The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1905-07-09

Bridges, the thieves favorinE this way
of dealing because they received lar
ger compensation in representative or
counterfeit dollars than they would IN
genuine money. The silver was melted
by Biebush into bars, to be used in the
manufacture OF silver money.
But this was not the most valuable
Information cleaned from "Hoosier
Bill He let me into the secret Of the
identity of the more active and import
ant members of the Biebush gang.
'Hankey" Thielen and John Sullivan.
he said. were two of old F'red's'' most
trusted lieuteuants. serving as Doodle
carriers and go-betWeens in the deliV-
cry of -cOney' for their chief to the
persons with whom he elected to do
business. Thielen. in addition to his
supernumerary services TO Biebush in
circulating bad money, was a manu-
facturer Of silver money. according
20 my informant
Bridges did not know just where the
Thielan plant was located, nor, in fact
was it ever located. although we had
good reason to believe il was on the
bank OF the Mississippi river, above 81.
Louis. IT was Bridges understan ding
of the operations of the band that
Thielen made the silver-plated coins
from dies eut by one Joseph Hargate,
an English engraVer, who also did a
legitimate engraving and die-cutting
business in a small shop at his home.
Concerning sullivan. however. Hoo
sier Biz had more definite knowledge
He was colored coachman in the en-
ploy of DR.. A. :. Barnes at 3Ol3 EastOn
avenue, and, I believe, the only cOlored
man who ever rose to a position OF any
prominence among "koniackerS- He
was fully trusted by BiebUsh and was
credited by my informant with much
native cunning. Later / also was pre-
pared to credit him with much pru-
deuCe in the conduct of his criminal
operations, as the following incident
viii indicate:
Long after my talk with Bridges and
while [ sat still at work on the case a
colored coachman named Jackson came
to my office one day and asked II I
wanted him 20 buy so Re counterfeit
money for me. that he was able to get
all he wanted. 1 asked him from whom
he could get it and he answered from
Sullivan. I commissioned him to make
L deal with Sullivan and I have every
reason to believe that he tried in good
faith to do so. but he failed. Sullivan
each time putting him of at the last
moment.
Bridges said that soon after he first
became acquainted with Biebush he
met him Oh Il Sunday while the latter
was on his way 10 Sunday school tho
old fellow always maintaining an atti-
tuOe Oh lHuCn dBDaEtIiI IESIffsttLd DillLN
in these matters. Biebush said 20 him:
Up to this time I have taken YOU
at your word; have you any referen-
ces2-
Plenty Of them answered BILL -
DO YOU know Joe Butt and John
O'Brien?' asked Biebush Both of
these we're notorious criminal charaC-
ters.
sure. said Bridges. and then pro
ceeded to convince Biebush that he had
such a wide and close acqua int ance
with noted criminals as 20 render him
Mt for Initiation into the Biebush ring
Biebush thereupon turned him over
to Sullivan, showing the great conf
dence he had in the colored man. F'ronl
Sullivan 'Hoosier Biz got several
packages of half-dollars forty in
package. and three rolls of bills Of 500
representative money each. These he
showed" turning over the proper pro
portion of the good money received to
Sullivan. Thislen. Sullivan and Har-
gate, however. were not the only men,
bers of the Biebush ring about whom
Hoosier Bill gave me information
There We're William Whalen and Harry
Woods. showers. and John Evans and
Mrs. Annie Welch, also showers. but
on a smaller scale.
Bridges was willing to go 10 st. Louis
10 serve as a witness aga inst Riebush
II the latter were tried, but in this We
seemed 10 be cuf OFF squarely b. tho
Missouri statute previously referred ia