Rensselaer Republican, Volume 14, Number 24, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 March 1882 — A BIG THIEF. [ARTICLE]

A BIG THIEF.

Stealing SIOO,OOO fnom a Stage Coach, When Disappointed in a Contract to Fight —Dyipg an Exile. [Cor. Louisville Courier-Journal.] Soon after Polk’s inauguration, war was declared against Mexico, and he called for 50.000 volunteers. The national militia system was then in full force. The states were divided into military distric ,s, with a brigadier overeach, who was either elected or appointed by the governor. Four times a year a guard review? was held called “quarterly mvsteis,” which lasted sometimes eight or ten days. The country was thus ripe for the emergency. No drafting or drumming-up like we had in our “late unpleasantness.” The question then was who would get his command accepted, as the call would not quire allow of a brigade from each state. At the time to which we have just alluded there lived in the town of Delaware, Ohio, an educated wealthy man by the name of Otho Hinton, who, besides being a large owner in the line from Cincinnati to Cleveland, proprietor of the HiDton House, at Delaware, then one of the finest hotels in the state, was brigadier of the Central militia district, and was always to be seen on “muster days” on a white charger, dressed in a uujform that would have ma le Phil. Sheiidau asht m ed of himsell. Telegraphing aud railroading were not as far advanced as the electric light is now. Going to Washington was more of an undertaking then Than going to Europe to day. Hiuton wanted to take a brigade to Mexico. He mounted one of his stages and proceeded to Clevland and thence by steamer to Buffalo: and then on to Washington. In a little over six weeks he returned, aud. in reply to inquiries,stated he felt sure of getting his brigade accepted; and he immediately went to work at his ,ow’u expense visiting different militia captains, holding meetings, etc. About this time news came from Cincinnati that General Morgan aud his command in the southern part of the state had been accepted by the war department aud would leave for the seat of war by steamb a*3 from Ciucinuati. Stung to the quick With disapp< iutrmnt, Hiuton disappeared. Nothing was known of his whereabouts until one rainy night in the fall of the year the stage coach from Columbus was stopped at the post office in Delaware. The mail bags had been cut and rilled of their contents. There were no pcsseugers in the coach, and upou the diiver being taken in custody,he stated that Hinton had got on the stage below, and, as it was raining, ordered him to throw the mail sacks in with him; and that _at the village of Stratford, three miles south of Delaware, he had got out on pretense of wishing to see a friend,and ordered him to come on. It was just the time when merchants were sending large amounts of money east in payment for good;,aud investigation proved the robbtiy to exceed one hundf d thousand dollars. This was a bigtL.i.g in those days. It was several days before the governor, although only twenty-one miles from the scene of the robbery, took any action. At la t handbills appeared on the street with the caption,“slo,ooo reward.”aud weut on to state that that amount would be paicDby the governor of Ohio for the capture of Gen. Otho Hinton. Hinton, in the meautime, had footed it across the state to Wellsville. on the Ohio river, where he first heard of the reward offerer! for him. He then went to the house of a friend and requested him to take him to Columbus. His old acquaint, auce took him in a buggy to Columbus and delivered him to the state authorities aud received the reward, which, by the wav, it was always supposed was “divied” with Hintou. The state authorities then turned their prisoner over to the United States marshal, who stared with him to Washington. They arrived safely with him at Wed dell House, in Cleveland. While waiting at the hotel for the steamer Hinton managed to elude the vigilance of the marshal and made good his esepe. Some seven or eight months after a report came to Washington that Hinton was believed to be in San Francisco, under an assumed name. Detectives were sent there,who returned with the dubious report that they had found the man supposed to be Hinton, but could not identify him suffice itly to make an arrest. Hinton was next heard of in Oregon, keeping hotel by the name of Hume. The government made another futile attemped to arrest him, he getting away sucessfuliy on a steamer a day or two before the officers sent to arrest him arrived. Hinton was not heard of again foyabout a year, when one of his sons, who was an officer in the United States navy, was home, in Delaware, on a visit,and stated that his father was in Honolulu, Sandwich

Islands, practicing law. He remained there for years, until fiually the case was dropped from the dqcket in the United States district cofirt. The Hinton fomily in Deleware still lived in affluence and received money constantly fromsome soarse, supposed to come from the general. Hiuton never returned, but died a few years ago in the Sandwich Islands.