The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1912-12-03


looking carefully over some toothbrush
es, bought one. paid for it with FIVE
dollar bill and received $4.70 In change.
1.-The clerk had received through a
customer. who was beyond suspicion.
one of these same bills before which
had been pronounced counterfeit and
was suspicious of this one. But in
stead Of refusing it he gave the man
his change and sent boy after him to
see where he went. While the boy was
gone the clerk took the bill he had re-
ceived to the bank. where it was pro-
nounced spurious. The boy saw the
old man who had passed it go into a
certain house. then returned to the
drug store and reported the fact. A
watch was set upon the house. but the
party who had gone in there was not
seen to come out or again enter it.
''This is the point at which l took
the case 1t may be supposed that my
first move would be to call at the
house on some pretext and find out
who lived there. Any such act might
stand against me in the future. In
stead, l rented room opposite the
suspected premises. where from win
dow l could keep it under constant
surveillance, and spent many an hour
watching it. Several times sat up
till daylight in the morning hoping
might see some suspicious circum-
stance. An elderly woman lived in
the house, who, l learned, was a
widow with two or three little chill
dren. She did not appear to have any
dodgers. though there was a card In a
window, Room to Rent" l saw one
or two persons who were passing look
at the card. ring the bell. enter and
come out. but during my watch the
room was not hired.
zone day l received notice that q
counterfeit bill Tad been passed at a
beat store. another at newsstand and
still another at a hardware store. In
deed, the reports Of the passing Of
these bills came in from all over the
city. One of the persons on whom they
were passed had submitted to be vic
timized in order to catch the perpetra-
tor. Not being sure that the bill was
counterfeit, he had pursued the same
course as that pursued by the drug
clerk. The person who had offered the
bill was a woman. She had been fol.
lowed, and the house she entered was
watched. But she was not seen max
ing an exit. nor did she ever again ap-
pear to the watcher or any one else
concerned.
when had gathered these addi-
tional facts | felt sure that | had met
with conditions that would be very
difficult to unravel. And yet it appear
ed that more than one person was en-
gagged In showing the couDterfeits, and
the more persons possessing a secret
The more difficult it is TO keep it.
"One day the president Of the bank
whose bills were counterfeited receiv-
ed an anonymous note written in q
feminine hand that if he would send
to such street and number he might
be afforded clew to the counterfeit
ers. The note was turned over to me.
and replied to it in person. l was
received by a young woman. who told
me that man in house directly op-
posite to the one in which she lived
had excited her suspicious. But she
could give no reason for this except
that he appeared to have no business.
IF l were to let it be known that l
was detective working up case l
would get multitude Of clews every
day, and each clew would be more RI
diculous than its predecessor. Never
theless in this case the girl seemed to
be SO positive that there was some
thing wrong about the man opposite
that concluded to investigate. The
best way to do this was to transfer
my quarters to the house she lived in
it was an apartment house-and set
up q watch. One of the fats was va
cant. and | rented front room in it.
II had observed the man opposite
but few times before l could under
stand the girls suspicious. But l
could give no more reason for mine
than she could for hers. She was