THE OMAHA DAILY BEE : SUNDAY , OCTOBER 14 , 180-1.
What Home Without Furniture ?
Every nook and crany of our great building is chock full of brand new goods. The variety is almost bewildering and every article is of the
newest pattern. You can furnish your house from cellar to garret without leaving our store.
See Our Goods anfc ! Get Our Prices ,
LOOK AT THIS ELEGANT PARLOR SUIT.
Oll heaters , former
price , $10 ; now . . . . $ 4.83 Wool Ingrain Car
pets , former prleo
75cno\v ; . 48o
Oak heaters , former Union Ingrain Car-
prlco 811 ; now. . . . 6.05 pete , former prlco
60c ; now .
Cannon stovesformer Tapestry Carpnts. for-
price $3.50 , now . . . 1.75 Velvet inoi1 price UOc ; now.
Gurnets , former -
mor price $ 1. 2. > ; now
Base burner stoves , Body Brussels Cur-
former price S25.00 ; pet , former price
now 15.00 $1.25 ; now .
Stair Carpets , former
prieo 3 e ; now .
4-holo ranges , former Window Similes , for
price $16 ; now . . ' . . . 7.60 mer price 75e ; now.
Portieres , former
Steel ranges , former This Parlor Suit for $19.50. Worth $5O.OO. price $7.50 ; now. . . .
Irish Point Lace Curtains
price $40 ; now. . . . 24.50 tains , former price
FURNITURE. 87.50 ; uow . 52.48
Parlor Cook Stoves , Polished antique Dining Chairs Former price , $1.00 ; now , 5Oc
-FOR TIIlS- former price $17.50 ; 6-foot polished antique Extension Tables. Former price , 7.60 ; now , S3 45
now 8. CO Polished oak Side Boards Former price , 28 OO ; now , 13 5O The Estate Oak
Kitchen. Safes Former price , O.OO ; now , 3 5O
,
Polishedoak Center Tables Formerprico , 2.60now ; , 90c
Antique Folding Bed Former price , 15.00 ; now , 7 SO
Combination Wardrobe Folding Bed Former price , CO.OO ; now , 24 5O This stove will hold lire three whole dnys ,
Polished antique ChefTonier Former price , 15.00now ; , 7 5O'
Polished antiqtio Chamber Suit Former price , 30.00 ; now , 9 45 burns less fuel ami gives out moro lioat than
Solid oak , piano polish Anish , Lounges , polished oak frnmo Former price , O.OO ; now , 4 75 nny other stove on the market.
Bed Lounges , polished oak frame Former price , 12.00 ; now , 7 5O
upholstered in rich tapestry or silk Reed Rockers Formerprico , 3,00 ; now , 98o It burns soft coal , hard coal or colic. A
Decorated Toilet Sets Former price , 7.00 ; now , 248
plush ; latest style and worth $1O. Dinner Sots Former price , 12.00 ; now , 565 written guarantee given with every stove.
Tea Sets Former price , G.OO ; now , 345
EASY TERMS , EASY TERMS.
110,00 worth of goods , $10.00 worth of goods ,
$1.00 week , ? 4.00 per month. Jl.OO week or ? 4.00 per month.
$ ' 5.00 worth of goods , $25.00 worth of gooJs
$1.50 week , or $5.00 per month $1.50 vvcclc or $6.00 per month.
$50,00 worth of goods $50.00 $ worth of goods
$2.00 week , or $8.00 per month $2.00 week or 8.00 per month.
J7B.OD worth of goods $75.00 $ worth of goods
$2.50 week or $10.00 per montli $2.CU week or $10.00 per month.
$100 worth of goods , FORMERLY PEOPLE'S MAMMOTH. , INSTALLMENT HOUSE. 4100 worth of goods
. . jiionth .
week or$12.00 per ,
$3.00 ? 3.00 week or $12,00 per month.
Ci S200 worth $1.00 week ol goods or $15,00 , per month Send 10 cents to cover postage w big ' 94 catalogue Write for Baby Carriage and Slovc Catalogues , mailed free. Open Monday anil Saturday Evenings , $200 $ worth $1.00 of week goods or $15.00 per > ' month.
' *
EMPEROR OF C11IM1
The Young Tartar Monarch Little More
Than a Eojal Figurehead.
UNDER THE EMPRESS DOWAGER'S ' THUMB
Tha Old Lntly Selects His Wives anil Limits
Their Number.
REPLENISHING THE ROYAL HAREM
Eow Palace Eunuchs Steal from His Gracious
Majesty's Stores.
OLDEST NEWSPAPER IN THE WORLD
Tim Old Ki | ires Donngernnil HorTwenty-
IMilllou-Ilollar Illrtlidny Celebration Pic
ture * Ilrlilml the Scenes of Mio Most
Scclndnl Cuurt of the World.
( CopjrlKlited , ISH tv frank O. Carpenter. )
I will devote my letter this week to the
emparor of China. Ho Is the most secluded
monarch on the face ot the globe and no
race horse Is guarded more carefully than he.
His officials hnve him corralled In the center
of the big Tartar city at Peking and you have
to go through three sets of walls before you
approach the building In which he Is kept ,
guarded by eunuchs. First , there ore the
Immense walls ol the great Tartar city , which
are sixty feet thick and as tall as a four-
story flat. Thcfce Inclose a large area filled
up with the lieu , es of Tartars and govern
ment buildings , which run around a. space
the center of whlcli Is known as the Imperial
City. This has a high wall of gray bricks
about six miles In length , and It Includes the
outside palaces , the pleasure grounds and the
temples of the Sacred City. The emperor Is
kept In the third pen Inside this and his ex
clusive quarters are known oa the Purple.
Forbidden City. The- walls of thla last pen
ore rigidly guarded. They inclose the
quarters ol the emperor , his family , the
ladles of the royal harem and the thousands
ot eunuchs who make up the servant * . It
lias buildings In the center for court cere
monies and there are small buildings ar
ranged around on the two sides of a ridge of
palaces , which runs from the north to the
south. The emperor himself lives In the
northwctlern part ot the pen and the em-
pi CBS dowager has a palace near by. In
another part ol the Inclosure Is the Imll of
literary abyss , or the Imperial library , and In
this the cabinet ofllcors hold their cessions ,
and It contains nlco a department of the
roynl treasury. No one outside ot the foreign
legations , has ever gotten Into tha palaces
of the emperor ot China and no foreigner Is
permitted to see him. Our minister has
been granted 'an audience , but even the
Chinese of IJeVlnp do not know how he
lookn , and of th lumJicds of millions who
make up ( ho empire I venture to fay that
I there ara not 6,000 men outside ot his
eunuchs who have ever set eyes on him.
He knows absolutely nothing nlioul th
Actual condition ot bis people and capital.
When lie goes out Into the city matting Is
liuiiR up In front of nil the houses and strips
of cloth nre btrptchcd across the alleys and
tide streets through whlcli ( tic Imperial pro
cession must pats. Our mlnUtcr warns all
Americans not to go out at their peril , for
tbf emperor Is Always accompanied by
oldler , as4 Uu mnu itbo | > pi around ( he
corner or has his eye fastened to a hole In
the matting Is liable to be blinded with a
bullet or arrow. The streets nre fixed up
lor the occasion. All the booths and
squatters are driven away and the roads are
covered with bright yellow clay. Yellow Is
the Imperial color , and I saw armies of
half-nahml coolies carrying such dirt into the
city In wheelbarrows during my stay in
Peking for one of the emperor's outings. It
Is the tame when he goes Into the country ,
and us S.OIIID ot his tours to worship at the
tombs of his ancestors extend many miles
yon will see that It costs something In the
way of clay hauling to give him a good track
to move on ,
UN UK ! II THE OLD LADY'S THUMB.
It Is not easy to get reliable gossip about
the emperor of China , and the only view I
had of his palace was from the city walls ,
and iliiMig the time that I prowled around
the gate with my snap-shot camera and my
Chinese photographer. Still , I met a num
ber t > f ofllelals who were quite close to the
thront , and I got good Information from one
or two eunuchs. I visited Peking six years
ago , at the time the empress dowager
picked out his first wives , and some of the
stories I will tell further on were given me
in a whisper , and If their authors were
known liey might lose their heeds. The
truth of the matter Is that the young em
peror Is by no means an angel , and the eu
nuchs told me that he hops up and down In
his ragctwhen anything goes against htm ,
He Is merely the tool of the old empress
dowager , and he has been under this old
lady's thumb since he was a baby. She
supervised hU education. She picked out
his wives for him , and she makes the ladles
ot his hnreiu howl today If they don't walk
chalk In her presence. Of course , she took
her own friends when she selected his
wives , and she has him so hemmed about
with her olllcials and girls that if he had
a will of his own he wouldn't know how to
Hie It. The emperor was 17 years old at
the time of Ms marriage six years ago , and
the ga\e him three wives to start with. The
selection was curious. All the pretty Tar
tar girls of the empire , numbering many
thousands , were gathered together and
sorted , aid the best of them were sent on to
IVklng. The selection was first made by
the governors of the provinces , and no girl
was presented who wai over 18 nor under 12
jeara of age. The choice lots were dressed
n the ( Inert of clothes , nnd were carted
Trom all parts ot the empire Into Peking.
They were here submitted to the Inspection
of the old empress dowager , being brought
Into her presence In lots of five. She passed
upon them as fast as she could , and weeded
out the poorest and dullest. Those who re
mained were taken out for the lime and
brought In In new lots , and GO the sorting went
on until the thousands had dwindled to the
hundreds , the hundreds to scores , and the
scores at lust down to fifteen ,
1'UETTY TAKTAH GHILS.
These fifteen girls were put Into training
Their paces were tested , and all sorta of ex
periment ! ) were made as to their tempers
and traits. After some months the old
emprreg picked out the three girls she liked ,
and the eldest ot these , who was IS year :
old , became empress. The two others be
came what are called secondary wives , or
chief roncuhlnes , and these two latter were
ulsters , one ot whom was 13 and the other
15 yearn old. Tha marriage ot the em
peror wai celebrated on the day President
Harrison was Inaugurated , and you may
liuve some Idea of the occasion when I tel
you that It cost $10,000,000. In addition to
Ills wives he has no end of concubines , am
tha law * of China provide that a sorting like
that I described must be made every three
years ot all the pretty Tartar girls In their
trcns , and that the men telcct ot tbe lo
must bo shipped Into the palace. The em
peror Is not restricted as to the number he
takes , nnd ho picks cut those he likes best
Ho has A right lo dismiss them at any time
that he pleases , but they usually remain
until 23 > ears of age , when , If they have had
no children , they expect to bo cent away
from the palace. They have no trouble
however. In getting good husbands , The
whole Chinese court Is mode up of In
trlgucs and Intriguers , mid ths nobles are
glad to have their daughters In the roya
harem. These Tartar girls have a arts
of their own , and they wear long skirts In
lead ft the silk pantaloons of their Chines
sUtor ? . They do not bind up their feet
and there arc no squeezed feet Inside th
tmpci . I palace. They are Indeed tbe pret
Kent SHU ot tha empire. Their faces ar
a Oellcate cream verging on the bloosn ol i
) ellow peach , and Ilidr link alir.cm
yes are soulful enough to stir the blood
f fie coldest Caucasslan , No man with
uch surroundings can devote much tlmo to
little matter like that of a war with Japan ,
and doing what his highest ofllclals and the
old empress dowager direct , amusing himself
n the meantime with his wives and his
unuchs. He has , In fact , much the same
place that the mikado had In Japan under
he Shoguns. He Is a sort of holy flgure-
iead , and his ofllclals know the more sacred
hey make him the more power will be
; lven tothem , , and the more license for
heir squeezing and stealing.
ROYAL LAW-MADE MENU.
Everything connected with the emperor Is
regulated by law. He has Imperial physi
cians who watch over his health. The law
irovldes Just what ho shall eat , and 1 am
old that he squats on the floor at his meals
and eats out of golden bowls with Ivory
chopsticks. According to the old Chinese
looks there must be placed dally before him
hlrty pounds of meat In a basin and seven
pounds boiled In soup. He has a dally nllow-
ince of about a pound of hog's Tat and
butter , and ho has the right to order two
sheep , two fowls and two ducks , while his
drink for the day Is restricted to the milk of
eighty cows nnd the steeping of seventy-five
parcels of tea. It Is probable that his real
diet Is different , and I doubt not lie Is now
taking bits of roast leopard and tiger-bone
soup , to keep up hla courage , lor the Chinese
ihlnk that these things really make a man
brave. If he desires anything that Is nt
on ths menu the board having charge ol lh
Imperial table has to be consulted , BO I am
told , -before he Is supplied.
The emperor Is by no means a physical
giant. Ho IB lean and unhealthy , and his
features are long and unlike those of the
typical Chinaman. His eyes are almost
sl-alght and he bears the marks of his pure
Tartar blood. His life Is by no means con
ducive to health. He does all his business
at night and ho sleeps In the daytime. He
begins his work about midnight. Just after
hla breakfast , and he receives his cabinet
ministers under the rays of the electric light.
Ho has numerous audiences nnd the big
officials have to cool their heel3 In the ante
chamber of the palace of Peking quite as
often as they do In the white house at Wash
ington. When they are ushered Into his
presence they get down on their-knees and
bump their brads again and again on the
floor , and they have to remain on their knees
while before him , Not long ago he took n
notion to learn English and two students ot
the college nt Peking were appointed as his
teachers. He recited his lessons at 1 o'clock
In the morning and for some time these boys
who acted as teachers had to remain on their
knees while his majesty butchered the king's
English before them. Ho kept up his studies
for bome time , but I was told In Peking that
he had given up the attempt.
THE PUKING GAZETTE.
The emperor of China Is , to a certain ex
tent , tbe editor of tbe famous reklns Gazette.
This Is the oldest newspaper of the world
and It has been published almost dally for
600 years. It was read by tbe Chinese
centuries before America was discovered , and
It was GOO years old when the first dally
newspaper of our civilization began Its pub
lication. In 1C15. It Is nothing Ilka our
newspapers , however. The copies , which are
sent all over China , arc more like the cheap
est of patent medicine almanacs than any
thing elso. They are bound In yellow
covers and ore printed from blocks on the
thinnest of rice paper. A page of the Peking
Gazette Is about three Inches wide and seven
Inches long , and there are sixteen pages and
upward In each Issue , None ol the Issues
contain one-hundredth the amount of the
material In a Sunday Dee. The newspaper
beglm at the back Instead of at the front.
Tim Itnei run up and' down Instead or across
the top , and you read from right to left
across tha page Instead of from left to right ,
us with uu , It has no advertisements , no
editorials and no social gossip. The govern
ment allows no comments on Its actions and
It la a crime to add to or subtract from Its
matter In Its republlcatlon. The newspaper
Is in nil n up of official acts and report ! , and
such of the reports as the emperor thinks
ought to bo published arc looked
over by him and he marks with
A red pencil hla commenti upon them.
Thcio are posted upon bill boards
outside ot the- palace , and tha scribes copy
them Into books , which are cent out each
day. Tlio first copies are the original Is
sues oC tbe Peking Gazette. They are beau
tifully engrossed , and they command a price
about 1100 a year. Private printing firms buy
Iliem , and Uio engravers male blocke , from
vhlch the cheaper copies ore printed. Some
editions go for 30 cents a month , nnd num-
> ers of Chinese families club together and
my these cheaper editions , so that a man
may pay perhaps ojie-twontlcth of a cent for
reading a copy of the Peking Gazette. I have
a bound volume of this paper , which has been
rnnslateil Into English , and I get transla
tions every week In the English newspapers
which I receive from China , Practically
lothlng Is as yet given about theChinese -
Japanese war , except that In the Issue of
August 28 It Is stated that "tho empress
dowager has sent 1,000 boxes of cooling pills
to the soldiers in Corea , " and the couriers
irobably bring the news In on horseback
and retail It to the people. There Is no
doubt that there Is more lying done In the
dlssemlmtlon of odlclal reports than can
possibly bs committed by American re
porter ? , and I learn from Peking that the
people are kept In entire Ignorance of what
; s going on In the war with Japan.
BLISSFUL IGNORANCE.
It Is doubtful whether the emperor him
self understands the real situation. He lias ,
I venture , uever reviewed his own army , and
lie knows nothing about military tactics. It Is
ti common amusement with him to go out
and shoot with a bow and arrow , and his
only experience as to traveling by railroad
has been Ina small train of oars which a
French syndicate , who wanted to get rail
road concessions , presented to him , The
train cost them , I am told , something like
$100,000. The emperor refused to accept It
as a Kl't , and sent them back the sum of
$10.000 In order to relieve himself of any
obligation. It Is now six years since the
present was made , and they have gotten no
concessions. I saw these cars In Tlen-Tsln
some years ngo , when they were on tholr
way to the emperor. They were carried Into
Peking by water , and his majesty had a
track laid In the palace grounds , and they
were run for a short time with steam. This ,
however , was too fast for his majesty , and I
understand that he now harnesses up his
eunuchs to the engine- and has them whipped
right royally by the brakeman , as he rides
through the grounds. The emperor knows
nothing ol modern civilization and modern
warfare. He does not even know his own
country , and did ho possess a great charac
ter It would have been ruined long since by
his surroundings.
A POWERFUL EUNUCH.
This Is the man who Is supposed to bo at
the head of the great 'Chinese empire , and
who ought to be directing the war with
Japan. He is , I am told , largely governed
by his cuiiuchi. They have been his closest
associates throughoutIhla ! life , and different
estimates state that lid has all the way from
four to ten thousand fat these eunuchs
In the palaco. Our own minister ,
Colonel Denby , Bays that he has actual Information
mation that there are at least four thousand ,
and when you remember that this Immense
colonr Is scattered oven an area not much
larger than that ofasfurm , you will see
that eunuchs are thicker than blackberries
In Augubt. They are graded In different de
partments , and cacQi 'has his own duties ,
Those of ordinary rank receive from $2
to $12 a month , but they make for
tunes out of squeezing and stealing , and
there is one eunucli is the palace who Is
eatd to be worth mllllanB. Jila name Is
PL Tslau LI. and bet In the confidential
servant oC the old empress dowager. Ho la
a great office brokcryrand I heard of in
stances of his getting a $100,000 and up
ward for single cfflcesi and I have no doubt
he divides his proHtilwlth the old empress.
All of the officials of'Peklng are afraid of
him , and though he brgan Ilfo aa the son
of a shoemaker , he has more power than
many of the princes. His father was a
cobbler In the city of Tung Chow , about fif
teen miles from Peking , but since his son
has become to powerful the old man has
been elevated to a fat office , and lie lias a
feather In bit hat. I saw a number of In
stances myself in Peking which gave me an
Insight Into the stealing of these eunuchs.
The finest of the silks and embroideries of
China are made for the emperor. He has
vast Bilk looms at Nanking , and he has great
porcelain factories in different parts of China.
He recelvei hla satin by the cartload , and
ono of his recent orders , as I sea by the
Peking Gazette , included 3,400 rolls of
silk gauze. C.OO rolls of brocades , and
seventy rolls ot satin. He buys his
pencils ly the thousand , and his paper It
carried to Peking for him by the shipload.
He recelvei many presents , and he can't ktep
track of all his pollutions. The eunuchs
sneak goods out of the palace and hand them
uver to iccood hand peddlers , and I wat
offered gowns which were probably made for
the royal harem again and again during my
stay In Peking , and you can buy fine pieces
of embroidery there with the flve-clawcd
dragon upon thcin , which Is the Imperial
coat-of-arms , for a bong. Many a fine
? leco of porcelain Is smuggled out of the
; > alaces and sold , and the officials probably
? et n squeeze on all orders of goods that
they make for the emperor.
Just one word moro about the eunuchs.
Tlio laws provide that none but those of
royal blood shall have the right to employ
them , and princesses can have thirty eu
nuchs , while the nephews of the emperor
are restricted to twenty. Every fifth year
certain of the officials of China are re
quired to1 furnish for the use of the palace
eight young eunuchs each , and these princes
are paid $300 apleco for them , Even the
priests who attend to the worship of the
liarem are eunuchs , and the emperor goes no
place without them. There were several
hundred guarding the roads when the for
eign minister cuino Into the audience , and
the old empress dowager has qulto a corps
of them.
RULED 13Y A WOMAN.
The empress dowager will be 60 years old
next month. She is said to be a moat re
markable woman , and she has been prac
tically the ruler of China for the pant gen
eration. She was the Fccondary wife or
the first concubine of the Emperor Hlen
Fimg , who died along about the time ot the
beginning of our civil war , and aim * has
been practically the boss of the harem and
the empire slnco then. She was at the
head of the empire during a greater imrt
of the Kalplng rebellion , She managed Its
affairs during Its war with France , and she
had a little taste of Russian diplomacy In
her fuss with the czar of some years ago.
She Is said tb hnvo a mind of her own , and
all of the Chinese respect and fear her.
She is a stickler as to form , and she In
sists that all business shall bo done through
the young emperor , though she really di
rects what ho Is to do. &ho Is very vain ,
and she had consented to the spending of
about $20,000,000 on the celebration of her
birthday this year , and this money was
being collected for the purpose when the war
with Japan broke out. A large part of it
is to be applied to the war , nnd If the Japan
ese approach Peking before the celebration
It Is probable that the old empress will
really give the whole of It to the war , as
she has promised to do , The empress
dowager Is pven more secluded than the em
peror , nnd when she receives her officials
she sits behind a screen and the cabinet
ministers get down on their knees and talk
through It at her. She Is said to look
much Ilka the ordinary Chinese woman , and
I have u plcturo which looks , I am told ,
much like her. It represents a tall Chinese
woman with a crown on her head and with
a gorgeous silk gown decorated with em
broidery covering her person , She sits as
straight as a poker , and looks ns though
she might bo able to rule. The real photo
graphs ot the empress dowager , the emperor
of China , and of the empress hove never
been taken , and if they were they would not
be allowed to go outsldo of the palace.
One of the biggest magazines of the coun
try recently published pictures which It
labeled as those of the emperor and em
press , Any one who bag even a slight ac
quaintance with China , knows that the ob
taining of real photographs of this kind is
absolutely Impossible , and I am surprised
that the editors should have been &o easily
deceived.
Oohl lllncIn n Stn I'lih.
Lieutenant James H. Miner of the police
force , fays the Florida Times , was presented
\vlth a gold ring yesterday by Captain Harry
H. Haywood , who , at the time of coming
into possession ot the ring , was In command
ot the Nova Bcotla bark Alice. Captain
Haywood sayn that while the bark Alice
was on lier way from New York to Havana
be frequently passed the time In flstilng ,
and on June 14 , 1B92 , he caught a large
bonlto fish , vhkh on being cut open was
found to have a plain gold ring Inside. It
was the common belief of the gallon on the
bark that tbe flsh had bitten off the hand ot
a man , who either fell overboard or went
down with Ills ship. Captain Haywood lias
taken a greet fancy to Lieutenant Minor ,
and gave him the ring as a token of hU
frletidi'ulp.
WORKED THREE-BALL MEN
Fcmarkabla Career of Diamond Bob , Who
Preyed on Money Lenders.
M'ZING SUCCESS OF HIS SCHEMES
Ills Most Skillful anil ArtUlIc Sn Indies lie-
c.tllc < l by a Sleuth Who Tracked Him
UoKiis Watches and Stenciled
From a brief dispatch dated San Francisco
received In New York several days ago , the
police and others learned of the sulcldo of a
famous character In criminal circles , known
as "Diamond Hob , " Ills proper name was
Robert Ashmead , anil he spent all but twenty
years of his life swindling pawnbrokers In
the big cities of this country and Europe. So
Successful was he. strange as it may seem to
those who have had dealings with the
wily money lenders , that at one tlmo
be was reputed to be worth $200000. * During
the thirty years he was engaged In hit )
operations ho was arrested but once , and
then ho was 'n ' custody only a few liours
In this city. The pawnbroker who had been
swindled failed to prosecute "Diamond
Deb , " for he believed It would Injure him
If It became known he had been success
fully imposed upon In loaning money on
diamonds. "Diamond Hob" was 50 years old
when he shot lilmiclf In a San Francisco
boarding house , for no known cause. He left
all of his fortune , about $25.000 ,
to a brother living at Huntington -
ton , L. I. Ho began Ills crim
inal career when only 20 yearn old , and the
money lenders of this city , where "Diamond
Dob" was born , were his first victims. The
police and those who knew him well , say that
ho was never known to victimize any ono but
a pawnbroker. Ho la said to have selected
this fraternity to work his tricks upon for
the reason that there were very few men
following a career of crime who would bother
with the money lenders , as their chances of
successfully swindling this class of business
men were never good , so alert and well in
formed on values are they.
In KcnrchlnK about for some one who knew
"Diamond Hob" well , the New York Herald
found the very man who caused hla arrest
for the- only time at the Vanderbllt hotel.
Ho was one of the central officers who keep
a lookout for Incoming crooks at the Grand
Central depot. He had known the man
most hated by many pawnbrokers for years.
MCNTIONBD IN THEIR PRAYERS.
"So 'Diamond Dob' IB dead , you Bay , " the
detective eald , when the reporter broached
the subject. "Well , of all the queer and
peculiar criminals thla hind ever
gave birth ta that fellow Ashmrad
was the queerest and slickest. Peculiar
cuss lie was , too. Had a heart as big as an
ox. What do you think ? The man could
never get it through his head that he wus
committing crime by swindling pawnbrokers.
No , Kir. And he was honest In his belief ,
too. I don't believe ho ever willfully wronged
or stole from any one but a money lender.
No , tlicri ) wui no sentiment connected with
his selecting and pursuing pawnbrokers , Ho
wag a smart crook , and believed he was
smarter than nine-tenths of the money lend
ers , and he proved It , There Isn't a pawn
broker In this country , or In any of the big
cities of Europe , who doesn't know 'Dia
mend Hob.1 Ho has been a sort of Nemesis
to the money lenders for a quarter of a cen
tury , at least. Pawnbroker ! * ' associations
have been after him tor years , but they never
caught him. and his name used to be rung
Into the prayers of every good pawnbroker' ! )
family every night In the year.
"And the poor fellow committed suicide ,
ehl Veil , well ! How some pcojilo will re
joice. "
"How did he got the name 'Diamond
Bob ? ' " was oslied.
"Well , It was Ju t like tbli : Some years
ago he put up one ol the nioit artistic
swindles Imaginable , on all the money
lender * of thu eastern cltle * . H met a
pour diamond cutter one day who -was In
the hardest KluA at luck. tu UKh nubody'i
fault but his own. 'Diamond nob' saw a
fortune In this fellow , If he could oply get
him to do as he wished , and there was lit
tle dlfilculty encountered , I assure you. The
diamond cutter had got so far down ho
was ready to commit almost any crlmo
to get rum. So. when ho was well paid
for filling diamond shells with
opal. In an artistic manner , ho
dldn t ask any questions as to whether they
were to be used In swindling. By taking the
sheila of diamonds left by the cutters In
the big Jewelry establishments , and deftly
placing opal In the middle of them ana
Bojllng the cavity with paste diamonds.
Diamond Bob' had a gem , apparently ol
the first water , that shone with wonderful
brilliancy. Ho pawned this 'fako' diamond
at niRht , when It was In IU highest state-
of brilliancy. The money lender could apply
all of the tests , as the shell was the genuine
article. It would cut glass the same &a
a good diamond. Well , 'Diamond Dob'
turned out hundreds of these bogus gems ,
and pawned them In all the pawnshops of
the eastern cities for sums ranging from $2 !
to $2fiO , before the swindle was detected. As
the stones cost him only a few dollars apiece ,
It can bo readily Been how great was his
profit. It Is no exaggeration to Bay that lie
swindled the money lenders out of a cool
$100,000 on this novel game , and when the
other Kmart swindlers heard of It they chris
tened him 'Diamond Bob. ' ' , '
GOT $ § 0,000 ON A WATCH SWINDLE.
'
"It was 'Diamond Bob * who took about
$80,000 from the pawnbrokers of this country
a few years ago on what , the police know as
the 'watch swindle. ' It was an exceedingly
Ingenious scheme to beat the money lender.
It Is pretty well known that a man can se
cure a loan of at least $150 , and oftentimes
as high ( is $300 , on a certain make ot
watches. A pawnbroker will take the watch
of such a makeas quickly as ho will take
diamonds , the name that Is on the works of
the Kutch being the guaranty of Its genuine
ness. One of these linns places Its natno
on the Inside of the cover In letters that are
cut Into the case and enameled over In
white. 'Diamond Hob' secured the service *
of a skilful watchmaker and set him to
work. First they bought a number of the
watches of genuine make. These can't ' bo
had for less than $400 a piece. They then
took out the movements , which can bo sold
back to the manufacturer for three-fourths
of the value of tha watch , or about $300.
They returned the works , only retaining ono
of them to copy from. Next they bought a
lot nf ordinary watch works that cost them
about $25 a piece , which were fitted Into
the genuine cases. The name of the manu
facturer was forged on the movements BO
that It couldn't be told from the original.
After this was done the doctored watches
were circulated among the- money lenders ,
who look the bait without the least suspicion.
Hundreds of these watches were pawned al
most simultaneously In all the big cities cast
and west , 'Diamond Bob' and hla companion ,
whom ho had taken Into copartnership , visit
ing one money lender after the other as fast
as they could travel.
HOW TUB 400 GOT HIS PAINTINGS.
"One of the slickest swindles I ever heard
ol , though , was worked by 'Diamond Bob *
on I ho money lenders only a few years agov
'Diamond Bob * hunted up In the French
quarter an nrtlsl who had only recently
landed from Paris. The artist could copy
olil masters and ago them so that It wns al
most impossible for the ordinary Judge ot
paintings to ell them from the originate.
This Frenchman turned out scores of thes
copies of old masters , which 'Diamond Bob *
pawned In pretty much every city la lhl
country. Ho found an arlitocratlc old fellow
In the Bowery whom he coached to da thi
pawning , The painting wa * an heir
loom , and the old fellow played his part
BO well that he would ace dentally drop the
painting and become almost crazed through
fear of IU being Injured. By thli tlmo 'Dia
mend Bob' has become so well knon.ii to the *
pawnbrokers ho couldn't do the pawning him ?
elf , If ho were to take the finest diamond ,
over found to almost nny pawnbroker In the >
ountry ho would bo politely requested to
lenvo at oncv. No pawnbroker would take
any chance * with .the fellow , even though
they mvan opportunity of making money.
So 'Diamond Hob' did all hln pawning of the
'fake' painting * through this agent of bin.
There are very few men who can Judge palnU
ln correctly , and It la llttla wonder the
money lenders were taken In , BO skillfully
wa the work done. ,
"Thi-re are today many of 'Diamond Dub's'
bogus paintings bunging In the pl nlld col.
Icctlcni gathered , In ti uiuui < > ni ot wsalU1