The Carlisle independent., 1909-03-25

M M detective of fiction.
 # Nor has this type
 ss: I:. SSssyX M changed to any
 V = great extent since it was set forth in the eperson of the heroof tho Murders in the Rue Morgue." Still doth Sherlock Holmes turk in the darkened precincts of his superheated rooms, consuming tobacco and daily ing with the insidious delights of opium, at times taking refuge in the profound silence" for which Poe's astute analyst was noted, and emerg- ing from his reveries master of a new set of brilliant deductions warranted to furnish key to the secrets of any criminal case presented for his consid- eration. And even as Holmes followed in the footsteps of Dupin, countless hordes of imitators camp upon the trail of Holmes, and we are forced to the conclusion that the type is pretty sure to be utilized by authors for the next 50 years
 The question naturally suggests it. self: Is the real simon-pure detective like unto the member of his profession who works wonders in the world of fiction? Put this proposition up to Wilson Murray, chief inspector of criminal investigation of the depart ment of justice of the province of Ontario, Canada, and he will answer emphatically in the negative The solving of these seemingly inexplicable problems is a capital exercise for the intellect, but has mighty little to do with practical police work For crim- inals are not drawn into the meshes of the official net by virtue of fine drawn deductions and opium-bred in- spirations.
 Murray served through the civil war in the navy. He was in the Missis- sippi, or Gulf, squadron a part of the time, under Commander Jewett, and he fought under Farragut and was in number of engagements including the fight at Mobile. From service in the Mississippi and gulf Murray was ordered to the great lakes aboard the Michigan. He continued aboard her until after the close of the war and in December, 1866, he left the Mich igan and the service
 The war left it's indelible imprint on Murrays life, as it did on the life of many another man. It tended to mold his ambitions and direct them along the line of what later became his occupation. His career was not cast ashore by any dread of hardship afioat or any dislike of service at sea. It was influenced by an event that is one of the important, yet little known, episodes of the civil war: The attempt of the confederates, in 1864, to cap ture the U. s. s. Michigan, to take Johnson island, in Sandusky bay in Lake Erie, release 4,000 confederates imprisoned there, burn the island, and, if possible, destroy Detroit, Cleveland and Buffalo by fire, and strike terror to the heart of the north The man who discovered the plot was Murray, and it was he who unearthed the iden- tity of the picturesque leader and was instrumental in frustrating the schemes so cunningly devised.
 The war was at it's zenith in the year 1864, when Commander J. c. Car ter of the United States navy sent for Murray and detailed him to special duty. There had been some vague rumors floating around of a confed- crate plot to blow up Johnson island, liberate all confederate prisoners and land them safely in Canada across Lake Erie.
 1,Ntt conspiracy, if there is one" said Com mander Carter. Go to any place and every place where your judgment leads you You have an unlimited commis- sion. Report to me from time to time'
 Murray went first to Detroit and conferred with Col Hill, who gave him what information he had. It was very meager At that time Vallandingham, a member of congress from Ohio, was in exile in Windsor, Ont, across the river from Detroit. Vallandingham was a southern sympathizer. Murray, garbed as civilian, crossed to Windsor and settled down to learn, first of all, the ways of Vallandingham and any other confederate sympathizers gathered kthere. He observed closely all who
 ed on Vallandingham. Among them |Ae-noted a dapper, energetic little. fel- low who came and went at Valland- ingham's headquarters. Murray learned that his name was L. c. Cole, and that he was reputed to be a confederate agent. Cole was about 3S years old, five feet seven inches tall, weighed I35 pounds, with red hair and long mustache, and gray eyes so small and sharp and bright that they were the first feature to draw Murray's atten- ton to the suspect Murray finally overheard a scrap of conversation be- tween Cole and Vallandingham that convinced him the former was an i'm portant and dangerous person. He communicated with Commander Car ter and prepared to follow Coles trail if it led to the end of the earth.
 When Cole alighted from the train in Montreal Murray was a car length behind him. Cole went to the St. Law