Thomas Furlong

“ When you have found the motive for a crime, the balance of the work is usually easy.
There is one more phase of the detective business that I want to refer to briefly. Many men believe they were created or born for the express purpose of becoming detectors of crime. They believe they have missed their calling—it makes no difference by what means they are making a living now—because they have not been "called" into the detective business and many of them actually put in all their leisure time trying to "catch on" to a job, either in some municipal department or with some private agency. ”

“ I do not believe in rewards, and in all my long career, have made it a rule to never work for, or receive one, no matter how great the amount offered for the arrest and conviction of the guilty party, or parties—this being the usual way that the heading of a reward is written. ”

“ The pettifogging lawyers and irresponsible penny liners of the press have educated it up to believing that all detectives are thieves, thugs and black guards, just because there are some men in the business who make the peddling of family secrets and the working up of evidence in divorce cases a specialty. I could never quite understand why this state of affairs should be true, for I [Pg 6] know many men of as good moral character and just as honest and upright in the detective business as I have found in any of the other professions. ”

“ At 28th Street there was a mob from eight to ten thousand men, armed with guns, pistols and clubs, who closed in on the Philadelphia troops, opening fire upon them and disarming a number of them with their overwhelming force. These troops displayed great coolness and nerve under the circumstances, but the numbers were so overwhelming against them that they were forced to take refuge in the Pennsylvania Railroad Company's roundhouse at 28th Street. ”

“ At the head of a force of twenty-eight men, including a full train crew, conductor, engineer, fireman and three brakemen, I made up a train of ten cars and started west with them. We were not molested until we arrived at the Compton Avenue crossing. At this point a number of strikers under the leadership of a notorious agitator named Geary, were seen on the track. Each striker carried a small American flag, which they stuck up in the middle of the track at the crossing, and then every one began signalling us to stop, shouting to us that "we did not dare run over an American flag." ”

“ I said, "Supposing these men had fled from the United States and were found in Canada, could they be arrested and extradited back to the United States for trial?"
"Yes," he said, "they surely could, under the provisions of the Ashburton and Webster Treaty, which provides for the extradition of fugitives who are legally charged with the crime of forgery, or of uttering and publishing forged paper."
"But," I said, "Mr. McBride, the company's agent signed these bills of lading."
He replied, "I understand from you that the agent had received no cotton. Am I right?" ”

“ As he stepped from the street to the edge of the side-walk, a colored man, who had been concealed behind a shade tree, sprang out and was seen by a number of passengers who were on the rear end of the car to strike Temple a powerful blow on the head with something like a baseball bat. After striking the blow, the negro dropped his weapon and his hat, and fled into an alley, disappearing in the darkness. The people who had witnessed the assault, hastened to Temple, who lay unconscious on the sidewalk, picked him up and carried him into his house. ”

“ We were riding in the smoking car when this conversation occurred and his sobbing and crying attracted the attention of the passengers in the car, and it was really pitiful to see a strong, athletic looking young man like Watts sob and cry like a child. He finally ceased and said, "Well, I am glad you got me. I have never had an hour's peace or rest since that night at Catholicsburg, Kentucky."
"Why," I said, "What happened at Catholicsburg?"
He answered, "Oliver Beach shot my father, James Watts, in our boat at Catholicsburg, and he and Brooks put the body into the Ohio River. ”

“ Finally the good people of the town awoke to their responsibilities, as they always do in cases of this kind. Headed by an ex-mayor, John B. Bowman, editor of a newspaper, a fight was begun on the crooked officials. And it was a fight, a bitter one. A number of aldermen who had been under suspicion of being partially responsible for the bad state of affairs, were beaten for re-election, and an attempt was made to get possession of the city funds in the city treasury, which was in the hands of Thos. J. Canty, gang city clerk, who had usurped the office of treasurer. ”

“ He was considered an expert boxer and was known to be a powerful man—at least by the two police officers whom he had knocked down and escaped from in Buffalo. I had heard of Daly and knew of his record, but I had never seen him until I was called upon to arrest him in Oil City, and I did not know who he was at that time.
When Daly had learned from the friends he had met in Oil City of the valuable fighting bulldog before mentioned, he at once went to the meat market, where he found Mr. Ziegenheim, and tried to purchase the dog from him for the purpose of using him as a fighting dog. ”

“ For, if we keep quiet and ignore the matter, they will, in all probability secure a man who will accept the proposition and we would be parties to this conspiracy for not having exposed it."
"Well," replied Harbaugh, "you are the boss, and it is up to you. I have told you all I know about the matter. I told this lawyer that his proposition was very important, and coming to me suddenly I would need a few days to think the matter over, and it would require at least a few days to select the right kind of a man—one that could be trusted. ”

“ It was just the time in the evening when people were leaving their places of work and going home, and the streets were thronged with people. We had to go north on Spring street, the principal street of the city. By reason of the continual uproar created by the prisoners it proved to be the most sensational arrest that had ever been made in Los Angeles up to that time. ”

“ One of these persons is now in jail, and the other is dead. In my opinion Maxwell is the only living person who knows the facts, and, therefore, he is the only person from whom these facts can be obtained. I believe I can get those facts from him, but I want you gentlemen to understand that I am in the employ of the Missouri Pacific Railroad Company, and, of course, they are paying me for all my time, but if I were not in their employ I could not do this myself on account of my being so well known. ”

“ I have no disposition to willfully malign any one, and names are only used in cases in which the facts are supported by documents in the archives of the courts of this country, Canada and Mexico, the scenes of my greatest activity.
In selecting material for this book I have only used cases which were out of the ordinary, or in the unraveling of which some original or unique detective work was done. No attempt has been made to enlarge on the facts at hand. ”

“ The Preller murder occurred in the summer of 1885, in one of the rooms of the Southern Hotel, St. Louis, Mo. Clarence Preller was a young Englishman, as was also his slayer, Hugh M. Brookes. The discovery of the body, the apprehension of the murderer, his trial and execution, attracted the attention of the civilized world. The true story of the conviction of the perpetrator of this foul crime has never before been published. ”

“ Tenacity and nerve are other valuable assets. A lazy man, or a coward, has no business in the ranks. And he must at all times be firm.
To my mind, a real detective should possess all the elements within his general make-up, which would be necessary to make him a success at any of the leading professions. He should possess the keen perceptive abilities of a trained or successful journalist, be able to read between the lines, as it were, or recognize the value of a clue, as the journalist does the value of a bit of news. ”

“ Erfert replied, "What does he want to see me for?"
The operative said, "I do not know. He will explain that when he sees you."
Erfert replied, "I am in a hurry and haven't time. I'm late anyway, and will call and see him tomorrow."
The operative said, "You can either go with me right now and see Mr. Furlong, or I will call the policeman (pointing to a policeman who happened to be standing diagonally across the street from where they were) and have him take you to police headquarters, and probably Mr. Furlong will go there and see you. Now it is up to you. ”

“ These unfortunate people are easier to convict of a crime than persons who have always borne a good reputation. Then, again, the offering of a reward for criminals whose identity is unknown, tends to keep a certain class of people from divulging facts that they may know, which might, if properly utilized, lead to the identity, arrest and conviction of the perpetrators of the crime for which the reward was offered. ”

“ In conclusion, I will add that after the natural qualifications for a good detective have developed themselves, it takes more hard work and study to reach the pinnacle of fame than other professions require, and the remuneration is a great deal less, taking into consideration the hazardousness of the business. ”

“ I want to state right here, that no man in this country has a greater respect for Old Glory than I have. I put in four years, one month and eight days defending it on one occasion, and thus helped to make it what it is today, and it made me feel pretty bad to see it put to the use it was on this occasion, and it is the only time in my life that I failed to pay the flag the respect due it. To make the story shorter, we paid no attention to the flags, and would have run over the mob had they not skeedaddled out of the way of that train. ”

“ A remarkable feature of this affair was that this party of agitators appealed to the sympathy of the working element. The laboring classes, nearly to a man, were in sympathy with them. I know that none of them had ever been connected with the working man's interests, nor were they laboring men themselves. They were simply agitators and people who were always trying to obtain something for nothing.
Guiterrez de Lara posed as a Mexican novel writer, and claimed to have been admitted to the bar as a lawyer in Mexico, and fled from there, going to Los Angeles, California, where he sought refuge. ”

“ Louis who was worth knowing. He was a warm friend and great admirer of Mr. McDonald, and on entering his office and noting that he was alone, he said, "Mac, why don't you select the right kind of a fellow and have him locked up in Jail with Maxwell. He might succeed in getting the facts as to Preller's murder from him."
Mr. McDonald was startled to hear this suggestion from Mr. Reedy, but, being a man of steady nerves, he managed to conceal his surprise. He told Reedy that he did not believe that anything could be accomplished by locking a man up in jail for that purpose. ”

“ Ricardo Flores Magon was a man of brain, well mannered, inclined to be courteous, and educated and undoubtedly intended for a leader of men, but he was unscrupulous and irresponsible, and was an anarchist at heart. ”

“ An allotted time is given to the prisoners each day in this place for exercise. Maxwell noticed that almost immediately after his arrest the newspapers were giving Dingfelter all the notoriety, and had dropped himself, so he hastened to make the acquaintance of one so notorious when they met in the "bull ring." This was the only opportunity of meeting him, and from the first time that Maxwell saw Dingfelter he never lost an opportunity of talking with him, and he stuck to Dingfelter like the proverbial fly to the horse. ”

“ No class of people were ineligible to membership; all trades and professions, as well as races and tongues, provided they were males over 18 years of age, and had the price of the initiation fee, usually one dollar, could join. The color line was not even drawn, as it is in most secret societies. Of course, some good honest men were on its roster rolls, but it was dominated by a brazen gang of mountebanks, agitators and crooked politicians and others seeking power and prominence. To gain a point the officers of the organization would stop at nothing. ”

“ Lands was a crooked lawyer, who had married into an eminently respectable family of the State of Indiana. Rice was a single man, but was engaged to a young lady, whose family was of considerable prominence. He was also of a good family and had always borne an excellent reputation, and was considered a bright, affable young business man.
After learning all of these facts and reporting them to the proper officials of the Missouri Pacific System, I was instructed to locate and arrest Rice and Lands, charging them with having made and issued the counterfeit railroad tickets. ”