The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1914-10-01


bolt heads riveted. He got salted
down in stir several times before he
came to the realization that he was
on the wrong side of the fence. 1t
was during the serving of his last
period behind the bars that he swore
to follow the path of rectitude. He
was in for getting caught with his
hand in the wrong pocket trying to
remove the contents Of said pocket
without the owners knowledge or
consent. Shortly after he was in
carcerated he attempted to make
his escape. with the result that he
was shot in the leg and consequently
the leg had to be amputated. Pick,
the last we heard of him, was enjoy
ing freedom, aud as he has made
good for several years, the probabll-
lty is that he not only realizes that
crime does not pay. but is putting
his knowledge in practical operation
aud we earnestly hope he will con-
tinue to do so.
Another instance we recall to
mind is, OF young man who left
his home and went to the city to
make his fortune. He had not been
long in the city before he found out,
that fortune was very elusive god
dess, and his aspirations and supply
Of ready cash BEGAN to rapidly fade
away and he soon began to miss the
regularity of his three square meals
per day. He had left home with so
many bright expectations that he
could not bring himself to the point
of writing back and informing them
of his failures. At the hotel where
he was staying he roomed with a
man who ran a gambling establish
ment and who finally persuaded him
ITO accept job serving out drinks to
the habitues of the gambling tables.
On the night that he went to work
the place was raided by the police
and he was one of the bunch that
was gathered in. When he appear
ed before the court on the following
morning he was heavily fined and
not having sufficient cash to pay the
fine, be was sent to the workhouse.
When he left the works" he and
man with whom he had become
acquainted with in the worsk," lett
for the harvest fields of Dakota.
They were several days in making
the trip. for they were compelled to
make number of stopovers due to
being unable to convince the rail
way shacks" that they were mil
lionares in disguise aud had in some
unaccountable manner been separ-
ated from their ready cash supply.
When they finally reached the har-
vest fields they found that there
were ten men for every job that
came 10 their notice, and so they
spent their time in a blind pig"
that they had located. One night
while the young fellow was pretty
much under the influence of liquor
his companion persuaded him to go
along with him and help to blow
safe in one of the banks Of the town.
They made good job OF it while
they were at it, and not only did
they succeed in blowing open the
safe but they wrecked the entire
building and blew all the paper
currency 10 bits. so they got very
little for their trouble and barely
escaped capture at the hands of the
aroused inhabitants. They finally
eluded their pursuers. and several
days later found them in Montana
where they again undertook to en-
ter safe by the use of explosives,
which resulted i'll their apprehen-
sion, aud they had long spell in
Deer Lodge to recuperate and figure
out how 1t happened. The young
man was twenty-three when he was
sent there and before he got out he
was over thirty-two years of age.
Nine years of his life had come and
gone aud ne had nothing to show
for them. He bad had enough of
crime, however, aud Immediately
set out for his home. The proceeds
of his short criminal career had
been practically nothing, and he had
spent over nine years ID prison. Is
it any wonder that he decided that
crime did rot pay?
How many of the boys who are
now in prison can figure the cost
and subtract it from the proceeds
and strike balance? Mighty few
of them. Most of them know that
crime does not pay. Their, you ask, !,
why do they continue to commit
crime? Some of them like the ex-
citement of the game; others think
| o1co lof G.. IL,