Ten Years Among the Mail Bags Part 11

The noise had attracted the attention of two of his friends, who it appears were just leaving the premises, and who were also well armed, and in the confusion which ensued, aided by the darkness of the night, Pat managed to get clear again.

The next attempt to arrest him was undertaken in consequence of private information that his family, together with a brother and other relatives, had purchased tickets for the West. The buying of an extra ticket more than was required for the party entering their names, authorized the belief that it was obtained for Pat himself, who would probably join them at some point on the route. They were to leave on a certain evening, by one of the Albany boats, which usually made no landing between the two cities. On this occasion authority was obtained for the boat to touch at Poughkeepsie, to receive on board the Special Agent and two United States Marshals. With this sleepless corps of officials there was no lack of handcuffs, revolvers, &c., nor of firm resolves to take the culprit at all hazards, if he was on the boat, and to arrest his wife and one or two others, believed to have been his accessories after, if not before, the fact.

The night being still and cloudless, at about midnight the well-known sound of a steamer's paddles was heard, and soon the huge form of the "Hendrick Hudson" was seen looming up in the distance, her numerous signal and other lights, as she changed her position from time to time, appearing like some brilliant constellation, and making a most beautiful display.

As she approached, for a time there appeared no perceptible change in her course, but when nearly opposite the landing, she suddenly veered toward us, and in a moment her guards were chafing against the ends of the pier; and without waiting for the gang-plank, we were on board before the wheels had fairly ceased their motion. The engineer's bell sounded the signal for going ahead; and we about the same time commenced our search through the floating palace.

As we progressed through the s.p.a.cious cabins, a chorus of discordant sounds saluted us from their sleeping occupants.

It is curious, by the way, to see how the levelling influence of sleep shows itself in establishing a sort of equality between different individuals, in respect of the noise they make in the world. Your modest man, who, in his waking moments, avoids all display of his vocal or other powers, no sooner comes under the influence of the drowsy G.o.d, than his modesty deserts him; he blows his trumpet with as much sonorousness as the most impudent of mankind. The most retiring person I ever knew, was remarkable for being outrageously vociferous in his slumbers.

The redoubtable Pat, however, was guiltless of contributing to the volume of sound aforesaid; nor was his physiognomy discoverable among the sleeping or waking occupants of the cabins, so far as we could see. And as for any discoveries we made that night, or any good that our trusty arms did us, we might as well have been encircled in the "arms of Morpheus." At one time, however, we thought our night's work would prove a successful one, for on hastily consulting the clerk as we boarded the steamer, he informed us that a man answering tolerably well the description of the object of our search, had paid his fare to Albany, and was snugly stowed away in berth No. 54, in the forward cabin.

The revolvers and "ornaments" were hastily examined, and the plan adopted of delegating one of the trio to proceed quietly to No. 54, and, under the pretence that its occupant was in possession of the wrong berth, to ascertain, first, if he was really the veritable Pat.

As I was the only one who could readily identify him, this duty fell upon me; and leaving my fearless a.s.sociates at the top of the stairs, with instructions to rush to my aid, in case I took off my hat, with almost breathless anxiety I made a descent into the cabin, and in a few seconds stood in front of the berth designated by the clerk.

"Hallo, stranger," I called out, at the same time gently shaking him, "haven't you got the wrong pew?"

An inhuman sort of a grunt was all the reply I could at first obtain, but after repeating the inquiry, and increasing the force of the punch, he leisurely turned over.

"And what the d--l do you want?" says the lodger, "bothering a gentleman in this way? Is it my pocket-book, or my boots, you're after?"

It wasn't Pat's voice at all, nor was it his face, which I at that moment got a glimpse of, by the aid of a lantern in the hands of one of the servants who was pa.s.sing. As I saw preparations making for "turning out," and was satisfied that I had waked up the wrong pa.s.senger, I thought it prudent to withdraw before matters progressed further in that direction.

None of the suspected party were on board on that occasion.

The telegraph was resorted to after our arrival in Albany, and word transmitted to us in that way, that the party we were in search of would certainly go up the river by the boat on the following night.

The next morning we were at the wharf, and by an arrangement with the officers of the boat, we were enabled to see every person who went ash.o.r.e, as they pa.s.sed through a half-opened door at the after-gangway, in giving up the pa.s.sage tickets. The net was well spread this time, and though we did not pick Pat up, we secured the whole party of his traveling friends, including his wife and two children. The Marshal took them in charge, and without much ceremony or explanation, conducted them to a hack which had been provided for their special accommodation. They were very soon after escorted to the police station, and a subsequent examination of their persons and effects afforded no additional light, except that among the baggage of Mrs. R. was found a lot of sc.r.a.p gold, which a dentist of Philadelphia mailed to a New York firm, and which had never reached that firm. On the strength of this discovery, she was afterwards indicted as an accomplice of her husband, and committed to Brooklyn jail, where she remained for several months, her two children staying with her, at her own request.

Although she undoubtedly knew the precise locality of her "liege lord," and probably could have procured her own liberty by making it known, yet she remained firm, and to the last steadily refused to give the least information, insisting, moreover, that she was ignorant of the post office depredations at the time they were going on, and that the stolen property found in her possession was placed in one of the trunks without her knowledge. Possibly it was so, as some of Pat's wearing apparel was found there also.

The remainder of the party, three in number, were detained at Albany.

It was deemed necessary that they should remain there a while, but the Chief of Police was instructed not to treat them strictly as prisoners, but to allow them to lodge at the station; and an arrangement was made for them to eat at a neighboring restaurant, at the expense of Government.

The proprietor of the aforesaid restaurant finding, however, that they were disposed to abuse that privilege, by imbibing too freely, and selecting from the bill of fare whatever was choice and expensive--and especially as the contract for this portion of his customers was not very clearly defined--took the precaution to erase from one copy of the bill of fare all articles of a rare and expensive kind, which corrected list, by the third day, embraced but one or two plain dishes. This brief programme was sure to be thrust before them as often as they called for anything to eat, though a verbal announcement of "coffee" was added at the regular morning and evening repast.

Having also some faint recollection of the discussions in the public papers about reforms in the Navy, and dispensing with the "grog rations," he compromised the matter on that head, by allowing the men "two drinks" a day, and no more; that being, in his estimation, a proper Government allowance.

As sufficient legal evidence could not be procured, to show that they really aided and abetted in the robberies, they were notified that their bills would no longer be paid by the Post Office Department; and declining to continue their journey to the West, tickets were furnished them to return to New York.

Soon after their arrival in the city, they fell in with a tolerably smart specimen of a lawyer, whose indignation at the unheard-of proceedings against them, of course had nothing to do with so mercenary a motive as that of getting a fee out of them; and by his advice a suit was promptly brought against the Special Agent and the two Deputy Marshals, for false imprisonment!

The cause was "set down" for trial in the Marine Court, and came off in the course of a week or two. A waggish spectator remarked that he could not see why it was brought in the Marine Court, unless it was because the complainants were "half seas over" when stopped at Albany.

A very brief synopsis of this trial will, I think, prove worth a perusal.

On the part of the prosecution, the complainants themselves were the witnesses--all three of them genuine sons of the Emerald Isle.

Separate trials were asked and granted, and that of the Special Agent was first taken up.

Michael D. was duly sworn, but instead of mounting the witness's stand, with one bound and a broad grin, he was inside the Judge's desk, and seated in the chair usually occupied by one of the a.s.sociate Judges! A burst of laughter followed, in which his Honor, as well as the spectators, joined. The officer in attendance on the Court was quickly alongside of Mike, and with considerable difficulty removed him to the witness' stand. Here he fixed his eyes intently on me, perhaps to keep watch, lest I should attempt to run away, considering me his prisoner at last, and evidently chuckling within himself at the thought that the time had now come to put me on as limited allowance, so far as variety went, as he had been restricted to while in Albany.

Order being now restored, the counsel commenced interrogating the witness.

"Michael, were you on your way to Illinois, from this city, on the 20th instant?"

_Witness._--"Was I in Illinoi? and sure I niver was in me life; and if that spalpeen of an Agint beside ye says I was, he lies, bedad he does!"

Notwithstanding the loud calls of "stop, stop," by his lawyer, he went through with the sentence, and stood, a thumb in each arm-hole of his vest, looking defiantly at me, and apparently ready for the next question.

_The Court._--"Now, Michael, you must not be in such a hurry. Try and understand what is said to you thoroughly, before answering. I shall not permit any indulgence in the use of harsh names to any of the Government officers, or to any one else in Court."

_Witness._--"And didn't they stop me, and trate me the same as a male thafe, your Honor?"

_The Court._--"Well, that's what we want to find out; but you must not talk, only when you are questioned; remember that."

_Counsel._--"I will put the inquiry in another shape. Were you a pa.s.senger on board the steamboat for Albany, on any night during the present month?"

Mike remained speechless for a moment, staring at the Judge in the most penetrating manner. That functionary finally broke the silence,

"Well, why don't you answer?"

_Witness._--"And sure, your Honor, didn't you just tell me to remain s.p.a.cheless when questioned?"

_Court._--"_Only_ when questioned, I said."

_Witness_ (to the counsel).--"I _was_ on the stameboat, and the Agint there knows it, so he does; and them other big feeling chaps there (pointing to the Deputy Marshals) knows it too. And I'd like to see 'em try to delay me in that way agin," at the same time looking fists, if not daggers, at those innocent officials.

Here the patience of the Court, as well as the counsel, became well nigh exhausted, and it was suggested that Michael should stand aside for the present, as the same facts could be proved by another and more intelligent witness.

The new witness went on to describe the affair from the commencement, including the detention at Albany. The cross-examination, however, showed that so far as any "imprisonment" was concerned, it was literally "false."

It was shown that all had the "freedom of the city," while in Albany, having frequently visited some "distant" connections--_distant_ about two miles from the police station--and had been well boarded, away from the station, at the public expense. That in fact they could have gone anywhere they chose, a few hours after their arrival in Albany, or on any succeeding day.

After listening to the circ.u.mstances, and the motives which led to the detention of these men, and to the testimony of one of the police officers at Albany, in relation to their treatment while there, the Judge summarily dismissed the case, remarking that, in the first place no "imprisonment" had been proven, and that, even if it had, he should probably have sustained the officers in the discharge of what they considered their duty, in endeavoring to ferret out and punish the authors of important crimes against the laws of the land.

The trial I have just described was but one of many incidental occurrences which took place in the course of the attempts made to arrest Pat R.; occurrences, both tragical and comical, which would here find a place, did not the limited s.p.a.ce render that impossible.

In closing the history of this case, it will be sufficient to say that, in the course of our investigations, the innocence of many suspected persons was established; rest.i.tution made to the sufferers by Pat's villany, so far as their losses could be satisfactorily traced to him; and the Post-Office Department were rid of one of the most daring and unscrupulous mail robbers that ever disgraced the service. He is not even now as secure in his hiding place as he perhaps imagines himself to be.

If there are those (as there is reason to suspect) who shared with him in such of the spoils as were not recovered, they also, even if they escape the punishment which they merit from their fellow men, will not always elude the pursuit of conscience, nor avoid the retribution which she will most surely inflict upon them.

CHAPTER V.