Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-02-16
HIS ONE BAD MINUTE

These Lombroses and Nordaus and the
subjects make me very weary observed a
secret service man recently. I've known a
lot of folks with Happy, outstanding ears.
ingrewing chins, claw-like fingers and close
set eyes who never did a mean. much less
criminal, act in their lives. although you
never get believers in that Misunderstanding
as-a-guide-to-crime idea to believe 1T. I've
met mp with ptifanthropists who were
shifty-eyed and sneaky-looking and who
possessed a whole lot Of the points Of the
Lombroso and Nordau typical degenerate,
and yet they were men who couldn't get to
sleep o. nights for thinking Of the misery OF
the world and trying to dope out plans for
making unfortunate people happy. On the
other hand, I've stacked alongside of case
hardened desperadoes, crooks of both sexes,
craggy ones that enjoyed the very taste and
smell Of deviltry, criminals born, who dsdn I
have a sign on them from head to heels
that wasn't the mark of q Thoroughbred.
and who could hand you as wtnsome an
eye-gaze as g convent girl on reception
day and pass you as appealing hne OF m
nocent expression as a phony promoter
who's trying to sell you Wilde-katt gold
mine stock at IA cents the share that's go
ing to be listed at $3.50 q share nine days
hence.
You can take It from me that less than
half of the hard-luckers occupying prison
cells are not criminals by instinct. Slews
and slathers Of them are criminals by Inn
pulse 1t would help some If, today, had
a dollar in my pocket for every branded one
I know who Jumped into trouble like cat
hopping q trellis solely by surrendering 10
sudden and overmastering temptation.
mot many years ago, In little town
near Chicago, an aged bum who had oriIt.
Ecu
had been annexing his whisky money by
doing odd chores around. came to the END
of his hawser. He was pretty SICK 0io
man when he applied at the town nospital
in, but it was quickly seen there was moth
ing left of him but the husk. and so tney
made him comfortable to pipe out easy IKE.
Just before he took the ferry over the oark
river he whispered to the nurse tnas ne
intendent. The hospital superintendent
showed up at the old mans cot
1.-The old wayfarer pulled from around his
neck piece Of string to which Key was
fastened He handed the key to the super
intendent, Casped the name of Chicago
safe deposit company, gave the passlns-out
tremor-and was gone.
1.-THE hospital superintendent was =
strong man. He was about forty, and had
got his education by working for 1t with
his hands, He had worked at nearly every
thing in order to push himself through COZ
leSe and he had taken care OF a big oa1cn
of brothers and sisters besides. He WASH
any goody-goody, but just a square man.
He had fought and worked Tor every
shave shine and smoke that he'd ever naa.
He was getting ahead and gaining repu-
tation, but most OF his income was gong
for the education of his younger brothers.
and he'd never known the feeling OF pos
sessing $50 real velvet since he'd been
hustling.
s'Weli. about two weeks after the old
no Sunerint9ndonL
was in Chicago, and he happened to pass
by the safe deposit establishment that the
old man had mentioned before dying. Ihe
superintendent still had IN his pocket the
key, attached to the string, that the dead
wanderer had given him. He was OF the
opinion that the old mans mind had been
wandering when he had named the safe
deposit company. but. anyhow. just out OF
curiosity, he decided to ask the safe depos-
it people IL they had the name OF the de-
ceased wanderer on their books They dio
have it on their books. The DEAD
man had rented safe deposit box from
the comr,any six years before, and the box
rental had been regularly paid by mall
The hospital superintendent. after some
formalities, was permitted to open the pox
with the key In his possession. According
to custom, one of the company's employees,
this one q young fellow. entered the vault
with the superintendent. In which the box
was located. The SUPERINTENDENT opened
the box with his key. aad then he had to
fan himself with his hat for minute.
"The box rontained two tightly wrapped,
rubber-banded rolls OF yellow bank notes,
each roll OF about the size OF q twenty.
five bundle Of cigars. The superintendent
of the hospital removed the rubber bands
from oue Of the bundles. and he saw that
1t was made up Of bills OF All denomana-
tons, from ones to hve hundreds. II was
plain that the two rolls contained whole
Now. that was the hospital superintend-
ent's critical minute. He told me about 1t
afterward. Without waiting to count the
money, he said in a low tone to the young
safe deposit chap who was with him In the
vault and who was gazing with an ex-
preston of amazement at the two huge
bundles of bills:
"sYou and l are the only two people IN
the world who know about this money. Is
it to be a cut? What do you say to
third for yours?'
.sThe supe1intendent told me that IL. ten
minutes before, anybody had suggested the
remotest likelihood of his ever trying to
snag out one cent that didn't Deiong 70
him he'd have felt like killing that sug-
But he added in telling me about 1t.
the desire to get hold Of that money, Tor
myself, seized me like fash, and could
no more have resisted 1t than man In the
electric chair could resist the current sent
to kill him.
Of money into Satchel turned III Uuo hey
to the safe deposit people, with the state
ment that he had found only a few value
less papers belonging to the dead man. and
then went to a hotel room with the young
safe deposit clerk. In the hotel room they
counted the money, and they found that
it amounted to exactly $4,000 The super
intendent gave the young fellow $4,000.
and the latter said that he was perfectly
satisfied with his cut. That left the SUI
perintendent $50, 900 to the good. He had
hardly put the theft through. made the
division and separated from the young fell
low before he was sore on himself, OUT
there was no turning back at that stage
of it, and he therefore tried to comfort
himself with the reflection that the dead
miser had probably left no heirs. and that
the money was capable of being put to
better uses in his hands than If it had
been discovered by somebody else in the
presence of a number of witnesses and had
reverted to the state for lack OF legal heirs.
During the next six months he built HIM
self a comfortable home in the town near
Chicago launched along his financial as
sistance to his brothers. whom he was edu-
eating, and tucked what was left OF the
pile into the bank.
HThen, of a sudden. the story came out.
and the hospital superintendent was ar
rested, disgraced and sent to prison for
three years. The young fellow who got the
$4,000 peached. He had quit his Job with
fhn "a dennSit cOnpany and had taken