True Stories of Crime From the District Attorney's Office

of the Wi

shed, "I am one of those who d

as a school for "wireless telegraphy." Later on he had installed over a dozen deal tables, each fitted with a complete set of ordinary telegraph instruments and connected with wires which, while apparently passing out of the windows, in reality plunged behind a desk into a small "dry" battery. Each table was f

n and introduced himself as having met Felix at "Lou" Ludlam's gambling house. He then produced a copy of the Evening Telegram which contained an article to the effect that the Western Union Telegraph Company was about to resume its "pool-room service,"-that is to say, to supply the

be, Mr. Felix knew the fascination of games of chance and he had heard the merry song of the wheel at both Hambourg and Monte Carlo. In Europe the pleasures of the gaming table had been comparatively inexpensive, but in New York for some unknown reason the fickle goddess had not favored him and he had lost upward of $51,000. "Zu viel!" as he himself expressed it. Being of a philosophic disposition, however, he had pocketed his losses and contented himself with the consoling thought that, w

having McPherson withhold the news of some race from the pool rooms long enough to allow one of the others to place a large bet upon some horse which had in fact already won and was resting comfortably in the stable. Felix grasped the idea instantly. At the same time he had his suspicions of his visitor. It seemed peculiar that he, an inconspicuous citizen who had already lost $50,000 in gambling houses, should be selected as the recipient of such a momentous

nd if we should offer to make a big bet ourselves, the gam

hvindling game," said Felix s

ce solitude had reigned supreme and the spider had spun his web amid the fast-gathering dust, all was now tumultuous activity. Fiftee

a neck!" cried one,

ck cigar. The place buzzed like a beehive and ticked like a clockmaker's. It had an atmosphere

e three of them were closeted among the zitherns. At the same moment the fifteen operators were ranged in a

employees. Felix wanted to see it, but "Mac" explained that it was locked up in the vault at the Farmers' Loan and Trust Co. To Felix this had a safe sound-"Farmers' Trust Co." Then matters began to move rapidly. It was arranged that Felix should go down in the morning and get $50,000 from his b

lson, tentatively. The three conspirators parted

ed very slowly. There was not even a flurry in zitherns. He waited impatiently for Nelson who was to come at fi

y same bees, although Felix did not recognize them. It was crowded with men who struggled violently with one another in their eagerness to force their bets into th

on Coco!" cried a b

is bet on Jackstone,-make it

"trusted cashier," "not quite so

as "Mr. Keene," while Messrs. "Ryan," "Whitney," "Belmont," "

g beside a ticker, shouted the odds and read o

y're

ds at the

is ga

on the

by a nose-Pe

sted cashier" to indifferent millionaires. Felix wanted to rush in and bet at once on something-if he waited it

. Felix." Shrinking at the thought of such publicity in such distinguished company, Feli

"Now don't make any mistake!" Fel

as "

ack the news three minutes. This is merely to see if everything is working right. Don't make any bet. If I give you the winners correctly, you ca

hen the half. A terrific struggle was in progress between Col. Starbottle and Don Juan. First one was ahead and then the other. Finally they came thunderi

the telephone. "Mac"

ourth race, with Calvert second. Play Old Stone to win at 5 to 1. We shall make $250,000-and Old Stone is safe

cashier" so many financiers were betting on Calvert.

ls into the "trusted cashier's" hand. The latter marked it "Old Stone, 5 to 1 to wi

shouted the m

ck Old Stone and Calvert passed the quarter, the half, and the three-quarter

"Calvert a close second!" Felix nearly fainted. His head swam. He had won a quarter

n at the finish, both jockies wearing the same colors, the

ney. The millionaires were already streaming hilariously into Sharkey's. "Gates" pledged "Belmont" and "Keene" pledged "Whitney." Each had earned five dollars by the sweat of his brow. The glori

herson turned out to be Christopher Tracy, alias Charles J. Tracy, alias Charles Tompkins, alias Topping, alias Toppin, etc., etc., arrested some eight or ten times for "wire-tapping." The "trusted cashier" materialized in the form of one Wyatt, alias, Fred Williams, etc., a "wire-tapper" and pal of "Chappie" Moran and "Larr

d "trimmed" Felix of his $50,000, exactly as the latter had alleged. He stated that Wyatt (alias Williams) was the one who had taken in the

d an old New York case, McCord vs. The People,[2] which seemed in a general way to sustain his contention, and which had been followed by another and much more recent decision. The People vs. Livingston.[3] The first of these cases had gone to the Court o

New Y

App. Di

e had induced Miller to give him a gold watch and a diamond ring as the price of his liberty. The conviction in this case was reversed on the ground that Miller parted with his

t this conviction was reversed by the Appellate Division of the Second Department on the authority of the McCord case. The op

l in counterfeit money, that is no reason why the appellant should go unwhipped of justice. We venture

cCord matter, adopted the rule followed in civil cases, to wit that as the complaining witness was himself in fault and did not come into court with clean hands he could have no standing before them, the Appellate Division in the next case felt obliged to follow them and to rule tantamount to saying that two wrongs could make a right and two knaves one honest man. It may seem a trifle unfair to put it in just this way, but when one realizes the iniquity of such a doctrine as applied to criminal cases, it is hard to speak softly. Thus the broad and general doctrine seemed to be established that so long as a thief co

the very face of the police. "Wire-tapping" became an industry, a legalized industry with which the authorities might interfere at their peril. Indeed, there is one instance in which a "wire-tapper" successfully prosecuted his victim (after he had trimmed him) upon a charge of grand larceny arising out of the same transaction. One crook bred another every time he m

ies, all the other knaves in the country took it for granted that they had at last found the Elysian fields and came trooping here by hundreds to ply their various trades. The McCord

the mouth espied a written stone, telling begga

ged the "flimflammer," "confidence man," "booster," "capper" and every sort of affiliated crook, recalling Cha

elders,' whom in England we call 'shivering Jemmies,' 'the süntregers,' 'the schwiegers,' 'the joners,' 'the sessel-degers,' 'the gennscherers,' in France 'marcandiers a rifodés,' 'the veranerins,' 'the stabulers,' with a few foreigners like ourselves, such as 'pietres,' 'francmitoux,' 'polissons,' 'malingreux,' 'traters,' 'rufflers,' 'whipjacks,' '

Albany had said, many years ago, that "neither the law or public policy designs the protection of rogues in their deal

ily it involved, as the dupe supposed, the theft or disclosure of messages which were being transmitted over the lines of a telegraph company-a misdemeanor. Hence, it was argued, the victim was as much a thief as the proposer of the

on, it nevertheless closely resembled those swindlers in general character and came clearly within

s politicians of influence, a friend of one of whom went on Summerfield's bond, when the latter was being prosecuted for the "sick-engineer" frauds to the extent of $30,000. They regularly went to Europe in the summer season and could be seen at all the race-courses and gambling resorts of the Continent. It is amusi

ieved the McCord case to be still the law of the State, he, of his own motion, and with commendable independence, immediately arrested judgment. The People thereupon appealed, the Court of Appeals sustained Judge Foster, and the defendant was dis