Highland recorder. (Monterey, Highland County, Va.) 1877-1972, 1912-01-19

Friendship. 1t was arranged that we
shout! work together in the future for
the solution of any similar difficulties
which might come to me in the course
OF my professional career. We had
arranged to catch the next steamship
for America, but on the day before
she sailed there occurred in London
robbery of such a mysterious charac-
ter that neither of us could resist the
temptation to remain and lend our
aid to the discovery of the criminal
Everybody remembers how the ia
nous Gwyn jewels were stolen from
the Tower of London. These emer-
aids. which had a historic rather
than any especial intrinsic value, had
been presented by Charles II! TO his
famous favorite, and were preserved
in a small chamber In the Tower.
where were stored miscellaneous
treasures of secondary importance
not usually placed on public exhibl-
ton. They were kept in an isolated
building. a round turret which ran
straight up to height of seventy
feet, and was absolutely inaccessible
from the outside, the brick walls af-
fording not the slightest foothold. In
fact there was no direct access to
this tower at all, since it connected
with the main building by series OF
passagewuys, intricate, and entirely
unapproachable except from the CEN
ira building, 200 yards away, which
was guarded by a file Of soldiers.
This turret had small barred win
dow overlooking the road, 60 feet up.
It was too high for any thief to throw
UP n graphing hook; in short moth
ing but a fireman's ladder could have
gained access to it from the outside.
Yet in spite of this the window was
entered from the outside, bar was
removed from the mortar setting, and
the thief gained entrance, obtained
possession of the emeralds, and calm
" descended, unobserved. The rob-
berry was not discovered until the fol-
lowing day, by which time the perpe-
traitor of the crime had got safely
away.
The daring nature of the crime ex-
cited all London. 1t was certain that
no ladder had beer used to gain adj
mittance. While the tower was un-
garded, persons were continually
passing and repassing in the road be-
meath, and any such device would
have been speedily detected. the
more so inasmuch as any ladder
placed against the wall would have
been set at such an angle that it
world have blocked the sidewalk I'M
de:neath.
On the third day after the robbery
the emeralds were discovered in the
pawnshop of a notorious fence" in
Whitechapel region. They had been
lst. there by an Italian, the man con-
fessed, when threatened with prose-
cution. Neigibors of the pawnbroker
confirmed this statement. An timer
ant organ grinder, accompanied by
monkey. had been seen to enter the
pawnshop On the day after the rob-
be:y. His monkey seemed to be
sick, one neighbor added. 1t was
wrapped IN blankets and lay listlessly
on the top Of the organ. 1t was an
extremely large animal and those who
saw il had received the impression
that it was a chimpanzee, but nothing
0. Il could be seen, since it was
swa:hec from head to foot.
Other witnesses confirmed this
statement 1t was, furthermore
known that an Italian organ-grinder
hsG Ieen seen in the vicinity Of the
to~sr for several days before the rob-
berry. Although he had chosen the
WORT place for the plying of his
trade, and had taken in practically
nothing. he had cheerfully ground out
his taces day after day at the base Of
the tufTet His monkey, however,
lay Gil the top of the organ, just as
the other witnesses had described.
aid never stirred a muscle. Some
Children. who had tried to pet it.,
we.4 anSrily "shooed" away by the
organ grinder, who asserted that the
aa.cssl was sick.
rat was all that could be learned.
All the ;tinerant organ-grinders in
Lonaon were promptly investigated
b: the police, but no man with such
30 aciG.al was found. Although the
ts~sls had been recovered. fear OF
othsr daring robberies Of a similar
k!psl lrnpelled the authorities to prose
co'- their search in the most vigorous
manner
The nrst thing to do" said Crewe
to ise, when We had agreed to do our
beet to unravel the mystery, 'is to
looh at the turret.
We went thither accordingly and
found a curious crowd standing in a
solid phalanx at the base of the
tower. gazing up at the Trick walls,
while couple of policemen stolidly
moved Them on whenever their num-
bern became too great for street
trafhc 10 pass. 1t seemed impossible
that anyone could have scaled those
walls without ladder.
do you suppose the man sent his
monkey up?" I hazarded.
Crewe smiled and shook his head
"A monkey might possibly be able
to find foothold in the bricks" he
said "But how corld it have sawn
out the iron bar? Apart from this,
no monkey could be trained to bring
down any article it's trainer wished
for. No, Langton, ingenious as your
theory is, We must dismiss it from the
realms of possibility"
The SIN was chioipo-o rora tb;po