Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1909-04-14

wealthy business men and carried
large sums of money on their persons
for cattle buying.
The two providers met beside the ST.
lent house and made their way silent.
ly around to it's rear. One Of them
stationed himself where he could act
as lookout and detect the presence
of any pedestrian who might chance
to approach. The other removed his
overcoat, handed it. to his comrade
and crept up to the door. Producing a
jimmy from his pocket he applied it's
edge to the door, there came a sharp,
short crash and the obstruction swung
open. The men stood like statues,
waiting, listening, but no sound came
from the interior of the dark house.
Then one stole quietly within while
the other took up a position by the
door where he was effectually con-
cealed from the view of any passerby
Upstairs Joseph Dain was sleeping
soundly in his room, his trousers ly-
ing on the chair beside his bed. A
slight noise, a faint creaking, awoke
him from slumber and he opened his
eyes to see tall figure dimly percep.
nble In the gloam, standing beside
his bed, rifling the pockets of his
trousers in which he had a large
amount of money. A powerful, active
man of fearless disposition, Dain was
quick to realize the situation and act
on his first impulse. Springing from
the bed he clinched with the intrud.
err and short but desperate grapple
followed. Exerting all his strength
the rObber broke away and fed down
the stairs with Dain in hot pursuit.
The waiting man swung the door
wide open to allow his partner free
egress, slammed it shut again in
Dams face, and the two burglars sped
out through the darkness, separating
as they fed and running in opposite
directions.
Needless of the menacing challenge
Dain sprang toward the speaker when
shot rang through the frozen air,
and he reeled and fell to the ground
with a bullet in his abdomen. Pocket.
ing the smoking weapon the burglar
resumed his former pace, and passed
out of sight.
In the meantime he who had stood
as sentry on the outside of the house
had run swiftly across Yonge street.
Fate willed that he should trip over
the extra overcoat he was carrying
and fall headlong. Before he could
regain his feet he was seized by a
passing baker on his way to work,
who held him until policeman made
his appearance on the scene and took
the captured burglar to the lookup.
Dain was carried indoors, attended to
by surgeons and rallied considerably
after the operation, although it was
not expected that he would recover
from the effects of his terrible wound.
The officer selected by the Toronto
authorities for the task of running
down Dams murderous assailant was
John Wilson Murray, formerly of the
United State secret service force and
now in the employ of the Canadian
government. Murray's first step was
to visit the captured burglar in the
lookup. His wide experience in the
criminal world stood him in good
stead, for at the first glance he recog-
Aized the prisoner as Charles Leavitt,
a desperate American burglar and
thief Buffalo was his home town, but
the police there knew him so well that
he seldom dared to visit the place.
Looking carefully over the overcoat
found in the captive's possession,
Murray discovered the mark of a
Cleveland tailor.
He at once started for the city in
question, and looking up Leavitt's
American record found that one of
his intimate friends was Frank
Meagher of Cleveland, skilled burg.
lar, clever crook and one of the ablest
and worst trough ones" at large.
Murray was we'll acquainted with this
desperado's appearance and it fitted
the description of the burglar at
DAMS bedside. 1t also tailed with
the tailor's description of the custom.
er for whom he made the coat. There
was no room in the detectives mind
for doubt as to the identity of the
escaped criminal. 1t was surely Frank
Meagher. He and Leavitt, a daring
and INSCRIPTIONS pair, had crossed
the border to Canada, bent on burg
larry and 0potted the Dain home for
their ti~> enterprise.
Meagh~: had succeeded in making
clean getaway, leaving apparently
no clue as to his whereabouts, but
Murray set out in q patient endeavor
to follow his trail in Toronto, after
the shooting. He made a round of
all the sporting Yasorts and finally
found a young man named John Jake
Alderman. The latter was known
in Toronto as Keno Billy" and was
bartender and faro dealer. He was
employed at a place on King street.
known as the Senate saloon, kept by
Mike Ganley, United States refugee
from Indiana justice, and was behind
the bar when Meagher arrived there
on the day of the burglary. Jake had
taken Meagher's valise in charge for
him. One hour after Dain was shot
Meagher reappeared at the Senate.
but from that time on no further
trace of him was obtained in Toronto.
Leavitt was tried. convicted and
sentenced to Kingston penitentiary
for life. He submitted doggedly to
his fate and sternly refused to give
any information which might have led
to tho arrest of his comrade. Dain did