Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1908-03-21
TIE ROGUES' GALLERY
Sanguinary Bank Clerk
and His 0bliging
White Rose.
By GEORGE s. DoUGHERTY.

PinkertOn National Detective Agency.
It all happened; it happened Won
derfully; but it did not happen to me
u mean had no personal connec-
ton with the case, particularly with
the highly intelligent doings of that
white rose. All l know is that if
there is any rose growing in New
York today Of like ilk, may it happen
my way when so sOrely needed as by
the sleuth who tells the following
story But l don't know that l am
particularly anxious TO land up
against SO strenuous and blood-thirsty
a gentleman as the exemplar of the
genus, Defaulting Bank Clerk, figur-
. ing here. He is just trifle too
strenuous and dramatic in the meth
DDS he adopts to protect his own prec-
ious skin.
Ny friend the old-time detective is
talking: i received an imperative
message to attend at the New York
Bank OF = early one morning. On
arriving there / found the president
and the other officials hopping round
the premises as though treading on
needles. The safe had been forced
by burglars, and all the specie ex-
tracted. My professional pride was
fIattered by the almost pathetic conf
dence manifested by the officials il
my ability first to explain how the
trick was done, and next to lay by
the heels those who had done ii.
= was conducted to the burgled
safe 1t did not take me long to rea-
son out that whoever the burglar
was he had worked on the lock OF
the safe when it was already open.
] kept this conviction to myself for
the time being, and put my eyes to
working full pressure on other condf-
tions in the immediate vicinity of the
safe. keeping up a desultory CONVEX
sation with the distraught president
all the while. After lapse of few
seconds my eyes lighted on the single
petal Of what had evidently been an
elegant white (Provence) rose.
"'Show me the place where You
say the burglars entered said to
the president. He conducted me to
a
found two of the heavy protecting
bars had been filed through to effect
the entry. But it was clear to me
that they had been filed from the
inside. The inference was obvious.
'In answer to my inquiry of the
president whether he suspected any
OF the bank staff, he was almost, in
deed, quite indignant, and took some
time to phrase his resentment of the
suggestion The staff was a small
one and | thought it would be strange
If the president was not sufficiently
acquainted with his employees hab-
its to answer my next question. Do
you happen to have noticed | said,
whether any one of your young men
is given to wearing flowers% Mr..
President donned his considering cap
with the result that, with snort and
q guIp and a tribute to his probity
and piety, he named a Mr.. Charles
M
Point him out to me as l pass
through the bank now I replied. The
president did this, but with marked
impatience. While not appearing to
do SO / gave my man a thorough
scrutiny. and despite his neat, clean
cut appearance / did not like him.
1t may have been fancy but put
him down for a SNUG hypocrite.
MY next move was to hurry 10
his residence and, as | anticipated,
the sumptuousness of the place did
not fit in with the salary he was re-
ceiving. Though truth to tell, | was
not afforded more than a cursory
glance at such rooms as | could see
from the hallway, for the shrewd old
bag who attended to the door put
sharp brake on my movements. She
did not prevent me, however, from
noticing a rose tree on a nearby
table containing one solitary, gorge
Gus bloom. l had forged another link
in the chain.
THE rest of the day 1 spent hunt
inc up Mr.. Ms antecedents and
habits of life, and all went to con-
firm my suspicious. He was pocket
edition Of the Grand Mogul. Next
morning / appeared at the bank ready
to recommend the arrest of Mr.. M,
when had my breath taken away by
the following speech of the presi-
dent:
"'You were right about NJ. After
you left yesterday we went over his
books and found q deficit of 100000,
and / understand he left the city
last night. You must get him at any
cost. he infamous scoundrel!'
ct was my turn to be nettled, but
ccntented myself with asking If he
had anv notion as to the direction in
vbicl, the bird had fiown-if he knew
nf any relatives. Yes, there was
one an uncle. who lived some fifteen
miles outside Augusta, Georgia. II
was July. and the very mention OF
that region and a railway journey
thither at such time filled the cup
of nv dissatisfaction.