Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1908-12-30
WHEN SCOTLAND YARD WAKES
Crooks Find it Wise to Quit England.
Some Reap Rich Harvest.

New York., Dec. 19.-"I notice that
Scotland Yard recently warned q
batch Of American crooks out of Eng
land" said retired detective Of the
old Tom Byrnes staff. "Now, that
warning out stuff might pull a laugh
from American crooks who don't
know the way the game is managed
on the other side. But they'd laugh
on the other side OF their faces If
they put themselves in the way of
getting that kind of hotfoot from
the Scotland Yard folks. The Yard
has a little way Of dealing with the
crooks who are pin-headed or pig
headed enough not to conform to such
beat-it request. You'll never find
an old timer familiar with the Yard IS
methods telling them that he won't
go when he's asked to go.
= when l was in active harness
knew slews Of high notchy American
crooks who at one time or another
got that run-home invite from the
" Scotland Yard outfit, and n0ue of
them wasted time obeying orders. A
good many of them, must say
brought back to this country stacks
of plunder before the Yard wised
up to them and sent them spinning
back this way.
"One of these was Ned Hapgood
an all-round crook, but mostly a
thimble-rigger, from Chi, who went
over to England to see what he could
do in the early SOS.
Ned had bank wad at the time
and didn't have to get right down to
work, but he'd thimblerigged SO lone
in this country that soon after he hit
England he began to banker to get
into motion, took in the fairs all over
England with pea graft, and he found
that it was like taking the yeast
money from little girl on her way to
the grocery.
"One afternoon when he was run
ming his pea game at a fair in York
shire he had the fun of trimming the
man who's now the King Of England
then the Prince of Wales. The Prince
didn't guess where the pea was five
straight times for guinea per miss
and Il en- he laughed and moved on
with his party.
"Hapgood had pair of link cuff
buttons made out Of two Of the uuid
that Albert Edward forked over and
passed the three others to pals as
souvenirs. Tom O'Brien, the gold
brick man, who cashed in at the
French colonial prison where he was
sent for killing Kid Waddell, his pal
in Paris, carried one of these guineas
as a pocket piece for years.
1T took the Yard long time tc
hep up to Ned Hapgood's game, but
finally they sprung him and told hin
to be on his way, and Ned knew his
his little book we'll enough to sheer
off and point his PROV for this coun
try within twenty-four hours after
getting notice, and he never wen
back there any more either, soft as
the graft was
zip hOItOll, all american CrOOF
who came from a fine old New Or
leans family, was the man who intro
duced the cute little game Of three
card monte to the inhabitants Of tn,
British isles. AS general thins
they're pretty cagey and suspicion:
lot over yonder, but the Britisher.
sure did bite on Morton's three care
monte bait
clip looked like the president O
four banks, and dressed the part tha
way, and there never wa his supe
rior as monte man. When he Sc
out to work the monte thing on tn,
trains he took on an English crool
to act as his valet and he travelled II
style.
'He did testy, grouchy, grout,
part on the trains, and kept bawlini
at his valet to wrap him in rugs ant
bring the water jug and all that sor
Of bally fooling. Then after gettin,
the attention OF the passengers, he't
howl at his valet for his solitair,
board and cards, and he'd begin
game of solitaire
Now, most folks have got pen
chant for rubbering at another man