Thus matters remained at a standstill, so far as entering the vault was concerned, for some three months, or until about the middle of March. Then an applicant appeared in the person of one William O’Kell. Taylor at once informed us of the application. On investigation we learned that O’Kell was a money broker on upper Broadway, where he had an office less than one-half as large as the basement under the bank. We, therefore, deemed it safe to let him acquire the lease, trusting to be able to hire from him the part we desired. Scarcely had Mr. O’Kell moved into his new quarters than he was approached by a man calling himself Kohler, who represented himself as being an insurance broker, and stated that he wished to hire the rear part of the basement. Mr. O’Kell was only too willing to sub-let. As Kohler was Shinburn’s brother-in-law, we were soon in possession of the long-desired field of action. At this time we notified the Bank Ring--the police--of our enterprise, and arranged for the necessary protection.
And so we drew nearer and nearer to the coveted goal. But let it not be thought that all was plain sailing from then on. Far from it! for, though we were now directly under the president’s office, yet we were also right beside the steps that led to the offices and the janitor’s living apartments. Two police beats met at the bank corner, and here the policemen on those beats would meet and idly swing their clubs while they gossiped by the half-hour. Then the Fulton Street officer would wander to the janitor’s entrance, where nearly every evening the janitor and his wife would sit until after ten o’clock. Here another conversation would take place.
Of course at such times it would be impossible to do any pounding; and at no time would it do to allow the least amount of light to shine through the windows. To obviate this latter difficulty, we hung thick blankets over the windows, which so covered them that not the least particle of light could get through. At the same time these blankets served to deaden the noise.
Owing to the other burglaries which had been undertaken while waiting to hire the basement office,--and chiefly to the Westminster affair,--we did not get down to the Ocean Bank business until well along in May. From observations we had made we decided that it would be best to complete the job on a Saturday night, as this would, if necessary, give us two nights and one day, and May 23 was fixed upon.