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

rest could bleed him. Never WAS a
malefaCtOT more adrOit in the use of
court officers than Fred Biebush. one
of his faVorite methods of eSca ping
conviction was to railroad the state
witnesses 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
mem bers of the secret service offering
to stand by him and help him out of
trouble, OF course for consideration.
l am glad TO say that such operatives
in The service rapidly grow fewer
His wealth and power were also in
dicated by the finding in his possession
at another time of notes for an aggre-
gate amount OF $50 600. signed by prol1I-
command the most powerful politicians
and state officers
At the end of the civil war Colonel
n. 6. Whitley was appointed in charge
of the newly organized secret service
and determined to bring such criminals
as Fred Biebush, Pete Mccartney.
John Hart, Bin Burney. Thomas Hale
and other notorious counterfeiters to
justice. Operative John Egan was put
in charge of the ST. Louis district.
and. after much WoIk. arrested Bic
bush for selling counterfeit money.
Eagan pushed the case with a vigor
unknown to Biebush, forced the pris-
having him sentenced to ten years in
the penitentiary. The willy old Ger
man stayed behind the bars exactly
one-half that many months, when he
returned to st. Louis and resumed
operations.
Under the direction of Colonel Whit
ley a stool pigeon" named McCabe was
sent to Biebush and succeeded in pay
ing him marked money for "coneS.'
Biebush was arrested again iii 1868.
role "a n on hail larfar yfaf F~f.a
He had, as usual, fixed the govern
ment's witnesses and thought he was
again to escape In the meantime. how
ever. William Shelley had been caught
IN the act of engraving a plate. The
secret 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
ley, and his braVado failed him for the
the first time. He ESCAPED from the
courtroom. forfeiting $4,000 bail. and
diSa pDeared.
Secret service operatives We're put on
his trail. a close watch was kept ON
the movements of Mrs. Biebush who,
~ day or so was traced to Ca baret
island opposite the town OF Venice.
in the Mississippi river. There she
met her husband i'm "a cOrn6eid Bic
taken shelter. The hut was surround
ed and several shots fired TO frighten
the fugitive out TNe shots were re-
by the counterfeiter. Then the
hut was fired. Ble0uss rushed Out and
made mad dash for liberty, but WAS
caught at "a high fence, and, after be-
ing nlanacled, taken back to 81. Louis
Once more he was tried. and in De-
cember 1870. he was sentenced TO fif
teen years in the Missouri peniteD-
tia-=-
He served FIVE years and again was
pardoned, returning TO st. Louis to re-
sumo not only his old calling. but TO
set up as dealer in high class
burglars tools. John Eagan had re-
tired from the secret service TO pri-
Vate life and 1 was transferred to the
St Louis district from Chicago to man
age the pursuit of Biebush.
Here, then. was not a mysterious
crime. the perpetrator of which was
unknown, as I suppose should be the
case in all well-ordered detective sto-
ries, but the task of fastening guilt
on a man who had had criminal repu-
tation for more than a third of a CEN
fury, been arrested forty-nine times.
and, prohting by the lessons of the
past. was following his vocation with
greater caution than he had exercised
before.
When / took up the effort to put
"Old Fred" Biebush where he cossldl
make the government no more trouble
he was busy circulating brass. silver
Mated coins i'm t4nf4pr7fi riot,s- ~