The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1908-12-31

village, and although l worked the
single telegraph wire to its utmost
capacity, the three men succeeded in
making their escape.
Sending a full cipher report to
Washington, repaired to the cabin in
the swamps and made a careful search
Of 1t. Everything within was in the
greatest confusion. Clothing and
shells. guns and fshing-taclzle were
strewn about the floor, evidencing
precipitate departure. 1t was tantaliz-
ing to again allow the criminals to es-
cape. felt deeply chagTined, and re-
solved never again to put off a matter
Of this kind. The men had forestalled
me by only few hours, for had in
tended arresting them that morning,
and there had been nothing in their
conduct during my visit to their cabin
to indicate that they thought of flight.
In one corner of the cabin, beneath
the very bunk on which / had slept,
there was an excavation three feet
square and as many deep. The cover
was down and dirt was strewn over it
which gave it the same appearance as
the dirt floor of the house. / discov-
cred it by a hollow hound when
tapped over the spot. 1t was empty.
Il noticed the absence Of the pot
whichOha supplied my supper, but it
was rather subconscious notice Of it.
The fact really made no appreciable
impression on me at the time, nor did
it, in fact, until more than year had
passed. 1t was then recalled by a
newspaper dispatch under date Of the
small village.
Some of the boys in the village had
appropriated the cabin as sort OF
clubhouse, after the three men had
fed. They would spend Saturdays
! there, fishing and swimming and hunt
ing. Immediately in front Of the cabin
was a steep bank, and the river wi
dened out into a broad, deep pool
which afforded good fishing and swim
ming. The boys would throw white
| pebbles into this hole and dive fol
them from the bank. One Of them
had struck his head against something
hard at the bottom Of the river ant
had been pulled up corpse, his skull
baving been fractured by the impac
of the blow.
"The others investigated and fount
large iron pot half buried in the sof
mud It's cover was sealed down an(
its weight had been so great the boyi
couldn't lift it from it's oozy bed. The
dispatch stated that the pot was to b'
raised and its contents examined.
Il was in Little Rock when reaC
this dispatch and, without waiting fo1
instructions from headquarters,
boarded the first train and set out fol
the village. l was in state of fever
ish excitement, fearing / would arrive
there after the pot had been secured
l wanted to be the first to view its con
tents. l felt sure knew what wal
in it.
after a journey that seemed inter
minable l arrived at the village ant
inquired about the pot. My fears hat
been groundless. With the indifference
so characteristic in country people th'
villagers had forgotten, after thu
funeral of the unfortunate young man
the incident of the pot. While ther'
had been some talk of raising it, NJ
one had taken the lead, and there th'
matter had rested
| nf OnnlnC and QOTnI
strong ropes and chains, drove out t.
the cabin. By dint of much diving
succeeded in fastening the chain
about the pot and had my assistaan
drag 1t out upon the bank. 1t was tn
vessel which had hung over the fir
when I had visited the counterfeiter
in their lair. Then l remembered It
absence, when I had searched the hu
after their departure. 1t was seale'
with parafin and sealing wax, and no
; a drop Of water had passed the lid.
II contained complete set Of en-
gravers' tools, several bottles Of power
full acids, glass stopped and sealed.
, number of bars of silver, some thre
, hundred odd counterfeit silver dollars
and the dies with which they had beel
stamped out. The dies were thickl
coated with wax and were as brigh
) and fresh as when they beat out tn
false coins in the secret cave.
after swearing my assistant t
} secrecy, / returned to headquarter
with my booty.
mot many weeks later two of tn
men were captured. / had given tn
, department a minute description Q
: them, after their unceremonious de
: parture, and its vast machinery ha
, been set in motion for their appreheI
sion. 1t is a maxim of the service
r that a man once a counterfeiter Is a
ways a counterfeiter. This rule hel
; good with reference to two Of tn
: men, at least, for they were capture
and convicted of another job. The IL
i cidents / have just related were nc
introduced in evidence against ther
and consequently escaped the press
, The man with the bulldog jaw escape
completely at that time, but ] met wit
3 him, years after, under circumstance
neither of us will forget SO long a
we live"
tCopyright, 1908, by W. g. Chapman.I
: copyright in Great Brittany
/, -
Practical Labor.
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