Suspicious persons.
--A person representing himself to be a telegraphic operator from
Washington, called
B. W. Bernard, alias Camp, alias any other name that he sees fit to assume, underwent yesterday before the
Mayor a partial examination for being a person of suspicious character.
The party made a lengthy statement, from which it appeared that by some means he had wormed himself into the confidence of influential parties here, and had been entrusted with sundry important undertakings, which he had succeeded in carrying out in a very dubious manner.
Prisoner is the same party who was dispatched to
Iowa after one of
John Brown's men, and who made such a bungle of the business.
Some of his exploits in that capacity were commented on by the
Iowa papers in no very complimentary way. He told the
Mayor that his ability as a telegraphic operator enabled him, with very small trouble, while passing any telegraph wire, to ascend and affix an apparatus by which he could find out what was going over the line.
The
Mayor thereupon concluded that he was a dangerous personage.
Prisoner denied the inference, and wished to send for various persons in authority, who would vouch for his status.
The
Secretary of the
Commonwealth appeared as a witness against him. The case was continued, and party sent to jail.
Antonio Custilloti, a "vagrant from
Washington, D. C., and a suspicious person," was committed without examination till the 27th inst.
John S. Vorhees, on whose person was found a number of papers transcribed with hyrogliphics, was brought before the
Mayor, and arraigned, but not released, no satisfactory explanation of his business here ever having been given.
