The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1912-10-18
NOTED SLEUTH
DEAD IN EAST
Detective Seymour Beutler Knew
Fifteen Thousand Crooks

NeN iorh, o.t' ics--ctNlnOIr BOUT
Ter. for years the idcntifier for the
Pinkerton Detective Agency, Is dead
David Friedman. sos West Emo ave-
lie mad been III with pneumonia.
II WIS said of Bcutler that he had a
knowledge of 1900 crooks OF various
sorts and that those whom he knew
would have to put or very effective
| disguises to keep him from recognizing
them again.
For years he went to state and rs
tional conventions To look over the
crowd that entered the halls for fa-
niliar faces. i'm the racetrack devs his
post was outside the track TO see that
no pickpockets got past the gate
keeper.
Most OF the crooks whom he knew
well enough TO pick out of u crowd he
had never seen. but his memory for
ldescriptions va3 % good THAT hel sci /.
/ dom made a mistake. Rcsides descrip-
tons he made il a part of his work TO
memorize the records of those he need
ed to know.
Identified by Ears.
For the past thirty years he had
been In demand for the entrances TO
important meetings cf all sorts He
had travelled from one end of the
country to the other identifying erin.
inals who had never seen him. The
ears, Beutler said, were his principal
change and cannot be disguised.
Mr.. Beutler was "A slender. gray
haired. gray mustacbed man. but he
had great powers of endurance. He
vas at work on forgery case one
time, where firm of pork packers had
lost $4,000. He traced an employc Of
the firm 10 Canada ami then decided
to pat him under surveillance.
Buetler hired an adjoining room and
went two days without food or sleep,
keeping a constant watch on his man.
He wanted TO see If his man had ccr-
tain papers necessary for the case
and Beutler didn't leave the door until
he made certain that the mar had
these. An arrest followed and the
forger settled With the firm by giving
back $4,000.
One of Beutler's famous cases wa
tho arrest of Sophie Lyons. the most
notorious and clever woman thief In
the United States. He bad caught her
once in Springfield. Mass picking a
pocket ard tried to arrest her. The
outcry she raised brought crowd
down on Beutler and he was badly
beaten.
Remarkable identification.
His identification Of Billy Coleman,
who stole $5O.Oo0 from the Coopers-
town, n. y, office Of Ambrose Clark.
SON Law OF Bishop Potter WAS con.
sidered remarkable. Coleman was
taken in New York with some of the
Jewels. but the headquarters detec-
tives could not say who he was. Beut-
ler who had never seen him, but had
seen photograph Of the crock once
accosted Coleman as II he had known
him well and the prisoner admitted
the identity.
To Pat Sheedy has generally been
given credit for recovering the Gains
borough portrait of the duchess of
Devonshire, but the story has beer
told that IL was Beutler who first
learned where the picture was. A con
vict sentenced to Dannemora To whom
Adam Worth had confided the hiding
place of the picture. told Beutler, and
after Sheedy had conducted the neeo-
tiation for the return CT the picture.
Robert Pinkcrton delivered 1t to the
Agnews in London. the original own
crs. Beutler has the first copy of the
picture ever made.
He had wide acquaintance with
racing men through his own connec-
tion with the track and was very pop
ular. Barney Schneider once named q
horse after Beutler. Beutler had
charge of the. Pinkerton work at the
Polo grounds Three years ago he left
the Plnkertons and started the Greater
New York Detective agency.
Mr.. Beutler was unmarried and is
survived by ono sister. Mrs. David
Friedman.