DIAMOND SLEUTH

Evening Star, Issue 22783, 4 May 1931, Page 1

DIAMOND SLEUTH

AH AMAZING CAREER A DICK " FAULKHER RETIRES DOOMED BY STRIKERS; SAVED BY MULES. “Diamond Dick ” Faulkner, detective, rough rider, and master of disguise, has retired from the South African detective forces. For the last two years Faulkner has . had the task of tracking the men who steal diamonds from Government diamond digging in Namaqualand, guarded ■ as they were by armed patrols, barbed wire fences, and searchlights. He has recoveted more than £50,000 worth of diamonds ,for the 'Government. - Born in Manchester, Faulkner, has had an amazing career. Shortly after, he joined the South African Constabulary in 1901 he was transferred to the! Hill Crest remount depot, Natal, wherei ' he developed into a rough rider. Aif that 'time, Texas Jack, a Wild West/ showman, was offering £2O to anyone' who could ride a bucking horse three times round the circus ring. _ Faulkner; arrived the same night in uniform, rode' round, and collected the money. Next night he appeared, in faultless evening dress, crush hat, and eye glass* Texas did not recognise him> and facetiqpsly introduced him as Lord Derby* He made a great joke of this dandy* . But when Lord Derby had mastered the bucko and collected the £2O again Texas Jack was furious. TRAPPING ILLICIT BUYERS. While; in charge of the Gold Department at Roodepoort, Transvaal, Faulkner disguised himself as a railway porter with the object of completing evidence in an important charge of illicit gold buying. Although the- subject knew Faulkner well, he failed to_ recognise him, and tipped him a selling for, carrying his, luggage. The man was arrested, convicted'of ilicirb gold buying,- r and after serving a long period of imprisonment was deported. . . When stationed at the Premier Diamond Mine, Pretoria, Faulkner, disguised, took charge of a gang of natives and began road near the, mine. A man of illicit diamond buying drove up, stopped his car,and asked what they were doing* Faulkner replied: “Can’t you sea we’re.mending the road?” “ About , time, too,” remarked Ilia suspect and passed pn. Later .Faulkner saw the car coming at a fast pace from the direction of the mine. With presence of mind he ordered the boys to fell a tree across the road just as; the. car was about to pass. The driver realised that he had been trapped, and attacked the dctec- ' live with a spanner., ■ Faulkner recover c' large p-ircV < illicit diamo J ld-' , j»--Dunhg tiio Danu'VTranavarJ) rovolu- “ tion in 1922 Faulkner was condemn 'd to death by a “court-martial” of strikers who captured him ;.t a gold mine. ‘ ,

ONE LOOSE HEAD AT A TIME. “ About twenty men T ed up a few yards from* me,'and I thought my last hour had come,” said Faulkner. “ I decided that the best thing to do was to show a bold front, and told the' . leader to get a move on, because I was expc ing reinforcements at .any; moment. Just then a look-out on the top of the head-gear reported a., cloud' of dust and a body of horsemen galloping along the main road. The strikers vanished like smoke. The ‘ horsemen , turned, out. to be about thirty muieS that had .stampeded from a cartage contractor’s stables. I arrested' two men for the murder of my native boy* One was sentenced to death; the, other - got away , with a long term of ment. '

During the revolution Faulkner was posting martial law proclamations, on ai door in Johannesburg when he' was fired at, and the'hammer he was .using, was broken by a bullet. Telling the’ story,' Faulkner said : “1~ hammer head fell to the ground, and I though# one loose head was sufficient-at a time* I did a record getaway cn my motor bike, helped by the ping of revolver bullets. Needless to say, I left the hammer and the martial law notices,too.”- ■ ■