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Show j 0T EXACTLY A DETECTIVE. James Smith Plays the Bole of One, But Comes 'to Grief. A most remarkable case of what ap- j pears to havebeen attempted burglary was brought before Judge Speirs this morning. James . E. Smith, a miner-detective, according to his own statements, waa found trying to effect an entrance to the Devereux House yesterday morning a little before 7 o'clock. The servant girl, who had just come to the kitchen from up stairs, heard a peculiar noise at the door, and after lighting the gas,peered out at the window to see who it was. Supposing it to be the gardener Bhe went and unlocked the door,when,withoutany ceremony, Smith forced himself past her into the kitchen. The girl becoming somewhat alarmed at the presence of the Eeculiar-looking stranger, demanded what e wanted. Smith said he was there to warn them of danger, and asked the girl if she was aware that several of the windows win-dows were unfastened. He. asked to see j the mistress, having been told that the j master of the house was dead, and endeavored en-deavored to appear as a commissioned officer whose presence was in the especial interest of the law, and to protect the house from a burglarious raid which he stated had been planned, and which he had learned of. The girl asked him if he were a Mormon policeman, to which he answered indignantly : "No; I'm no robber rob-ber or murderer or thief like they are." He continued to insist that he was there as an officer under instructions, until the young man who works around the stable came. The latter was requested by the girl to remain, as she was now thoroughly alarmed. To the boy Smith reiterated his former statements and took him out to the laundry window, where, raising the sash, he exhibited a number of napkins and towels in confirmation of his assertion that the house was badly exposed to the danger of burglars. In the meantime, Mr. Stephen Stanford, the gardener, came in, and to his questions Smith said that he had good authority for his official action, and had obtained it from the law and the courts. He said he was acquainted in Salt Lake, but at this juncture Mr. Stanford's searching interrogations inter-rogations proved too embarrassing and he began to move off toward the door. He walked nervously'out of the grounds closely followed by Mr. Stanford, and when outside the gate started towards Main street, but finding himself accompanied accom-panied he turned and walked in the direction di-rection of the depot. The gardener, who by this time was convinced that the fellow fel-low was crooked, insisted upon their going go-ing over to the depot, where an officer could be consulted. Smith assured him however that he was all right, and requested re-quested him to remain at the corner opposite op-posite the depot while he (Smith) went a short distance to fetch an officer and a gentleman to identify him. - Stanford instead in-stead of waiting crossed to the railroad station as soon as the fellow was out of sight and communicated the facts to policeman po-liceman John Smith. The two gentlemen gentle-men immediately went in search of the detective, but found no trace of his whereabouts, save that he had been seen passing through the lumber yard bearing in the direction of town. The stranger called at the City Hall, later in the day and applied for a position on the force, citing as meritorious grounds the service he had rendered at Jennings' residence. He was told that there was no vacancy, and no more was seen of him until officer Clayton, who had been summoned by telephone to the Devereux House at the early part of the stranger's interview there, returned to the City Hall from a long and fruitless search, in company with Policeman Smith , of the depot. When Clayton explained ex-plained the facts, the officer tumbled to the whole business, and he and Policeman Police-man Sharp went at once in quest of the fraud.- He was found on the crossing cross-ing near Godbe, Pitts & Co.'s, with his slouched hat pulled down over his eyes. The officers arrested him, and he spent last night in the City Jail. This morning at half-past 10 o'clock he was brought before be-fore Justice Speirs, and Mr. Stanford, the boy, Thomas Tolhurst, Miss Spratling and Miss Mary Haddock, the four wit nesses, gave their testimony to the Court. Smith wanted Prosecuting Attorney Moyle to defend his case, and failing in that, he announced to the court that he would be his own attorney. The trial, which lasted more than two hours, was a most amusing amus-ing one, and tended in some points to almost establish the fellow's insanity. He evidently had been in a court before, as shown by his frequent expressions of 'if your honor please," and particularly his patented remark, "I object to the evidence as immaterial and irrelevant." He cross-questioned every witness and made some of them very angry by his arrogant and impudent manner and questions. He became terribly mixed in his own testimony, stating at intervals that he was born in San spent much of his life there in the detective de-tective business, and had come out here two years ago; and also that he was a miner and had spent much of. his time in Arizona, Montana and other places. The skeleton key found on him he insisted was a miner's candlestick, and even the testimony testi-mony of several policemen could not convince him that it was a burglarious instrument. The fellow demonstrated his sanity by his ingenious attempt to manifest mani-fest insanity. The Judge found him guilty of a misdemeanor, and took the matter under, advisement till 2 oclock this afternoon, when he sentenced Smith to pay a fine of $60 and costs, the latter amounting to about $15. He will in all probability pay his fine in labor on the streets. |