6
STORIES
OF THE
SECRET
SERVICE
i BY
Capt. Patrick D. Tyrrell
pJM 11,1 11 11
STORY No. 4
IKe Biebush
Band
Being an Account of the Capture and
Conviction of That Notorious Band
at Counterfeiters of Which Fred
Biebush Was the Leader.
By CAPTAIN PATRICK D. TYRRELL
[Copyright, 190j, by Marion G. Schcitlin.]
Here, then, was not a mysterious
•crime, the perpetrator of which was
unknown, as I suppose should be the
case iu all well ordered detective
stories, but the task of fastening guilt
on a man who had had a criminal rep
utation for more than a third of a
century,? been arrested 49 times and,'
profiting by the lesson of the past, was
following his vocation with greater
•caution than he had exercised before.
When I took up the effort to put
""01(1 Fred" Biebush where he could
make the government no more trouble
.be was busy circulating brass, silver
plated coins in denominations of 25
and 50 cent pieces and dollars. These
•coins could not be classed as clever
counterfeits, presenting an almost per
iect appearance, but being noticeably
light in weight. He was also circulat
ing the spurious S2O United States
treasury note engraved by "Pete" Mc
•Cartney and the bills known as the
Richmond tens. The former was a
perfect piece of work.
The Richmond bills were made from
a "skeleton" plate in which the name
of the bank was left blank. Other
plates were then used in connection
with it on which nothing was engraved
tuit the names of the Richmond. Mun
cie and Lafayette. Ind., banks. An
Issue of bills was struck from the prin
cipal plate. Part of this Issue would
be run through the press on one of
the other plates, thus filling in the
name of the bank desired. And here
I may say tlvat the engraver of the
Richmond plate was never found, so
far as I know, nor his identity ascer
tained with certainty. I knew perfect
ly well that Biebush was getting the
treasury notes from McCartney, but
this precious pair were so cunning in
| if £
I • ~ ffl
j • I
| . |
«%lr>
the transaction of their affairs with
one another that we were never able
to connect them with legal evidence in
the case.
As soon as I had taken a general
view ol' the task 1 had before me and
had secured all the general informa
tion available concerning Biebush 1
•sent for a man named Thomas Galla
gher, with whom 1 had had some deal
ings in, the pursuit of criminals, and
instructed him to try to buy counter
feit money from Biebush. Gallagher
was from Seymour, Ind., and had done
«oue good work in the capacity of a
stool pigeon or "roper," as we called
them in the secret service. Uelnhardt
Uossee, a countryman of Biebush. ran
a saloon known as the Sheridan Kx
change, at No. 2724 Franklin avenue,
anil his place was the headquarters for
the Biebush clique. Biebush lived wiih
bis wife und children al No. 27XJ Stod
dart street, a short distance away.
Gallagher began work by irequmt
lug the Bosse saloon, drinking, playing
.cards and gradually ingratiating him
self info the confidence of the saloou
keep<»r and Biebush, who spent much
time in the place. Afier considerable
time wart expended b.v him in this proc
ess Gallagher thought tin- time pro
pitious for in iking a proposition to
HteMi n to purihin? "coney." Clalra-
U>«i lo be au ex coat let, be at u uiyioU
to negotiate Biebush promptly began
to examine Gallagher as lo his crimi
nal history, ami his wide ami accurals
knowledge of criminal# mado It possi
l)le for him to detect a spurious con
vict as a hank teller could uetect a
.spurious coin or hill.
Gallagher could not pass the rigid
examination to which Biebush sub
jected him, and the old German de
clined to sell him any "coney," making
the excuse that he had none at that
time. He evidently believed, however,
that Gallagher was a crook w»io wanted
to handle counterfeit money, for he
did not appear suspicious of him ex
cept when it came to the point of giv
ing himself iuto his power by per
sonally negotiating a sale of "coney."
This was failure number one.
» • •
Some time before this W. \V. Ken
noch, a shrewd Scotchman, had been
relieved of the command of the New
York division of the secret service on
account of his over-indulgence in
liquor He was an honest, conscien
tious and able operative, and had but
the one fault, a fatal one, however, in
a man who is carrying secrets of great
importance to the government. After
being relieved of his eastern command
Kennoch did a good deal of work for
the secret service as a "roper." He
was.familiar with criminals and crimes,
was a plasible talker, and could worm
his way into the good graces of coun
terfeiters with much skill. .
I enlisted his services and assigned
him to the same task 1 had given Gal
lagher. He worked slowly, making
Bosse's saloon his rendezvous. When
he thought his relations with Biebush
were sufficiently close he broached the
subject of buying "coney." As in the
case of Gallagher, the wily Prussian
did not take offense nor deny that he
ever handled such goods, but he began
to put Kennoch through a course of
questioning concerning his past. Ken
noch claimed he had served in a New
York penitentiary, but he could not
furnish such proofs as demanded, for
DESPERATELY TRYING TO WREST A REVOLVER FROM THE MINISTER
WIFE.
the reason that no such proofs ex
isted, and Biebush was cunning enough
to know genuine proofs from false
ones. Here was failure number two.
* « *
I did not consider myself any
shrewder at such work than Kennoch,
but it is a universal trait for one to
believe he can do a thing better him
self than anyone else can do it for him.
I determined to see what 1 could do
toward leading the old fox into our
trap. 1 was not known 10 Biebush. I
allowed my beard to grow into a stub
ble and chose the make-up of a river
man. It I may be pardoned the di
gression I will say that with a few
days' growth of beard and rough
clothes" I could look "tough' enough to
satisfy even the fastidious Biebush, to
whom the appearance of "toughness"
was a strong recommendation. Thus
attired 1 made my debut at Bosse's.
i here was a card game in progress
most of the time, and I "sat in." Bie
bush and others whom I afterward
learned were members of his band
played with me. I frequently sat op
posite my quarry and studied him
closely. Friendly relations were estab
lished between us, and 1 thought mat
ters were progressing favorably until
I hinted to "Old Fred" that 1 would
like to handle some of his goods. Then
i found that I had made just as much
progress as Gallagher and Kennoch
hail made- and no more. Biebush said
he did not object to doing business
with me. but that he "had no coney
just then." From the way he spoke
1 knew I was wasting my time and be
fore we landed him behind prison bars
we would have to practice deeper and
moro circuitous methods in "roping."
Failure number three.
* • •
Before I took charge of the St. Louis
district I had been informed by a dep
uty warden in the Joli.-t penitentiary
that a certain prisoner In that Institu
tion had intimated to him tli.it lie had
information which might lie of value
to the secret service. 1 bethought my
self of this and went to see him. He
proved to lie John Brldg* alia *"I loo
sier Bill," under sentence for horse
stealing. This worthy wn an Indiana
product and something over l'» years
■ >ld He was a congenital criminal,
slopping only at murder. Ills favor
CAMERON COUNTY PRESS, THURSDAY, MARCH 22, 1906
ite form of crime was "garrotint;,' that
In, grabbing a pedestrian by the throat
from behind, thrusting hi* kr.ee into
the small of tho victim s'back and thus
pinioning him while his assistant re- |
lleved tho prey of hid valuables. But
In tho form of crime "Hoosier bill" !
was not over particular, taking side
excursions into the Held of burglary,!
horse stealing anil petty acts of knav- ;
ery. The Chicago police knew him as
a West side hold-up man of danger- j
ous character.
I listened to his story with deep in
terest, as it -bore directly on the case !
In hand —the landing of the big fish |
we were playing for —Fred Biebush. j
"Hoosier Bill" knew Biebush intimate
ly. He had established this intimacy j
by presenting proper penitentiary ere- j
dentials, of which he had plenty. Be- '
fore he ran afoul of an Illinois sheriff
and had been "settled" for driving off
the wrong horse, Bridges had operated
in St. Louis as a burglar and turned
over to Biebush such of his "swag" as
was suitable to the latter's purpose, :
especially the solid silverware. On one
occasion he had arrived at the Biebush
residence at four o'clock in the morn
ing in a cab, bringing with him a
package of silverware. The paper wrap-;
per broke as he was about to ring the
door bell, scattering the loot over the
porch. The "cabby" helped him gather
it up, after which Biebush appeared
and took it into the house. I found
this "cabby" later and used him as a
witness against Biebush.
The "swag" brought in by burglars
was paid for in "coney," according to
Bridges, the thieves favoring this way
of dealing because they received larger
compensation in representative or
counterfeit dollars than they would in
genuine money. The silver was melted
by Biebush into bars, to be used in the
manufacture of silver money.
But this was not the most valuable ]
informal ion gleaned from "Hoosier
Bill." He let me into the secret of the
identity of the more active and impor
tant members of the Biebush gang.
"Hankey" Thielen and John Sullivan,
lie said, were two of "Old Fred's" most
trusted lieutenants, serving as boodle
carriers and go-betweens in the deliv
ery of "coney" for their chief to the
persons with whom he elected to do
business. Thielen, in addition to his
1 1 supernumerary services to Biebush in
j circulating bad mone was a manu-
I facturer of s'ilver money, according to
: my informant.
| Bridges did not know just where the
j Thielen plant was located, nor, in fact,
| was it ever located, although we had
j good reason to believe" it was on the
j bank of the Mississippi river, above
| St. Louis. It was. Bridges' uuderstand
| ing of the operations of the band that
| Thielen made the silver-plated coins
1 from dies cut by one Joseph Hargate,
an English engraver, who also did a
legitimate engraving and die-cutting
business in a small shop at his home.
• • •
Concerning Sullivan, however, "Hoo
j sier Bill" had lftore definite knowledge,
j He was a colored coachman in the era-
I ploy of Dr. A. S. Barnes, at No. 3013
j Easton avenue,, and, I believe, the only
j colored man who ever rose to a posi
tion of any prominence among "koni
! ackers." He was fully trusted by Bie
( bush and was credited by my inform
j ant with much native cunning. Later
1 also was prepared to crodit. him with
i much prudence in the conduct of his
criminal operations, as the following
| incident will indicate:
Long after my talk with Bridges and
| while I was still at work on the case
a colored coachman named Jackson
came to my office one day and asked
if 1 wanted him to buy some counter
feit money for me, that he was able
Ito get all lie wanted. I asked him
from whom he could g<»t it and he
ancwered from Sullivan. I commis
sioned him to make a denl with Sulli
van, and I have every reason to be
lieve that he tried in good faith to
do so, but he failed, Sullivan each time
putting him off at the last moment.
|Tn lie Continued |
Wound Up.
Bacon I see a man recently commit
ted suicide by swallowing a dock key
Egbert Strange way of winding up
his earthly nfuim, wasn't it?—Youk#r«
Uiatfumau.
THE VETERAN
In Government Service
Must be Protected.
ASTRONG PROTEST
from "Corporal" Tanner to Con
gressman Tawney, Against
a Bill Now Pending.
Washington, D. C.—"Corporal" [
Tanner, commander-in-chief of tho 1
Grand Army of the Republic, has writ- j
ten a letter to Representative Tawney,
of Minnesota, chairman of tho house ;
committee on appropriations, protest
ing vigorously against tho action of
Tawney's committee in recommending ;
the enactment of a law reducing the \
compensation of government clerks j
after they have attained the age of 65
years. "Corporal" Tanner writes
particularly in behalf of his comrades ,
of the civil war, many of whom, now
employed in the government service,
would bo affected seriously by the
proposed reduction in compensation.
"Corporal" Tanner ventures the as
sertion to Mr. Tawney that "you won't j
find a Confederate soldier behind your
bill," and incidentally pays a tribute
to a Confederate brigadier who refus
ed to permit a single one of the Union
veterans to be disturbed when he had
the power to remove them.
In the course of his letter Mr. Tan
ner says: "You propose that tho alms
house alone shall be the veteran's
refuge in life and, perhaps, after
you've kicked him out to 'rattle his
bones over the stones,' deny him a
burial ground and close against him
the gates of Arlington.
"My dear Mr. Chairman, there is a
dead line in legislation representing
the saviours of the nation as perfectly
marked as at Andersonville, beyond
which no enemy may ,go. Let me
beg you to pause before you attempt
to cross it under the belief that the"'
(sentry is asleep, and to have only
words of praise for the bridge that
piany times and oft has carried you to
safety."
A PANIC IN THE STEERAGE.
It Was Caused by a Storm and Was
Finally Quelled by the Ship's
Officers.
New York.—A terrifying expe
rience at sea was reported by the
officers of the French line steamer
Hudson, which arrived here Tuesday.
During the storm which swept the At- j
lantic last Friday afternoon and even- j
ing, the 330 steerage passengers on
the steamer became panic-stricken
and were quieted only after the cap- '
tain and first officer had threatened
them with revolvers and knives.
Both the barometer and thermome
ter fell rapidly and a terrific gale
rolled up great seas. When the storm
was at its worst the steerage passen- 1
gers became panic-stricken and sought
togo 011 deck, insisting that if they
must die they wanted to meet death in ,
the open. The stewards and minor of- j
fleers lost control of the passengers
and appealed to the captain for as- ,
slstance.
C'apt. Juham and First Officer Me
hausas, who were on the bridge, hur- j
ried to the steerage quarters and at
tempted to pacify the terrorized pas- i
sengers. First they assured them that j
there was 110 danger, then threatened
them and finally drew revolvers and
knives and threatened to use them un
less the passengers became quiet.
Order finally was restored. Soon af- |
terwards the storm abated. >
A WALL Of MOLTEN LAVA.
It Flows Into the Ocean in a Stream
Five Miles Long, from Sa
moan Volcano.
Honolulu. —The officers . of the !
3teamer Sierra, which has arrived
here from Sydney, N. S. W., via Sa- !
moa, report that tho eruption of the j
volcano on ij|e island of Savaii, of tho ■
Sanioan group, continues on a large 1
scale. Three villages have been com- i
pletely destroyed, including Malaeola, '
where was one of the finest cocoa j
plantations on the islands.
The lava from the volcano is (low- j
ing into the ocean in a stream three- I
quarters of a mile wide and 20 feet
deep, at tho rate of 20 feet an hour. At ;
night a solid wall of molten lava five !
miles long can be seen reaching far |
out into the sea. For some distance j
ahead the sea water is boiling and tho 1
surf breaking over the fiery stream. !
Slump in Prices of Traction Stocks.
Chicago, 111. —Prices of the Chi- l
cago traction stocks suffered se- j
verely on both the New York and Chi- j
oago stock exchanges Tuesday. In |
New York the price of Union Traction !
common stock broke almost in half, j
dropping from 11"* to 7%. The pre- j
ferred stock, which closed Monday I
night at 40, declined to 30. West Chi- j
cago showed a decline of 15 points and !
North (Miicago was down 23 |w>lnts.
An Ex-Banker's Sentence.
Buffalo, N. Y.—Fred It. Green,
former cashier of the defunct 1
Fredonla national hank, 011 Tuesday
pleaded guilty and was sentenced to
six >-ars in Auburn prison. Ure«n
was indicted on 35 counts charging
embezzlement and false entry In con
nection • ith the funds and books of
the bunk.
Steamer and 12 Lives Lost.
London, Kngland The Brit lib
■(• inner Culni' foundered ,iff the lunch
coast Tu« day. Twelve of her crew
Wtrv drowned mid seven wei<- saved.
PAINS
AMERICAN WOMEN FIND RELIEF
Tho Case of Miss Irene Crosby Is One
ofThouwands of Cures made by Lydia
E. Plnkham's Vegetable Compound.
How many women realize that
It is not the plan of nature that women
should suffer so severely.
Thousands of American women, how
ever, have found relief from all monthly
suffering by taking Lydia E. Pinkham's j
Vegetable Compound, as it is the most j
thorough female regulator known to j
medical science. It cures the condition
which causes so much discomfort and
robs these periods of their terrors.
Miss Irene Crosby, of 313 Charlton
Street, East Savannah, Ga., writes:
" Lydia E. Pinkham'sVegetable Compound
is a true friend to woman. It has been of !
groat benefit to me, curing mo of irregular j
and painful periods when everything else had j
failed, and I gladly recommend it to other
suffering women."
Women who are troubled with pain
ful or irregular periods, backache, j
bloating (or flatulence), displacement
of organs, inflammation or ulceration, I
that "bearing-down" feeling, dizzi
ness, faintness, indigestion, nervous j
prostration or the blues, should take '
immediate action to ward off the ser : -
OUH consequences, and be restored to
perfect health and strength by taking
Lydia E. Pinkhjun's Vegetable Com- j
pound, and then write to Mrs. l'ink
hara, Lynn, Mass., for further free ad
vice. She is daughter-in-law of Lydia
E. Pinkham and for twenty-five years
lias been advising women free of
charge. Thousands have been cured
by so doing.
New York, Fob. 28. 1906.—The Erie Rail
road hits placed with the American Lo
comotive Company an order for 25 loco
;no(ives, delivery to begin in March.
These are to be exact duplicates of the
19 engines received by the Erie during
the past six months, and which have
proven so successful in passenger service
as to warrant their adoption as a stand
ard tvpe, known all along the line as "the j
2,500"c1a55." With their tenders earn
ing 16 tons of coal and 8500 gallons of w i }
ttr, these largest passenger service loco- j
motives ever constructed, weigh 389,750 j
pounds each, the weight of the locomotive ,
alone being 230,500 pounds.
Used on the through Chicago and Bui- j
falo trains of from 12 to 15 cars, these en- j
gincs easily keep a schedule time even
when hauling these long trains of the j
heavy coaches now required for up-to-date
passenger service. So satisfactory have
they proven in making time, during four
months' trial in winter service, that the
Erie management decided to have a suffi
cient number on hand for all emergencies
in their fast passenger train service.
SAMPLES BY TELEGRAPH, j
This Woman Thought She Could Or
der Her Dress-Goods by
the Card.
ofn.'jnl of one of the telegraph com
panies tells an amusing story of a young i
Woman in a Pennsylvania town who I
wished to send i telegram to a New York
firm ordering a supply of dress goods.
After some inquiries as to whether the
line "really and tru'y" did "connect with I
New York," relates Success Magazine, the |
young woman finally decided to afford the >
company the benefit of her patronage. I
Opening her handbag she took therefrom |
various samples which she consulted from !
time to time as she undertook the task i
of expressing her wants in the usual "ten ■
words." When she had apparently com- j
pleted (lie interesting operation, she at
tached two of the samples to the telegraph '
form and handed her message to the man i
at the window. Her telegram read as fol- !
lows:
"Blank & Co. Send express four yards
■ample A' and six yards li.'
Before and Alter.
"Your tickets to the concert last, night
were complimentary, weren't they?"
"I thought they were till I heard the
coiiLcrt." —Cleveland Leader.
—-
TIIP man who complains loudest of his
hard lot observe and see it' it isn't so—
is the very one whose office chairs are pad
ded with rose-leaf cushions.
A GUARANTEED CUKE FOR
EPILEPSY FITS
Will refurj y:»ur money it not cured. Writo (or
Itnn] IM testimonials.
.7AS. T. CHONEY, M. D.,
l'tt!cn "i;;iu.ial Bai<k Cuildinf, • COLUMBUS, OHIO.
PRICE, A 25 Cts. m «Jj | 0% Jf* $ 3HH *pa
A AH
iUTI/lllinikir »* £ IS ouaranteed to cure
ANlruKiriNt
Jjfo *0 tatJAl f0» It. Hill r, M. Aiiim'a'h 1, K If |T!H)\"I i'l
~ tm Hi iJk If # Jf. J>. # Mauultoturot i!tf»
W. L. DOUGLAS
*3 ? -°&*3= SHOES®
W. L. Douglas <4.00 Gilt Edge Lino
cannot be
JULV 6 1876
||||[CAPITAI. *2.500,000
¥. L. DOUGLAS MAKES * SELLS MORE
MEM'S *3.80 SHOES THAN AMY OTHER
MANUFACTURER IM THE WORLD.
nnn REWARD to anyone who can
V I UjUUU disprove this statement.
| If I could take you Into my three large factories
•t Brockton, Mass., and show you the Infinite
care with which every pair of shoes Is made, yon
would realize why W. L. Douglas $3.50 shoea
cost more to make, why they hold their shape,
fit better, wear longer, and are of greater
Intrinsic value than any other $3.50 shoe.
W. L. Doug! ma Strong Ma do Shoem for
Men, 52.80, $2.00. Boy' School A
Oro9*Shoes, $2.80, $2, $1.75, $1.5(9
CAUTION .—lnsist upon having W.JL.Doug.
laa shoea. Take no substitute. None genuine
without his name and price stAinpcd on bottom.
Fast Color Eyelets used; they will not wear bras»u.
Write for Illustrated Catalog.
W. DOUGLAS, Ilrockton. ATass*
THE GOVERNMENT
OF O^IKT^XXA.
Hundred and Sixty
I !5f Xf* Acres of land in West-
Wtkm
yj can be purchased frotn
ra ■ j wa y au j j a , u j cotn-
I panics at from $6 to $lO per acre.
On this land this year has been luced up
wards of twenty-five bushels of wheat to the acre.
It is also the best of grazing lan»l and for mixed
farming it has no superior 011 the coutiuent.
Splendid climate, low taxes, railways conven
ient: schools and churches close at hand.
Wrte tor "Twentieth Century Canada "and
low railway rates to SUPERINTENDENT OF IMM-
G RATION, or to authorized Canadian Agents :
II M. WILLIAMS, Law Building, Toledo, O.
MentUnx this paper.
MAKES BEAUTY
, 4
* Among the ladies no other mecli- [
[ cine has ever had so strong a fol- ,
> lowing, because, excepting pure 1
, > air and. exercise, it is the source of J
I mare beautiful complexions than ,
> any other agency, as
Lane's Family;
Medicine
[ the tonic-laxative. It puts pure '
j , blood in the veins, and no woman ,
I ► can be homely when the rich, red •
! J blood of health courses in her veins. J
1 > Sold by all dealers at 25c. and sex. '
SICK HEADACHE
.—iPositivclvcurrd by
PABTrc* 1 ' * hese !■»«'« ri,,s v
LAf\l L.910 I They aiso relievo
■ma " " tress from Dyspepsia, In
! WIT7LE digestion and Too Hearty
I\/IT © Eating. A perfect rem
&S S wSLI* edy for Dizziness, Nausea.
1 PILLS Drowsiness, Bad Taste
iSI * ' la tll ° Mouth, Coated
raMffiAaW Tonguo, Pain la the Side.
• l-tU'llt-J'lWj 1 TORPID LIVER. They
I reguate the Bowe!s. Purely Vegetable.
SMALL Pill. SMALL DOSE. SMALL PRICE.
Genuine Must Bear
UArtltKd Fac-Similo Signature
BRITTLE
[REFUSE SUBSTITUTES.
13 11 w WII MAD S E lN all
Send for Booklet giving full description.
BROWN MANUFACTURING CO.
Zanesville, Ohio.
loUTHERNFARM LANDS
where diversified crops, grasses, ura:ns, fruits
and \ eiretables grow, whore there are tlneoppor
1-initios fdr stockmen and dairymen, may be
had in Southern Railway Territory at very low
prices and on easy tortus. A little investment
will tfo a lonir ways. The finest climate. No
Irrigation needed. Publications and Infornm
* ion sunt. M. V. ICH Land unci
| Industrial Auont, \VASIII NiiTON. 1» j
J~>S MOTHER GRAY'S
°\k SWEET POWDERS
fy FOR CHILDREN,
~ / A Certain Cnro for FevorUlineM,
k (onillpiitlon, II cu«l ■» the,
miumuch TrunblfMi T»'Hhh»f
, A ' llliordcri, and Doniroy
tlOTlikK URtY. j Worm*. "" <
N . i.| ! i,,| >iu'.'l hours. At nll Urutfifisl*. ot*.
j Sample luuiiet I liCL. Ail.lie-s.
Ne» VorkcitjijA. S. OLMSTED. Le Roy N.V.
DON'T BUY STOCK
ltd! in h. Uuy a mine in A* v.id » and get •. <i
•■ ii If. My b > k ulla v. u how. t*r<« MINT*
U2J*!)4I James HuoU bidu San Francisco. Cat.