Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1908-07-24
ASSOCIATION OF "YEGG"
WITH INTERCOLLEGIATE

II the probe which the police trial
board is making into the charge that
protection was afforded certain persons
on the North Side does nothing else 1t
will at least perpetuate the word
yegg' In this community and result in
many. persons asoertaining what this
one of many terms applied in police cir
oles means and what was its derivation
During the last few days the popular
yeggg' or What is yeggr" and either
of The, expressions PROMISES to become
ers that have held the spotlight in
street vernacular Mt various times IN
the, gone. but not forgotten past,
did the expression originate? An an
sswer to the latter part OF the query will
lead to an calculation of the first
Some years ago. when the United
states government was experimenting
with high explosives wishing, to secure
shell that would cause more damage
than any before manufactured, some
one suggested that nitroglycerin he
tried. Up to that time this most pow
erful of explosives had not been util-
lied in this way. The government ex-
their experiments were from time TO
time published broadcast through the
community AZ last they succeeded in
was the chief component ana which
made all former ones sink into insig-
nifcance
In town of the middle west. at the
time. there lived n man named John
YegE. In his earlier days he had been
one, of the most expert electricians az
well as all-around experienced me-
chancs IN the country, Later, through
drink and bad associates, he had de-
scendcd to q life. of crime. his principal
attracted to the published accounts Of
the eXPerime1ts of the soyernm rent
thought struck hlm-why could not this
be used in blowing safes? The method
~ that time was TO drill a hole In the
der or dynamite and then touch the
fuse This method, however, required
considerable time TO pull of job
YCgg went to work on the nitrosiy-
ecrin method He tried Il and 1t was
he had performed job after lob. he had
the police of the country baffled. They
did not know how the work was done
Yegg introduced others in the art and
aeon from one end of the country to the
other safes We're being wrecked, but
by what manner no one knew.
tho explosive which he and those with
him called soup and by the way. this
term is sim extant, and pour It IN the
door. This small aperture was then
covered with fr, SOAP to hold the explosive
WITH the explosion se off wa" Vent aP ne doo oG
slick and clean. The entire job took
but a few minutes. 1t remained for
matter on a safe that was blown In
Coldwater Mich. where a bank was
wrecked and many thousands of dollars
secured. The crime was traced to YeGR
and some of his companions and they
wero found guilty and sent to prison.
Thereafter those who employed the nj
iroglycerin instead of the older meth
DDS were called "yeggmen," or ''yeCgs."
This was the beginning Of the term.
hut since that time the application of
II has grown greatly. Today II "yegg"
viewed from whatever aspect is the
most dangerous criminal with which
tho police of tho country have to deal.
He is ono who rides the country DER
on freight trains, working through the
south I'm. the winter and migrating TO
moro exhllaratin1g climes during the
gry and will steal and commit murder
whom he secs an opportunity OF bene-
filing MISUNDERSTANDING Gazette-Time