The Caldwell watchman. (Columbia, La.) 1885-1946, 1911-07-07

M take up private practice
n A he was really a fairly
D wealthy mana condition
esn.RanD which resulted mainly
through bis intimacy with
the great Wall Street operator, Shank
lin Skene. whose friendship sent a
good many tips on the market Val
entine's way.
This association grew out of a re-
markable set of occurrences in Grim.
lnal annals, which developed into one
OF the causes celebres of modern
times.
First, word as to Shanklin Skene.
This man was one of the most un.
scrupulous stock gamblers, railroad
wreckers and market manipulators in
the Empire city. In his notorious at
tempt some years ago before to corner
the visible supply of gold, the United
States itself was shaken to it's center.
Only the firmness and adroitness of
the national executive saved the coun-
try from widespread ruin.
Possessed Of enormous personal
means, and controlling equally large
resources through the banks and other
sources OF wealth in Wall street, he
was everywhere recognized as Gym
ical and merciless foe. In his vast
schemes and crooked manipulations he
had enriched himself and group of
cronies while running thousands of in.
nocent Investors.
Consequently Shanklin Skene was
one of the most cordially hated men
Of a peculiarly hateful speculative day
and generation. His enemies were
everywhere; he trusted nobody, not
even his own friends. Therefore it
took little to throw him into panic
Of cowardly fear.
On certain autumn day in the
early eighties Shanklin Skenes bro
kers received the following typewrit.
ten anonymous letter:
"Shanklin Skene, Esq-Take notice!
II hereby warn you that within six
days from the date of this commun-
cation your worthless carcass will by
the hand of the writer be relegated to
the dust from whence it came Make
your peace with God If you can Mine
is no wanton wish to shed the blood
Of such scoundrel, but l am in
spired by the living God to remove
one who is perpetual menace to the
community at large
The writer, who was evidently an
/ educated man, went on to say that on
account of losses in the stock market
and elsewhere he had come within an
ace of shooting Skene on the proceed
ing Friday at the close Of the day,
''but when about to press the trigger
a voice babe him hold his hand in or
der to give the culprit time to repent
ere he was plunged into perdition and
everlasting torment" The letter was
signed with the words "Your Victim"
The brokers, Cummings G Cum.
mings, at first paid no attention to
this precious screed, regarding 1t as
the work of a harmless crank. But
when several other letters of similar
tenor followed evidently emanating
from speculator who had been fol-
lowing the market "not wisely but too
well," and was probably on the verge
of black ruin, Messrs. Cummings &
Cummings delivered the several mis-
sives to Shanklin Skene. SO deeply
did they alarm the speculator that he
promptly called on Inspector Valen-
tine for help.
Valentines = first move was to as
certain from Skene's associates,
books and papers the names Of such
men, customers or followers, who
might have been sufficiently hard hit
and rendered desperate enough to
write such "a series Of letters. Ger
tain of these were Swallowed, but
without result.
The inspectors next move was
through the personal columns OF the
newspapers. He advertised that IF
the person who sent an anonymous
communication signed victim" to a
certain Wall street financier would
call at the operators office, or state
where an interview could be arranged.
matters would be satisfactorily adj
iusted"
The very day the advertisement ap-
peared Shanklin Skene received
through his brokers another letter In
the same handwriting and signed as
before. It read as follows:
"You must think me fool or worse
to imagine that would put myself IN
your power by going to reur Office or
agreeing to an interview With po-
l;ceman waiting outside with war
PANT for my arrest! For the present
will communicate only through the
newspaper. have lost fortune
nv ALLOWING to your roguery. But
might agree to allow you short
respite from death in return Tor some
reliable information concerning tne
tendencies of certain stocks"
This letter was signed Texas Cor.
RESPONDENT; the inspector replied
and accepted the terms through sec
ond advertisement; this elected an
other letter from the anonymous one
inoulring specifically whether q given
stock would rise or fall during the
next few days.