Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1908-05-19

him, no matter what position he may
hold. that they are unable to point to
a single mistake made by him In
twenty-five years Of service. the state.
ment is sufficient remarkable TO cause
comment. There are few Of whom 1t
can be said with truth. The book
keeper who juggles with figures day
In and day out. year In and year out.
has just cause for pride II AT the END
of twenty-five years he has not left
the record of a single error In compu-
taticr behind him. The tradesman or
the professional man who can equal II
is a jewel indeed. Even that most ex-
acting calling. the train dispatchers
business, In which a mistake In judg-
ment may mean disastrous wreck.
cannot show many operators who have
spent TWENTY-FIVE years at the keys
without single slip. though tina slip
may not have led to a smashup. Yet
there is a man in the police depart
ment who for that length OF time has
been identifying crooks by dint Of his
wonderful memory. and Inspector Nc
Cafferty or any one of his $50 sleuths
will tell YOU that II Lieut.. William
Sheridan's memory ever played him
false they never heard Of It. 1t IL re-
lated of an eminent Englishman of let
ters. that once crossing the English
Channel he read Paradise Lost"
through a single time and was then
able to recite It, Il IL related Of Lieut.
Sheridan. detective. that he saw
picture twenty-five years ago. with
out ever setting eyes on the original
and corrected the policeman who
made the arrest as to the identity OF
the man locked up In Raymond Street
Jail. The arresting policeman had
long ago forgotten. He went to the
Jail and had an hours talk with the
prisoner Then he came away. de-
claring that for once Sheridan was
talking through his hat Subse-
quently the man himself brought be.
fore the committing magistrate for
sentence. said:
That man Sheridan Is a stranger to
me. but whoever he is. he's all right.
l am the man he says I am"
Associates Have Ceased to Wonder.
That was Sheridan's most remark
able feat. and 1t is long time ago
since it happened. but after that he
astonished his associates many times
until they ceased to wonder and ac-
cepted his tricks Of memory AZ some
thing that were to be depended on
when all else failed.
More than a generation ago the
futurehead Of the bureau OF identfff-
cation at police headquarters aston
ished his teacher in the De La Sale
school by demonstrating that he had
absorbed the entire contents Of the
textbook on English history and that
he could tell from memory everything
that had happened from the days OF
the Druids down to the events Occurr-
ing in the reign Of Queen Victoria
His memory won him a gold medal at
school. Later he became telegraph
operator. There were 1900 Western
Union Offices in his district. Sheridan
carried a map of them all in his head
but his memory did not stop at that.
He knew the names Of the clerks en-
pIoyed in each one and the amount OF
the salaries they received.
In 1886 Sheridan jioned the police
force. and on July !. 1887, he became
one OF Tom Eyrnes' detective.
Byrnes put him in the jewelry dis
trict to watch out for shoplifters and
pickpockets with his side partner.
Bob Mcknight. who died the other
day. and whose memory Of crooks
faces was also very long. Sheridan
spent five years at that and was then
detailed to something harder--search-
ing for absconding bank cashiers and
looking after banking cases generally.
One day Byrnes called Sheridan into
his office juSt after roll call in the
morning.
The National Park Sank Theft.
Little Teller" he said-that was his
name for the detective-"read this
over" and he tossed him a copy of a
morning newspaper. It was an &C.
count Of the theft OF $1s5. 900 from the
National Park Bank by its assistant
cashier and his subsequent disappear
ance
T want Won to get after that man.
ordered the chief. Don't come hack
here until you flpd him
Sheridan went out and headquarters
did not see him again for six months.
He returned with the assistant cash
Ter. He had found him in an out-of-
the-way place known As Stanstead.
Can. twenty miles from the country
seat. to which he took refuge.
Ten wears later Sheridan and his
wife were STAYING At a Washington
hotel. There WA a clerk behind the
counter whose face vas familiar. IL
was the former assistant cashier. The
detective greeted him Il don't know
you.- said the clerk. Here's nv
hill. Lock at the name and see u
you recognize a." replied Sheridan.
You've changed a MT In ten years hut
I recognize yoa- The clerk looked at
Shcriian's name asd af once recalled