis
uniform" as they term the striped uniform
OF the workhouse-
One of the most successful of the floating
small grafters who sojourn in Washington
for a short time, especially when Congress
is in session, was recently nabbed at Al
toona, Pa, by Chief Tillott OF that city.
and spent a term in the county prison. The
man in question is known in police parlance
professional beggar, throw ut." or
fake cripple. His name appears on the police
records Edward Johnston. To this Is
sometimes added the prefix of colonel"
Johnston represents himself as a veteran
OF the Union army, and according to his
story, told at different times and different
places, he lost his left arm in number OF
battles. When in Washington he prefers
to attribute the loss of the member to the
first Bull Run battle. and he has concocted
a touching fake story of how his arm was
shot away while he as Union officer was
trying to stem the tide of retreating men In
blue. When he is grating in Pennsylvania
Johnston tells his listeners how he lost his
limb while CALAMITY battling to prevent
1.-THE rebel hordes" from overwhelming the
grand old keystone state.
AS a matter of fact, he never lost an arm
III the army or anywhere else, and it is
said, to use a soldiers phrase, that ''he
never smelied gunDowder'' in the late un-
pleasantness between the states. This dis
covery was made by Chief TilIott of AL
toona. who put Johnston through the
third degree" and found by making him
partially disrobe that both arms were in
| tact and in good condition, but the throw
OUT had a clever way of concealing his
left arm by showing 1t down his trouser
| leg beneath his coat and leaving the arm
| less coatsleeve hanging. In this manner he
| had deceived many persons.
Preyed On Congressman.
| His principal graft in Washington is said
| to have been in soliciting money from sem
| ators and representatives on the ground
| that he was a constituent Of the one ap-
preached and was stranded here. He gen.
| orally asked for loan sufficient to carry
| him back to his home.
| 1t is said the late Senator Sewell deyeI-
oped the frauduency of Johnston's claim
| by telegraphing to Newark, N. j., where
| the "throw-out" claimed he lived
IF you are a veteran soldier and a cit
| izen of Newark, as you claim" said the
| New Jersey senator. II will give you the
| money you ask. / will telegraph to New
| ark. however. Come back to see me In an
| hour or So"
| "All right, general" replied Johnston, but
| he did not go back, nor was he seen about
| the Capitol again during that session.
| A Woman Panhandler.
| woman CRATER, who was successful
| for while in ''panhandling' senators and
| representatives at the Capitol, was a young
and rather dainty looking female, who was
| always attfred in the deepest mourning
garb. She talked with foreign accent and
| represented herself to be the widow of a
| Cuban officer who was killed by the Span
| iards while he was fighting for the freedom
| of his country. This young woman Is said
| to have gotten much money by working on
| the sympathes of her congressional VIC
| Tins. The Capitol police finally discovered
| that she was not a Cuban widow. but a
shrewd CRATER, and she having OWNED that
| she would be arrested fed from the city.
The twentieth century thief is a versatile
| fellow. according to the police annals, and
| he works In many guises. As soon as his
| up-to-date grating, or plain stealing game,
| Is discovered by the police and advertised
| In the police department Of the newspapers
| he invents something new. It Is said that
| professional thieves, while serving terms
| In the '.pen," lie awake OF nights think
| ing of new schemes to be worked on the
| prison. One of the most prolific OF these
schemers Is said to be Earl Kempton, alias
Earl Williams, whose portrait fills a place
| in the rogues' gallery.