davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-09-16

IRENE caution and keenness of discer 4
ment for the sale of very large guam
titles of his wares.
In Missouri at that time there was
state law which provided that the
testimony of no man who had served
a penitentiary term was admissible in
the courts of the state. Fred Biebush
was familiar with this provision and
followed one rule-as immutable in his
business as the laws of the Modes
and Persians-never to deal directly
with any man who could not prove
he had been a convict And he went
even further toward the extreme of
caution, for while he would negotiate
in person for the sale of counterfeit
money with an ex-convict and would
receive from such one the honest
money in payment for the bogus cur
rency, he would invariably deliver the
''coney" through the hands of third
party. So far as l know there is no
man who can say he ever received
''coney' from Fred Biebush except his
time-tested personal agents. His rule
against doing business with any ex-
cept ex-convicts was the thing that
rendered it practically impossible to
convict him. Besides observing the
precautions mentioned, he usually sue
ceeded in bringing his subordinates
under his power so that his safety was
theirs. For Is years he pursued his
criminal career UNPUBLISHED.
Before the present system of nation
al banks was established Biebush -four
ished wonderfully in his operations in
the counterfeits of the bills of the old
state banks He did no manufactur-
ing in those days, but from his head
quarters in st. Louis he jobbed the
"coney' in enormous quantities all over
the country through such distinguished
dealers as Nelson briggs, Louis Sleight
and Others the amount Of representa-
tive dollars running into the hundreds
of thousands. In this way he accumu-
lated a large fortune. Then he went
into the manufacturing business him
self.
Not being an engraver nor a printer,
ne had to hire these artisans, and soon
formed a partnership with John Peter
Mccartney, for whom he had former
ly been an agent. Mccartney was an
engraver of high rank and the new
criminal team was strong one. Nc
Cartney did the engraving and Bic
bush superintendent the printing and
circulating. Later he acquired plates
engraved by such high-class cutters as
Benjamin Boyd and William Shelley
His fortune grew by tremendous leaps.
He was arrested so times in all; but
the early arrests never resulted in con-
viction for two reasons-his caution
with whom he dealt and his wealth.
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-09-16
DEMAND FOR SOBRIETY.

The man who gets drunk has nc
better standing in baseball than in
any other occupation.
Baseball is sport, but it.is clean
sport; it is more than sport; it is
business.
1t depends for its success upon the
approval and patronage of whole
some element of the public, and 1T
must come up to the public standard
of morals and decency.
1t is becomingI'common for pro-
fessional ball players to be discharg'
ed because of drunkenness.
The man who drinks hard is held
to be incapacitated for the game,
where quickness and correctnesss
Of thought and action are so re-
quisite.
No degree of skill and reliability
when sober can balance the danger
of error when drunk. Men who
when sober are among the very
best in the National league have
had to go because they would not
keep sober.
Business is setting its facessternly
against the hard drinker. And so is
clean sport.
The great corporations OF the
country have made some amends
for the evil they do by establishing
the rule that only sober men can
serve them in the places of trust
and responsibility.
The railway companies, the tele-
graph companies, the express com
panies and all the rest of the great
public corporations hold drunken
ness in an employe to be ground for
discharge.
The banking institution, though
it had millions at it's back, could not
live year with drunken men at its
wickets.
Drunken M en- in the government
departments would cause national
shame and scandal.
The place in business for the hard
drinking man is shrinking smaller
and smaller each year. Today he
seldom rises above mental posi-
ton.
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-09-16

into the shadows as though looking fol
some one. He was not disappointed
From the opposite direction, timing his
pace so that he would meet the min.
lister in the deepest shadows of the
church, emerged the man who had oc.
cupied the rear pew at the evening
church service. There were no other
pedestrians in sight.
Hello, Harry" said the minister
in a low tone, hating.
Hello, Andy" responded the other,
swinging about and falling into the
preachers stride.
CHANGING furtively around him, Rev.
Mr.. Thomas thrust his hand under the
skirt Of his ministerial coat and, draw
ing forth a small, heavy package,
passed it quickly to his companion.
Harry" pocketed it as quickly as it
had been passed to him.
''When'll ] see you again." asked
the receiver Of the package.
II can't say now; be at the church
in few nights" replied the minister
All this had transpired in less time
than it took to cross Grand avenue.
On the other side there was a low
spoken good night, the minister turned
into Finney avenue and his companion
continued in the main tkoroughfare
An hour later he was in his small room
in North Sixth street. The minister
went direct to his home and let him.
self in with latch key.
No band of dealers in "coney" or
counterfeit money ever gave TIE United
States secret service more trouble than
did the "Biebush gang" that operated
in and from st. Louis for more than
Is years. In fact, long before there
was such government institution as
the secret service division of the treas
ury department the name of Biebush
was a proud one in criminal circles.
1t had been carried to distinction in
tie annals of crime by Frederick Bic
bush, who was born in Prussia in 1923
and emigrated TO this country when he
was 81 years old. Prior to his arrival
in America nothing is known of him,
but his history since is romance of
crime. His whole life was devoted to
crime as chosen profession, and his
principal pursuit had been the exact
ing one of wholesale dealer in coun-
terfeit money. In this business he had
gained the soubriquet of the "great
southwest koniacker"
The readers of this narrative who
read my recent account of the events
leading up to the attempt to steal the
body OF Abraham Lincoln will recall
that then made clear the different
hands through which counterfeit
money passes before it reaches the
public. The engraver, printer. dealer,
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-09-16

Christian men and women worshiping
in the church at Morgan and Twenty
fourth streets.
While he was passing among the
sinners in his congregation the night
on which introduce Rev. Mr.. Thom-
as to my readers he stopped at pew
we'll toward the rear of the church.
The visitor was plainly dressed man
of middle age, evidently a workingman.
The minister spoke a few words to
him, still grasping his hand, and there
was some response by tie visitor. The
singing was in progress and the con-
versation held in undertones, so that
the words passed between the two
were not distinguishable by those near.
The incident was no different, to all
appearances, from score of others
in the church that night when the
minister importuned the hayward to
repent.
The church services ended, Rev. Mr..
Thomas left the building with several
members of the congregation, chat
ting OF religious matters, until tkeir
homeward paths diverged.
No attention had been paid the Wis
itor at the church after the minister
apparently had failed in inducing him
to come to the "mourners' bench" but
he lad left before the services closed
and had taken rapid westerly course
AS soon as the pastor separated from
the members of his flock he walked
well out of their sight and hearing in
a leisurely way and then suddenly
adopted a quick, business-like gait.
Walking rapidly west to Grand avenue,
he turned north. His home was in
Finney avenue, west of Grand avenue,
and near the intersection of these
thoroughfares the Rock" church, an
imposing Catholic edifce, loomed black
ly in the night, casting deep shadows
over the sidewalk on the east side Of
Grand avenue. AS he approached this
point Rev. Mr.. Thomas slackened his
pace and became alert, peering ahead
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-09-16

Many times he was arrested un-
doubtedly SO that the officers making
the arrest could bleed" him. Never
was a malefactor more adroit in the
use of money with public officers, po-
lice and court officers than Fred Bic
bush. One OF his favorite methods of
escaping conviction was to railroad"
the states witness out Of the way by
use of money or his secret power over
them. After one arrest there was
found in his possession letters from
different members of the secret service
offering to stand by him and help him
out of trouble, of course for consid-
Grafton. l am glad to say that such
operatives in the service rapidly grew
fewer.
His wealth and power were also in
iicated by the finding in his possession
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-09-16

He is heavily handicapped, and
only extraordinary ! abilities can
overcome the3 distrust of him and
give him an equal, footing with
sober men.
For high success he must pay an
enormous extralprice of energy and
effort.
1t is the same lin the professions.
The old-time lawyer who made
great pleas only when drunk has
been crowded down by the lawyer
who makes ADLER pleas when sober.
The drunken physician is no
longer deemed a genius, but is
avoided.
Even the best bartender is the
sober one. Saloonkeepers, just as
all other business men, recognize
the business value of sobriety, even
in dealing out drinks, and the bar
tenders who never drink behind
the bar" get the biggest wages.
Sobriety has it's advantages in
sports as it has in business. Base
ball men are rapidly learning it.
Booze and high salary no longer
mix.
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-09-16

was caught at a high fence, and, after
being manacled, taken back to st.
Louis. Once more he was tried, and
in December, 1870, he was sentenced
to Is years in the Missouri peniten-
tiary.
He served five years and was again
pardoned, returning to st. Louis to re-
sumo not only his old calling, but to
set up as a dealer in high-class bur-
glars tools. John Eagan had retired
from the secret service to private life
and | was transcend to the st. Louis
district from Chicago to manage the
pursuit of Biebush.
Here, then, was not a mysterious
crime, the perpetrator of which was
unknown, as l suppose should be the
case in all well ordered detective
stories, but the task of fastening guilt
on a man who had had criminal rep
utation for more than a third Of a
century? been arrested 40 times and.
profting by the lesson of the past, was
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-09-16
By CAPTAIN PATRICK D. TYRRELL

copyright, 1905, by Marion G. Scheitlin.]
Rev. Andrew Jackson Thomas had
delivered a strong sermon at the Nor
gar street Methodist church in ST.
Louis, and at it's close extended an
earnest invitation for sinners to come
to the "mourners' bench" seek Divine
forgiveness and forsake the errors of
their past lives. In the good old-fash-
Toned Methodist way Rev Mr. Thomas
left the pulpit at the close of the SER
mon and, in fine barytone voice, took
the lead in the ringing song of invita-
ton to the unrepentant The lines of
TIE hymn as he sang them were fire.
quently punctuated with short i'm
passioned appeals to those who were
not known as church members Then
to render his appeals more direct and
personal, the minister started down
the aisle. shaking hands with TIE 'un-
professed," speaking an earnest word
to this one and that one as he went.
Rev Mr.. Thomas was the type of
minister Familiarity known as the re-
vivalist. He was about As years old,
almost six feet tall, of robust physique
His hair and beard were brown, and
his eye open and fearless. He was a
vigorous and magnetic, if not polished
speaker, fine singer, good mixer"
among all classes and apparently i'm
bued with sincere desire to bring
sinners to repentance. He had not
been in st. Louis long at the time of
which / am writing, 26 years ago, but
during his residence there, by his de-
votion to his ministerial labors, had
.sndeared himself to the little flock OF
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-09-16
PROFESSIONAL CARDS.

LEADING ATTORNEYS
TTORNEYS-RUsHNBL, WATKINS & MOSES
Farmers Phone, So: Union Phone 49,
practice in all State and United States
courts. Office over State Bank of Grant
County,
Lancaster, Wisconsin.
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-09-16

at another time of notes for an aggre-
gate amount of 100000, signed by prom
inent citizens Of St. Louis He could
command the most powerful politicians
and state officers.
At the end of the civil war Col. H. G.
Whitley was appointed in charge Of
the newly organized secret service and
determined to bring such criminals as
Fred Biehush, Pete" Mccartney, John
Hart, Bill" Burney, Thomas Hale and
other notorious counterfeiters to JUS
tice. Operative John Eagan was put
in charge of the st. Louis district, and,
after much work, arrested Biebush for
selling counterfeit money. Eagan
pushed the case with a vigor, unknown
to Biebush, forced the prisoner to early
trial, and succeeded III having him SEN
fenced to ten years in the penitentiary
The willy old German stayed behind the
bars exactly one-half that many
months, when he returned to ST. Louis
and resumed operations.
Under the direction of Col. Whitley
a stool pigeon named McCabe was
sent to Biebush and succeeded in pay
ing him marked money for "coney.''
Biebush was arrested again in 1862 re-
leased on bail, and brought to trial He
had, as usual, fixed" the governments
witnesses and thought he was again
to escape. In the meantime, however,
William Shelley had been caught in
the act Of engraving a plate. The Sc
cret service learned that he had re-
Gently come from St. Louis, where he
had made some plates for Biebush.
Shelley was induced to return to st.
Louis and tell his story in court When
Biebush appeared in court he was sud-
denly brought face to face with Shell
ley, and his bravado failed him for the
first time. He escaped from the court
room, forfeiting $4,000 bail, and dis
appeared.
Secret service operatives were put on
his trail. A close watch was kept on
the movements of Mrs Biebush, who.
in day or so was traced to Cabaret
island opposite the town of Venice.
in the Mississippi river There she met
her husband in a corn field Biebush
retiring to hut in which he had
taken shelter. The hut was surround
ed and several shots fred to brighten
the fugitive out The shots were re-
turned by the counterfeiter. Then the
hut was fired. Biebush rushed out
and made mad dash for liberty, but
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-09-16

PHYSICIAN. GODFREY, M. D.
Office over pos :office. Residence two blocks
northwest of Grand Central hotel,
Lar caster, Wisconsin.
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-09-16
For Sale.

On account of failing health / desire
to dispose OF all my land excepting the
block at the depot.
The parts wish to dispose of in
cludes lots, blocks and acres; also
icehouses and ponds. Will sell alto
gether or in parcels. There's no better
opening in the country for an in
dustrious man.
| wish to rent my large 2-story
building near depot. 1t is 22x7O and
fitted for store building with good
basement and residence rooms over
head. Anton SCHMIDT.
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-09-16
Fine Property for Sale.

The Jackson farm, consisting of
40 acres. Also house with seven
acres and four lots; half interest in
the Hunt & Jackson store building
and 5 acres west of store. Property
all located i'll Potosi, Wisconsin.
For further particulars inquire of
or address.
PHILIP RoEsCH, Executor,
61tf Potosi, Wis.
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-09-16

The imperial degree regarding the
appropriation of temples for schools,
says the Shanghai North China Her
aid, is being carried out in Anhul. At
Luchoufu, four very large images,
servants to the god Of literature, have
been torn down to make room for lit
tie Chinese boys to study English.
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-09-16
SUMMONS.


State of Wisconsin,
Circuit Court. for Grant County.
j. A. Haggerty. 4
Plaintiff
vs. $3.50
Charles Horton, Maggie Horton,
his wife, Henry Johnson and
Amanda Johnson, his wife,
Defendants.
The State of Wisconsn:-To said Defend
antssHenry Johnson and Amanda johnson:
You are hereby summoned to appear with
in twenty days after service of this sum-
mons. exclusive of the day of service, and
defend the above entitled action in the
so to do, judgment will be rendered against
you according to the demand of the COM
plant which is now on file in the office of
the clerk of the court for Grant County.
GEO. T. ATWOOD,
Plaintiffs Attorney.
Gays Mills, Wisconsin
list ms. Aug 18th: Last ms. Sept. both.
Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1905-09-16

Subscribe for the Herald.
Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1905-01-07
WHERE WAS EDEN?

The Kansas city Independent takes
mp the old discussion about the location
Of the Garden OF Eden, According to
am old map OF the 18th century we are
told Paradise is a circular island lying
near India. II Is surrounded by a
wall In which is a gateway opening
to the west the gate Is closed, and the
wall quite iusurmountable.
Other maps show Eden In Central
China. Professors Deitzsch and sayce
favor Babylon. Heidegger favors Pales-
tine Media, Arabia and the Upper Nile
have all their supporters, Quatrefages,
treating the subject solely from a scIen-
tlhc standpoint concludes that linguist-
&c and other considerations point 70
Central Asia, but does not decide on
any precise locality.
with the author Of Genesis, as Or.
KalIsch has remarked Eden IL geo
graphically described In manner
which leaves no doubt that distinct To-
oality Was before the mind OF the au-
thor" Even to those who think that
this author WAS building ON uncertain
traditions, It must yet be Of interest To
know what this locality was. Babylon
was the most fertile land known to the
ancient world its poorest fields repaid
cultivation nttyfold, It's better hun.
dredfold. lts Insurance nt fruit and
grain was so great as to be actually
embarrassing, There Ia no question al
all that this district was the seat of
Asia's earliest civilization
There are numerous other conjectures
concerning this subject Some have
suggested the northern Polar region.
as the probable location OF Eden. 9th.
ers have thought that that Garden was
not on the earth at all, but was an is.
land floating in the air. On this island
they thought, dwelt the sacred Phoe.
nix the we'll Of life flowed there, IN,
elixir of immortality, leaves never fel
from the trees; the sun shone always
on perpetual summer
The most interesting suggestion as &c
the location of Eden is not considered
by the Independent II Is this, that
Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1905-01-07
RECENT PUBLICATIONS,

The January Arena contains the on
enlng paper OF a series Of eight con-
tributions which promise to prove the
most important addition to the cam
paign against corruption and political
debauohery, These papers are entitled
Forty Years In the Wilderness. or
The Masters and Rulers OF The Free
man OF Pennsylvania" and they have
been prepared by Mr. Blankenburg and
are UNIQUE In many ways and Of spe-
cial value because they come from the
pen OF a resident OF Philadelphia, An.
other paper even more startling is "The
Reign OF Doodle and the Rape OF the
Ballot In St. Louis" Il has been pre-
pared for the Arena by the prominent
lawyer and author the Hon Lee Meri-
wether. Another paper which merits
the attention OF intelligent voters and
Students OF political economy Ia the
discussion Of THE Postal Savings
Banks OF Great Britain and How The
Government OF England Fosters Saw
Ing Among the Poor which constitutes
Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1905-01-07
NO BEARING ON THE CASE.

The assaults upon the Mormon
Church which have been made in pur-
suit Of the latest crusade are 30 wide
OF the mark aimed at by the enemies
OF Senator Smoot, that the point made
by the 81. Louis Globe. Democrat re-
Gently cannot fail to be perceived by
thoughtful persons who are not blinded
by the dust OF prejudice raised by re-
llglous fanatics and unprinclpled poll
tlcans That paper thus briefly puts
the gist Of the matter In the following
editorial remarks
THE Smoot Investigation before the
Senate committee on privileges and
elections, which IL being carried on
with vlgor these days, develops some
points OF interest In relation to the
Mormon Church, but Il has not the
slightest bearing on the case Of Utahs
junior senator. Enough has been de-
veloped TO show that many persons In
Utah are violating the -polyRamy
law. This, however, does not affect the
senator lie is not charged with poly
gamy That charge was never brought
against him By anybody except one lr-
responsible person, who was quickly
sllenced by the senator's enemies"
Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1905-01-07
SOMETHING MUST BE DONE.

II Is to be hoped that the grievances
OF the farmers, hortlculmrists and
stock raisers Of this county against the
smeltermen win be adjusted, without
protracted litigation and without deal
Ing deadly blow to the smelling In
dustry. This win not be avoided, how
ever by any indifference on the part
Of those who are engaged IN that in
dustry, or by ignoring or attempting TO
bellttle the Just claims OF the ag-
grieyed, In order 20 arrive at fair
adjustment OF the difficulties the sltua-
ton must be viewed from a truthful
aud rational standpoint
The evils complained OF actually ex.
lsl. Efficient remedies must be found
for them, That IL imperative. II Is at
no use TO try to evade t. We pointed
out the wrong some time ago, and adj
vlsed immediate measures TO rectify 1t.
But Il goes on all the same and moth
ing practical has been accomplished 20
meet the evil 1t Is true that we are
told Of the employment OF experts 10
examine into the matter and the ef-
forts may be I'm good faith; we have
no wish or reason to doubt the declara-
lions, But meanwhile the nuisance
continues and the deleterious effects OF
the dust and the acids are experienced
TO the loss and injury Of the agrioul-
tural interests, No wonder, then that
the aggrieyed parties are becoming
impatient and newly aggressive,
Something has to be done and that
quickly We do not pretend to know
how the evils existing can be remedied.
That is for the smetermen TO find out
and adopt We believe that the deadly
dust can be arrested, those noxous
fumes be neutralized, The work may
cost something. hut so does the de-
struction Of wealth and property cost
something. There is no time to waste
o fer this matter action Ia wanted right
now.
We are, az we have always BEEN
despite the Misrepresentation Of un-
scrupulous defamers--in favor OF n
peaGeabe Just and conciliatory policy
the mutual agreement Of the farmers
and the smetermen, by which satisfac-
ton may be had without ill-feeling
and without resort to the courts. Ar
bitrary measures, passion. resentment
and force are to be decrIed. Let the
smeter people show by act as we'll as
word that they mean to do something,
and we believe the farmers viii gladly
ucquiesce, for they do not want 70 spoil
or crush valuable industry, but only
to take a course for self preservation,
Come together and plan for action, ac-
ton action