The Cairo bulletin., 1912-09-30

~
pistol, girl leaned 49, L = *
out of the coach JAN 9rtppNNp
window and demanded to know what
he wanted With sweeping bow the
| thief answered;
Only the honor of dancing one
| measure with your fair self
Helping her gracefully from the
coach, he proceeded to so through
stately dance with her, then and there
in the dust of the road. After which
bowed low again, sprang to the sad
die and galleped away, having stolen
nothing except Ave minutes OF pref
tv girls time.
The highwayman was Jack Shep-
| pard. And the eAd adventure set ey-
cry one in England to talking about
| him Which was just what his van
| ity-craZed brain wished dick Tur-
| pin. Claude Duval and other scoun-
| dreis Of tho road are said TO have
dcne the same thing--from the same
motivel
lack Sheppard's adventures haye
formed the plots of dozens of dime
| novels He Is also the hero Of at
least one famous book and play, Boys
| in olden times. reading a garblcd tale
Of his exploits, were wild to become
highwaymen. As a matter OF fact,
| Jack Sheppard was merely low-horn.
reckless piekpoeket and hold-up man.
| with twisted, deprayed nature and
| illustration Reproduced from a gen,i-
| ire portrait1 shows he was not the
| handsome daredevil that the dime noy-
| els have made him. His homely face
| II not unlike that of a criminal idiot.
Sheppard was only twenty-five when
he was hanged. He was born in Lon
don in 1909 and was brought up In
roorbouse. When he was old enough
/ 10 work he was apprentieed TO a car
| penter Then it was that he learned
much about locks and bolts and the
best way to cut through walls. That
seems to have been all he mastered
of the carpenter trade. But it was
/ enough for his purposes,
/ He deserted his master and began
to pick up living by petty theft.
Being mentally deficient, he found this
an easier way to get on than nv work.
ing He was soon caught and brought
before magistrate as runaway
apprentice" He was released and at
! once entered on career Of wholesale
| robbery. He afterward confessed that
he stole from every one he could
/ This sort Of thing brought him GER
tain potoriety. but not enough, He
was very ordinary, cheap kind OF
/ burglar. So he took 10 eccentric
feats to get himself talked about. The
dance in the road was but one Of scv,
/ eral such antics. He used to dispose
Of his plumber through one Jonathan
| Wild, who was not only receiver Of
| stolen goods but a sort Of thiefcatcher
| as well When Wild had gotten oil
the money possible out of crook he
would turn the fellow over to Justice.
| Thus he made an excellent living in
! both ways.
/ Sheppard auarreled with Wild. who
thereupon set the officers of the law
upon him. Jack was arrested, brought
/ to trial and condemned to be hanged.
/ He was locked into one of the strong.
est cells IN Newgate prison. For al
ready he had reputation as clever
| jail-breaker He was handcuffed and
| he ~ No. al M hn
got away Here is the story (proba-
! bly, exaggerated BY the writers Of that
day. of his escape:
| He freed himself Of his chains, bur-
/ rowed into the thick, ill.made wall
with such instruments as he coald
4 find ait hand wriggled through the
/ gap he made in the masonry and
reached an inner yard. There he
| climoed q chimney and made bis way
into corridor. He forced or picked
the locks OF six doors and came out
| at last upon the prison roof. Finding
he could not, get I'd the street from
| such. a height. he went back to his cell.
| snatched up his blankets, tore and
twisted them into rope. returned TO
the roof and let himself down to safe
| ty. ~
Two weeks later, while he was
drunk, he was recaptured. Twice he
escaped. but was too vain and stupid
to keep his freedom. Through drunk
ienness or vanity he always made
some blunder that led to his recap
ture He was hanged on Nov. rs,
1874. A mob of 100000 people--from
! duchesses to ragpickers--turned out
4 to see hfm die.
| when one separates the truth from
tho masses OF silly legends the won.
derful Jack sheppaTd appears to, taye
been q dull vicious semi-idint, whose
only cleyerness was a real genius for
iail-breaking. Even among the des,
peradoes of his time he cut very
poor figure.