True Detective Stories from the Archives of the PinkertonsMoffett, Cleveland
History
True Detective Stories from the Archives of the Pinkertons
Moffett, Cleveland
Crime -- United States; Criminals -- United States; Detective and mystery stories, American
All the train-hands were immediately questioned, but none of their
stories was in any way significant, except that of Newton Watt, the
man in charge of the second car. He said that while busy counting
over his way-bills and receipts he had been startled by the crash of
broken glass in the ventilator overhead, and that at the same moment a
heavily built man, wearing a black mask, had entered the car and said,
"If you move, the man up there will bore you." Looking up, Watt said
further, he saw a hand thrust through the broken glass and holding a
revolver. Thus intimidated, he made no attempt to give an alarm, and
the masked man presently left him under guard of the pistol overhead,
which covered him until shortly before the train reached Morris, when
it was withdrawn. He was able to locate the place where the crime must
have been committed, as he remembered that the engine was whistling
for Minooka when the stranger entered the car. This left about thirty
minutes for the murder, robbery, and escape.
Returning to Chicago, Mr. Pinkerton investigated the character of the
man Watt, and found that he had a clean record, was regarded as a
trusty and efficient man, and had three brothers who had been railroad
men for years and had always given perfect satisfaction. Watt's good
reputation and straightforward manner were strong points in his favor,
and yet there was something questionable in his story of the
mysterious hand. For one thing, no footprints were found in the snow
on the top of the car.
Brakeman Schwartz, the only man on the train who had not yet been
questioned, "deadheaded" his way, in railway parlance, back from
Davenport the following night on conductor Danforth's train, and
reported to Mr. Pinkerton the next morning. He was a tall,
fine-looking young fellow, about twenty-seven, with thin lips and a
face that showed determination. He was rather dapper in dress, and
kept on his gloves during the conversation. Mr. Pinkerton received
him pleasantly, and, after they had been smoking and chatting for an
hour or so, he suggested to Schwartz that he would be more comfortable
with his gloves off. Schwartz accordingly removed them, and revealed
red marks on the backs of his hands, such as might have been made by
finger-nails digging into them.
"How did you hurt your hands, Schwartz?" asked Mr. Pinkerton.
"Oh, I did that handling baggage night before last," explained
Schwartz; and then he related incidentally that as he was on his way
back to Chicago, the conductor of the train, conductor Danforth, had
discovered a valise left by somebody in one of the toilet-rooms. Later
in the day Mr. Pinkerton summoned the conductor, who said that the
valise was an old one, of no value; and, having no contents, he had
thrown it out on an ash-pile. The only thing he had found in the
valise was a piece of paper that attracted his attention because it
was marked with red lines.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account