Western Carolina Democrat and French Broad hustler. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1913-1915, 1914-09-10
"DETECTIVEn CLEOPHUs ALIEN
FAMILIAR CHARACTER, JAILED.
Made Himself Notorious in Henderson.
vile at Hawkins Trial. AID.
judged Insane.

! C1eophus Allen, erstwhile seIf-styled
private detective, sometime section
hand, reputed by himself alone. to be
the holder of several diplomas from
universities of learning, ex-preacher
OF the gospel, at present itinerant UNI
, oerella member, has again fallen into
the hands of the law and has been ad
Judged insane by Marcus Erwin. clerk
OF Superior court and will be held
In the county Jail at this place until
arrangements can be made to send
him to Morganton, says the Asheville
Gazette News.
He was taken into custody upon in
formation furnished by Postmaster
Owen Gudger, B. B. Webb. postoff1ce
Inspector, J. Y. Jordan, deputy United
States marshal and R. E. Osborn, who
state that he has been causing the,
postal authorities at this place and in
Washington great deal of trouble
during the last few weeks, by writing
letters to the authorities claiming
that his mail wa being intercepted
and that forgeries ere being com
mited against him. is said that
Allen has an idea thai It is his duty
to correct the abuses which he claims
are being made by the official gang
ard that he was called upon to run
down gang of criminals.
The papers in the case state that
Allen is AZ years of age, a native Of
Haywood county, where his father,
Atlas Allen now lives and that when a
boy he received blow on his head
which it is thought. is responsible for
his present condition. 1t is stated
that he was treated once by DR.. Nc.
Cracker while an inmate of the coun j.
ty Jail at Waynesville
Cleophus Allen first broke into the
;imelight in this section during the
famous Myrtle Hawkins trial at Hen
Jacksonville several years ago, when
he appeared on the scene and an
nounced that he was detective, and
had startling evidence that he wish
ed to make public. At first he told his
story to the newspaper men covering
the trial and part of it was believed.
out finding that he was gaining ready
believers he elaborated ON the story.
and then it was found that he was
mentally off balance and his story was
not given any credence He demand
ed to be placed on the witness stapd :
during the trial but this request was
denied and then he took an intense
dislike to w. o. Shellnut, an Atlanta
travelling man who was witness dur
ing the trial and tried in every was
possible to discredit Shellnut's story
Allen grew to be such nuisance
around the court house that it is I'M
derstood he was given his walking
and told N move
Nothing else was heard from him
until during July he blossomed out at
Canton, where it is stated he was
working with assection-- gang and
wrote several letters to the authori-
ties at Atlanta telling them that he
could locate the helms sisters, who
mysteriously disappeared from the
Georgia city several months ago. Again
he brought in the name, of -Shellnut
and in a letter to Mrs. helms, mother
of the girls, told her that Shellnut had
a part in the strange disappearance OF
her daughters and Mrs. helms met
Shellnut on an elevator in the Gould
building in Atlanta and denounced him
as being of the parties responsible
for the girls disappearance. She'll
nut denied that he knew anything OF
the case except what he had read IN
the papers and that Allen was hound
ing" him because of his testimony IN
tie Myrtle Hawkins case.
Allen again dropped out of the
limelight, but it was not for long, for
several days ago he appeared in Ashe-
Vile and this time he was again fol-
lowing his old job of mending umbrel-
las