Page:Memoirs of the United States Secret Service.djvu/122

 found little difficulty in getting the "inside track," in a short time, among the men who were zealously "shoving the queer" in his neighborhood.

Jim was sufficiently secretive in his natural habit, and upon entering on his newly chosen vocation, he quickly became an adept in the business. He bought and sold large sums of "coney," upon his own private account. He enjoyed rare facilities, too, for putting these false notes upon the market, in various ways. For some time Boyd had a good run of luck, and thousands of dollars in spurious bank notes were shoved by this cunning knave, whose avariciousness and recklessness grew with his steady success. But at length he went too far, and exposed his hand. He left the Colonial limits of Her British Majesty's dominions, and frequently crossed the border, and renewed the details of his business upon the soil of the United States.

He went and came, shoved the queer at every opportunity, smuggled goods over the line upon occasion, but kept up his hotel at Frelingsburg in respectable style, at which house he had a goodly company of guests, the American Consul being at one time a resident at his house. He was obliged to visit New York city, to procure his "stuff," in quantity; and when he left, he passed up the Hudson, usually, to Albany and Langsingburg, where he had friends. Thence he journied to Springfield, to Boston, Lowell and Salem—and then north to Lawrence, Manchester, and via White River Junction to Canada. All along his route, he scattered the counterfeits among his long-time agents, who shoved it wherever they could put it off, and constantly to good account, so far as his profits were concerned.

Emboldened by success, he became careless, but always continued anxious to make the most of his chances. Every effort was put forth to catch this man, but he eluded the