 Dallas Morning News
December 14, 1895 Sherman Siftings The Hat Clew Sherman, Tex., Dec. 13 - In the examining trial of Tom O'Brien, charged with having burglariously entered the house of Mrs. Mary L. Lindsay, 617 East Brockett street, today the statement of Mrs. Lindsay did not differ from the statement printed in yesterday morning's News. M. Reginsburger, proprietor of the United States Clothing company's store in Denison, testified that about six weeks ago the defendant purchased a Block stiff hat No. 7-5/8 and about ten days ago walked by the store and showed him, Regensburger, a defective place in the crown of the hat. He examined the 7-5/8 hat found in the house after the flight of Mrs. Lindsay's assailant and testified that the make, brand and size were exactly that of the one he had sold to O'Brien and that the defective place in the hat under examination was about where O'Brien had pointed out a defect to him in Denison. He examined the 7-1/2 hat found on O'Brien's head by Chief of Police Blair and testified that yesterday morning he had sold a hat exactly corresponding to it to Van Keithley. On cross-examination he testified that he would not be positive that the hat found in her room by Mrs. Lindsay was the one he had sold to O'Brien. He re-examined the 7-1/2 hat and found a defect in the crown which he said was similar to the one shown him by O'Brien ten days ago, but though the defect in the 7-5/8 hat more like it. On re-direct he stated he had not noticed the defect in the 7-1/2 hat when he first examined it and knew that no such defect was on the hat he sold to Keithley, but that he never had but one 7-1/2 hat of the make and brand he had sold to Keithley and knew he had not sold it to Tom O'Brien. He also stated that the soiled place on the 7-1/2 hat taken off O'Brien's head was not on the hat he had sold to Keithley and that the number was not scratched out of the hat he sold Keithley. He knew the 7-1/2 hat on exhibition was not the one he had sold Tom O'Brien. The defendant declined to make a statement and was held to answer in a bond of $1500, which he failed to give.  The Sunday Gazetteer Denison, Texas Sunday, December 15, 1895 In Jail on a Serious Charge Thursday officers from Sherman arrested Tom O'Brien and Van Keithley, both of this city, on warrants, charging them with burglary. On Tuesday night last, the residence of Mrs. Mary Lindsey, of Sherman, was broken open and the intruders made a bold attack on the lady. A brother to Mrs. Lindsey was sleeping in an adjoining room, and hearing the disturbance, called to his sister to know what was the matter. This frightened the burglar and in his haste to escape lost his hat. On the following morning the hat was found and in it was discovered the trademark of the U. S. Clothing House of this city. The Sherman officers were notified of the assault and the hat was turned over to them. A number of visits were made to Denison and Wednesday O'Brien and Keithley were taken into custody. Policeman Andrews, of Sherman, brought the hat to Denison and Mr. Regensburger, of the U. S. Clothing House, immediately recognized it as the one having been sold to Tom O'Brien a few weeks since. On the morning of the same day, but after the visit of the officers, Van Keithley visited the U. S. Clothing store and asked to look at a hat, No. 7 1/2, for a stranger. The hat was purchased and within an hour it was found on the head of Tom O'Brien. Immediately after this the men were detained. In mentioning the presence of the men in Sherman, the Democrat of Thursday says: "It will be remembered that Mrs. Lindsey said she scratched her assailant. As O'Brien and Keithley were being brought up from the Katy depot at 1:45 this afternoon a Democrat reporter happened to notice a scratch or cut on O'Brien's left hand. The scratch very distinctly bore the impression of having been made by a finger nail. "Both men deny any knowledge of or connection with the affair and say they will come out all right. O'Brien says if he had only known that the officers wanted him he would have come over. This is not the first time O'Brien has been in trouble, but heretofore he has never been convicted." The Sunday Gazetteer Sunday, January 5, 1896 pg. 4 Local Condensations Friday, January 3, 1896 - Tom O'Brien was released on bond in the sum of $1,500 today. The Sunday Gazetteer Sunday, January 19, 1896 pg. 4 Local Condensations Wednesday, January 15, 1896 - The jury in the Tom O'Brien case at Sherman yesterday was out about 1 hour, bringing in a verdict of guilty and assessing the punishment at 3 years. The Sunday Gazetteer Sunday, February 2, 1896 pg. 2 THE QUINTUPLE CONSPIRACY Sheriff Hughes has furnished the Dallas News the following interesting particulars connected with recent arrests of parties living in Sherman and Denison: "Without stating just how the information was gotten upon which I filed the complaints, the theory of the state and which will be the gist of the evidence to be introduced is as follows: Six men met in this city and entered into a conspiracy to rob the Burge homestead in which it had been learned quite a sum of money had been kept and was still being kept. A conveyance was secured in this city. A confederate remained in Sherman, 3 of the parties went to Denison, where they met another confederate, who supplied them with whiskey and cigars. The party then proceeded on to the Territory, where another confederate met them in the morning after they had camped out all night. This confederate went over to the Burge homestead to see if the negro who worked on the place was there and to inveigle Dr. Burge by some excuse or other to go out with him on alleged business. It was agreed by the decoy that should the negro be away and he succeeded in duping the doctor into going off with him that the signal would be the raising of his hat and touching his head with his other hand. The decoy was successful and the 3 men proceeded to the house. After engaging Mrs. Burge in a conversation in which they satisfied themselves by commonplace questions that the doctor and the negro were not on the place they asked for a pencil and piece of paper on which to write a note and as she turned to get it one of them grabbed her around the arms and in the struggle which ensued dealt her a blow in the face and forced her face downward to the floor in a corner of the room while the others broke open the trunk and looted it of over $600. They left the hatchet with which they broke open the trunk and it is now in the possession of the officers. It has the letters J.F.C. on it. The men then left the premises and brought the booty to Texas, after giving the confederates in Sherman and Denison each $50 and the same amount to the decoy they split the remainder into 3 equal parts. "Search warrants served by Chief of Police Beam and myself at the home of Charlie Smith, one of the parties under charge of the offense, and at the home of Cheney Jenning, a colored woman, where he is known to have spent considerable of his time, brought forth several articles and a ring gotten from Smith was instantly identified by Mrs. Burge as one stolen from her, and a picture exhibited by her to me gives a fair representation of a necklace now in my possession and recovered in the search. The names of the parties I have charged with complicity in this affair are Charles Argo, Joel Collins and Charlie Smith of Sherman, Tom O'Brien of Denison and Bill Steel of the Indian Territory. They are all in jail." Collins, Steel and Argo say that the complaints are purely theoretical and that they will be able to completely vindicate themselves in the matter. Smith is in jail at Cameron and cannot be seen, while O'Brien has talked very little about his alleged complicity. The Sunday Gazetteer Sunday, February 9, 1896 pg. 3 Monday, February 3, 1896 - Tom O'Brien pleaded guilty this afternoon in Sherman to the charge of assault to murder Mrs. Mary Lindsay, and was given 5 years by the jury in a very few minutes. This, with the 4 years for burglary, gives O'Brien 9 years in the penitentiary. The Sunday Gazetteer Sunday, January 3, 1897 pg. 4 The Gazetteer mentioned last week that Joe O'Brien, who was sent to the penitentiary had been appointed nurse. It should have read Tom O'Brien. 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