davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1907-05-03

Through a window he watched her en-
ter the front room. take OF her hat
and place IL with chatetiaine bag on
the table. Burns slid into the house.
looked into the bag. and found letter
there. In its place he put a dummy.
This was easy. as there was no ad-
dress on the outside Of the envelope.
But this left Burns in the dark as to
whom ii was meant for.
Later in the afternoon Mrs. Chew
ms came ont and Burns followed her.
She crossed the ferry 10 New York
and went to Courtlandt street AS she
was turning into a doorway Burns
sent one Of his men to say 70 her:
BE careful. You are being watched.
she turned and left the entryway
Burns Immediately entered. and sure
enough there was an engraver'a Office
OF course Burns got the plates and
Cen. FREDERICK Mora and Ricardo do
Requisens are serving their terms IL
prison.
The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1907-05-03

price: maybe IL gives a picture OF the
article also, but you don't see the
goods. The local merchant shows you
the goods; you may examine them
critically: he may allow you TO test
them or TO call in an expert 10 advise
YOU Is ii fair to conclude that the
catalogue article is the cheaper just
because the price is lower?
An element that must enter into the
comparison OF goods and prices Is.
that in any attempt TO fool the Gus
toner. the local merchant is decided
ly at a disadvantage. He must show
the goods, not merely describe them.
His business depends wholly upon the
limited trading area OF his town and
his ability to inspire confidence within
that circle. He cannot afford 10 make
practice OF misrepresenting his
goods.
The mail order house is not so tied
down TO the maxim that Honesty is
the best policy" Ii has no neighbors.
no fellow citizens. no mutual interests
with its patrons. Its trade area Is
wide and always shifting Naturally
these conditions do not demand extra
ordinary vigilance in supplying hon
est-made goods. And where Vigilance
is not a needed employe in the bust
ness he is generally taken OF the pay
roll. which makes a saving in expense.
as well as in the cost of the goods. II
lower prices are quoted b. the cata-
Iogue house, may not this account for
IL?
"Will II pay?" Is IL a matter OF
economy TO buy inferior and damaged
goods when the same money, or even
a little more, will pay for goods Of the
best quality? Which course does a
mans first duty to his own household
dictate?
But 10 get at the bottom Of that
| question. we must consider the far
reaching general effect Of mail order
trading. II single catalogue houses
are to be capitalized at $4,000. 900.
they must be reckoncd with along
with STANDARD Oil. the beef trust and
railroad mergers. II they are allowed
20 suck the blod from our country
towns. your grandchildren will find
conditions much the same as those OF
your grandfather's time Their mar
kets will be 80. so or rs miles away.
The towns and villages will be de
serted. and the hubs will be too dis
tant TO send the radiating spokes OF
rural mail telephone lines and other
modern convenlences far into the
country.
CHARLES BRADsih w.
The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1907-05-03

given you. Mr.. Farmer? A market for
your produce. What has made p 10
30 per cent. of the present value OF
your farm? The accessibility OF a
market. You know what your grand
father did on that same farm? Drove
his Aogs and hauled his grain 80. 80,
maybe rs miles to the nearest market
town. and received prices for them
that would make you howl about the
trusts. And he hauled back the fam
Hy supplies for which he paid what
YOU would consider monopolistic
prices. Do you happen TO know what
the old farm was worth then? Well
IN lacked a good deal OF being SIS or
500 an acre.
Yes. the home town. with its handy
market. has advanced the value Of
your property and made you worth
several thousand dollars more than
your grandfather was worth. The
home town affords schooling for your
children. and perhaps social and
church privileges which your family
would not otherwise enjoy The rural
mail routes and telephone systems,
radiating from the home town, as
spokes from a hub. bring TO your
home the greatest conveniences of
modern times
Have you ever noticed that the first
thing the settlers Of neHly-opened
reservation do is TO send for a wagon
load OF mail order catalogues Well.
haven't. They lay out a town site
every six or eight miles. start two or
three general stores. build a school
house. a church. blacksmith shop,
grain elevator. petition the depart
ment for a post Office. and start
newspaper. They know. from former
experience that. with these things
close by. life will be endurable, what
ever hardships may come. They know
also. that without them they must live
lives OF isolation and endure an exist
ence that is contrary to all natural
human instincts.
On the other hand. Il goes without
saving. that the average country towr
cannot exist without the support o
its tributary territory. Then. II tina
town affords the advantages for tbs
rural citizen that have been enumerat
ed. there exists what we rasy call al
interdependcnce and a moral obliga
ton between the two. Are you. MI
Thrifty Farmer. living up 10 that oh
legation when you do your tradinI
with the mail order house,
To this line Of argument the farme
may answer that his greatest oblig'
! ton. his first duty. Is to his immediat
The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1907-05-03

held out promise OF ultimate immu
nifty every man jack OF them was Will
ing 10 squeal.
IL looked easy. All things are easy
TO those who know how. Burns mas
no. been doing detective work TOT
nothing these 20 years.
Tricks Of the Profession.
but how about the tricks OF the
profession that one hears 50 much
about" | asked.
"oh yes. there are tricks. ] can
Iat Won seal a letter with your seal.
and will take it out of the envelope
read Il. and put ii back. and you can
,ot tell that II has been opened.
I'm the famous hundred dollar bill
case in Philadelphia intercepted a
letter to Taylor and Briddell the en-
gravers who had spent slVO.VVo In
co.yinS the paper on which the gov
ernmert money IS printed. They had
begun By counterfeiting cigar revenue
siamus. They made s2eO,OOO at that
The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1907-05-03
TWO BIG QUESTIONS
THE MORAL OBLIGATION" AND
-poEs IT PAY3"
SHOULD BE CONSIDERED
An Honest Answer 20 These VIII
Keep the Trade with the
Home Merchant Every
Time.

copyrighted. 1906. BY Alfred c. ciark)
When the thrifty person or his wife
sits down for the first tme-or any
time-with the mail order catalogue
and its temptations. there are two.
and only two. points 10 be taken into
consideration.
One OF these is moral obligation,
and the chances are that that will be
dismissed as sentimental nonsense.
The other is-Will IL pay? and 10
that the thrifty person will be in
clined TO interpret an answer from the
prices quoted in black-faced figures in
the catalogue.
Neither Of these questions should
be lightly dismissed. Moral obliga-
ton is not sentimental nonsense. and
blackfaced figures sometimes lie.
The duty a man owes to his own
community and his obligation TO trade
al home are so often reiterated In the
country press that, possibly like some
of the preaching, it has a tendency
20 harden the hearts OF the sinners
What has your neighboring town
The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1907-05-03

household. and that among the duties
TO his family and to the heirs OF his
estate Is that OF practicing judicious
ecor Smy--buying where he can buy
the cheapest and 70 the best advan-
tage. And lis brings US 70 the Sec
ond point in the argument-the para
mount question In this commercial
age-"win it pay?" !.
BY most people an Affirmative an
swer 70 that question is accepted as
the cali OF duty. As a matter Of fact.
win It pay?" is a good test to apply
to any project or proposition. There
are commercial. as well as political,
demagogues, and the man who Is APP
pealed TO on the score OF patriotism
or profit. duty or dollars. can scarcely
do better than 10 sit down by himself
and submit that question-"Will IL
pay ?"-to his own best judgment.
Provided always. that he goes to the
very bottom Of IL.
What are the relative advantages OF
buying at the local store and ordering
from a catalogue house7 Advantages.
understand. that figure in the ques-
ton, VIII II pay?" Don't get away
from that question. II certainly is
very comfortable TO sit down by your
own Preside and select a dress pattern
or a sulky plow from a printed des-
eruption and a picture Of the article:
much more comfortable. in fact than
hitching up and driving TO town on
raw day.
A consideration more important.
perhaps, is that the printed price in
the catalogue seems. in some cases at
least, to be lower than the price
quoted at the local store Isn't that
conclusive? Let's see. The catalogue
! describes the goods and quotes q
The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1907-05-03

SAN Francisco.-William J. Burns.
,A. United states secret service agent
I'M apped every member of San
F-srascos corrupt board OF supervis-
~ anto a full confession OF their
guH- Il called the king OF detec-
tlyes
Although Burns has this interna-
t.r equation as a detective, II is
hs .ar his intimates TO remember
alva that Burns is a detective.
mus Francis ]. Heney, the prosecu-
III Wrh whom Burns has worked
M l ia land fraud cases in Ore
rl ia the San Francisco Doodle
fnds his associate a source OF
continual surprise.
mrrs amuses me-" said Heney
a. recently. as he looked out the
~ his Office In the unburEt
Nl u Addition" Of San Francisco,
The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1907-05-03

While Burns was whirling by in his
a. mobile
ok al him. he exclaimed. HE
& Is rlacid and dignified as lord
f. lis carriage"
Burns was leaning back at his ease
q rhe rear seat OF the big tonneau.
i- aculately groomed. with a look
q. nperturbable boredom on his face
Ihe lawyers associated with Heney
81 fae prosecution OF Abe Ruef and
Ma'r Schmitz were in the roO.I at
tas lime. and they fell into a discus
s.0r IL the man.
Metro dieai in Everything.
Ehat interests me most about
Burn Is that he never misses a
r.. said Cobb. Heney's partner
rver saw him in too much OF a
fl % take his hour for dinner at
t eular time He is methodical
% serything. II is all in a days
v with Burns. and when he turns
81 night he sleeps like top"
fer he never procrasunstes. put
81 District Attorney Langdon. Il
asked him the other night II he
thoueht he could get a man we want
ei and bring him TO the ONCE in the
morning
What's the matter with getting
fim now said Burns Taking down
Che receiver from the phone he call
I'D up a saloon His man was there.
Burns told him IL would be better for
bis health to surrender himself at
our Office without delay. The man
came az once"
What interests me about Burns.
PIT in J. Dwyer. another of the at
torneys of the graft prosecution. lis
us personality. lie gets the men he
Us after TO like him Ruef likes him
now better than any OF his own men.
4 hose two swap stories to each other
until you can't believe Burns is work
Ing ell the time to land Ruef in San
Quentin prison.
lie can mimic Frenchman, an
hnglisnman, a Dutchman TO perfec
ton. and the stories he tells sound
Ike good fiction. believe IL is his
Magnetism as much as his persist
ence that wins for him"
His First Important Case.
This is the story OF Burns frs
important case, as told by himself.
II vas in 1890 in ST. Louis. A mum
Der OF firebugs had been burnins
down houses for insurance money
They rented these houses; then the,
nut In velvet carpets. elegant furni
ture. pianos and so forth. which the,
Insured, As soon as they had thei
'licies. they would move out thu
ri'l-e. Then they would light /,
The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1907-05-03


disguised IN false whiskors and wear.
Ing blue goggles never use a dis
guise, except a change OF clothes But
! can take one Of my men and let
you talk with him; then bring him in
tomorrow and let YOU see him and
you would not believe him the same
man. Here in San Francisco every
one knows meat least all the graft
ers do-so It would be useless TO
try a disguise"
Burns methods all through the
Rucf case have been surprisingly open.
When he started out 10 capture Ruef
after his friends, the sheriff and the
coroner. had been pretending TO
search for him in vain for d week.
Burns assembled his posse in half a
dozen automobiles In front OF Heney's
Office; with Ruefs lawyers Offices but
hall a block away. He had ten men
with him. but the open way with
which he went about the job made
the attorneys for the CRATER think II
must be all ruse. and no effort was
made to follow the party They went
straigh. to the resort at the Troca-
dero in the outskirts OF San Francis
co. where Burns knew that Ruef was
In hiding Burns had the house sur
rounded, then he walked in and sur
prised Ruef at dinner. He had his
man back at Heney's Office within
three hours.
Surprising a Bribe-Taker.
OF his present work Burns himself
says: This San Francisco case is one
Of the most interesting | have ever
had. or course municipal graft cases
are all somewhat alike. You know
who the men are who have got official
favors. The first thing 10 do is 10
single out the Official who you think
will accept a bride, and then get
at him by inducing him TO accept what
he thinks is a bride OF course your
money is marked Then you surprise
him in the act After that you have
him cold. Through him you get az the
bribe- givers.
When / started in on this work
in San Francisco / expected 70 get
after each OF the supervisors singly
but one of the newspapers got vino
Of il and published the story how VI
were working on one man. That spoil
ed things foI us and ! had 10 resor
TO other methods
What Burns had done was 20 induce
the proprietor OF a skating rink whi
had fallen out with Mayor Schmitz 4
have an ordinance in his favor intro
duced in the board of supervisors
Then he arranged to buy the vote o
one OF them-Lcnergan by name-fo
$500 Burns was concealed in tn
room when the marked money wa
passed He pounced forth at the psy
Geological moment when Lonergai
was taking the bride.
Take the money" said the traI
ped boodler. pale as a sheet. Il an
done for
'I'll take the money. and I'll tax
you. too" said Burns With that h
scared his man into a complete col
fession Previous to this he had 81
cured another confession from one {
Lonergan's colleagues who was i'll an
thought he was about TO die.
A Boodler Trapped.
With the inside Information of thes
\ two confessions Burns got TO work o
all the other supervisors. They wer
SO scared that the whole is cam
through with a rush. When Hene
The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1907-05-03
NAN WHO TRAPPED
FRISCO BOODLERS
HAS FINE RECORD
CALLED KING OF DETECTIVES

William j. Burns, Most Clever of the Secret Service
Agents Employed by Uncle Sam, Has Earned Proud
Title by His Many Successes in Running DoWn Often
ders Against the Law-His Methods Are Shrewd, Di-
rect and Straight Forward and He Has Yet Record
Failure in Any Case in Which He Has Been Employed
Land Graders, Boodlers Counterfeifers All One
10 Him.
The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1907-05-03

two-honr candle. and at two o'clock
in the morning the house would burn
down with a complete loss. In this
way they had got hundreds OF thou
sands OF dollars out of the insurance
companies.
When I was called into the case
il had been pretty thoroughly gone
over by Pinkerton men. who had To-
Gated the suspects. The difficulty was
to get legal evidence. Jim French.
who later fed to Honduras. after hav-
ing served his first sentence, which
got against him. was the leader Of the
gong.
The difficulty in all snch cases is
to uncover the tracks of the crimi-
nails while avoiding direct methods.
Instead Of going out 10 induce some
OF the marked men TO come to tho
front with a confession, | went TO
them under the name of Williams
and told them that had been sent
by the insurance companies 10 inves-
iigate the detectives that had been
cused Of misappropriating their ex-
pense money. While carrying on this
special investigation | was able TO
gather around me all the gang. From
them | selected the one man who.
thought. could give me the evidence.
This fellow. John Rudd by name,
never knew until the day that he was
called into the grand jury room tina.
he had been aiding in the apprehen-
sion of the incendiaries.
Suspected Infornner Killed.
When all vas ready went before
the grand jury and explained the case.
The insurance agents told their losses
and then we called in Rudd and ex-
planned TO him his part in the case.
After indictments had been brought
in there was a terrible uproar Some
member of the grand jury told the
gang that a man by the name OF
Burns had come before them and told
the whole story No one knew Burns
| had been going under the name Of
Williams. but the following night one
OF the gang was suspected by his
fellows Of being Burns and was shot
daad in saloon. They never knew
until the first day of the trial who
| was.
-, Nrono,a,, u,s trying The
- .,,.,v,, hosiaa him When
-, 49,, - re sta,d he was asked
49, .,,t,a,ior - whom he baa
80 ~. ~. -,
- nh, called himself WI.
- ,o,,i,aa
MANS al. go .o9.
- 49, 10, !, ..
u''ue
D"i ~
on, this mysterious MI Dui u :
How long Is y since you "a" nm
: LAST
Just now
Is he here now!
Yes.
In this room
" He Is sitting beside you, was the
answer
This was the first that Jim French
and the rest OF the gang knew OF
the part | had taken in the investi-
CATION"
AS Burns sat al his desk telling
the story. he had the appearance OF
a banker explaining a deal in stocks
lie is as far from the dime novel de
tective as he is from the wonderful
I Mr.. sherlock Holmes of Conan
Doyle's novels
1hlei Nlihle OF the secret se1Nice
onee ,eu-a' ~ ~ - 81 -
'"''' - - -, -, :" -,
sens "Ho sO.la ,l,,,s 81 .~',,,
VIZ" 2 ian -, -, ~ - -.
anu ""en :" -" - - 80 80.
The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1907-05-03


and then brsnched cut into making
hundred dollar bills.
In the letter / opened found three
OF the bills which were being sent 10
Taylor and Briddell by Kendig e
Jacobs. cigar merchants IN Lancas-
ter. Pa. with whom they operated.
marked the bills, replaced them in
the envelopes and remailed the let
ter.
Later, when CHIEF Wilkie and I
went 10 search Tayler and Biddelrs
place and put them under arrest !
nried open a drawer In their desk. |
found two Of the three bills | had
taken from the letter and marked.
"Wilkie was standing beside me
al the time and | said to him. loud
enough Tor the two men under arrest
TO hear:
That's funny. Jacobs told US
there were three OF these bills
"Briddell bit at the bait
Burns, he said. how many men
have you got under arrest in this
caseg
Il named every man who was con
nected with the case None OF them
was under arrest at tie time.
That's enough for me. said Bird.
dell We don't make any more trou-
bic for you
He gave me his full confession on
the spot II was opening the letter
that did the trick. OF course Jacobs
had told us nothing
counterfeiters Caught.
An illustration OF careful detective
work is Burns method in running
down two cOunterfeiters from Cen
trail America They We're Gen. Freder
leo Mora and Ricardo de Requisens
These two men had been making
counterfeits in the United States OF
the 100 peso notes Of Costa Rico. Our
government was asked 10 apprehend
I the counterfeiters. and Burns was en-
! trusted with the job. Others had
worked al it before, but all Burns hat
! 90 start with was a sofa wrapped nj
in burlap in which S30OO,O00 Of the
\ counterfeit notes had been stuffed fo
\ shipment 10 Costa Rica. On the bur
lap was the mark. Xxx 1884"
Starting from this. Burns found tina
the burlap had been originally use'
in packing a shipment OF oyeralls from
a factory in Newburg II was tn
shipping number in Newburg Burn
went over the books Of the factor
and found that those particular over
alls had been shipped TO dry good
store in Long Island City. There the
told him that they had recently sol
a piece of burlap to an old lady b
the name Of Mrs. Chevins. It did nc
look promising.
But. when Burns learned that Mr.
Chevins had a son-in-law. one Rica
do de Requisens. who hailed from Co
ia Rica. he thought the trail was &c
ting warm.
De Requisens was living with
young widow from Pittsburg at u
house OF his mother. Mrs Chevin
: Burns placed De Requisens and Il
: widow under arrest. Then he sci
one OF his men to the Jail with an
legged message 10 the effect that if
would produce the plates Of the coul
terfeit notes the government woul
abandon his prosecution.
After the messenger left, DE Requi
ems was visited by his mother-in-laV
When she left him Burns followed HI
10 her home in Long Island CIT
The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1907-05-03
Never Wore a Disguise.

Never Wore a Disguise.
Burns himself has this TO say about
his work as a detective:
People seem TO think that there Is
something uncanny about detective
work. They imagine we 20 around
The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1907-05-03

With the inside Information of these
two confessions Burns got to work on
all the other supervisors. They were
SO scared that the whole is came
through with a rush When Heney
The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1907-03-18
The Old CaIFskin Shoe Lace.

The modern boot lace is anything but
a luxury 1t Is nearly always just too
long or little too short, and, although
made fat 1T soon becomes curled with
a little wear. In the old days laces
were made of calfskin, and nearly ev-
cry farmer was an expert. He would
cut a disk Of leather three or four
inches in diameter, stick the point OF
a sharp knife blade in board, place
the thumb nail the thickness of a match
from it and quickly draw the string
through the opening, the perimeter be-
ing reduced the thickness of a match
at every measure Of the circumfer-
ence. Then the square string was
rolled between the sole of the shoe
and the floor till perfectly round, after
which 1t was creased with tallow.
Such lace would last for months.
Round laces are now made of fiber,
but their shine soon wears off, giving
them much worn appearance.
The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1907-03-18
Richmond
WHEAT OUTLOOK BETTER.
THE RECENT RAINS HAVE PROV
EN- OF BENEFIT.
At the Same Time Ii Seems That the
Rains Have Harmed the Glover
And Other Grass Seeds.

Although very discouraging reports
came in from all sources, during the
earlier part of last week, in regard 10
the conditions of wheat throughout
Wayne county, the farmers are now
well pleased with the outlook for a
good crop, as the recent rains settled
the soil about the roots and they viii
have a chance 10 grow and give the
plant hardness. Although the wheat
appeared lifeless it is now getting
green. The stand is equally as good
on both clay and black lands.
The heavy rains. however, were bad
for the clover and other grass seeds
sown during the month of March, as it
washed the seed to lower levels, be
fore it had a chance TO root suffi-
GENTLY This will cause newly plant
ed clover TO appear unevenly about
the fields.
The clover fields are now heaved up
as much as in former years caused by
the freezing and thawing of the
ground, and this gives the plants bet
ter chance to take root and prosper
during the early warm days of spring.