Robert Hemingray's dog found at home of burglar

CATCHES GALORE

Muncle Police Force Is

Surpassed By None,

AND WREATHS OF ROSES

Should Be Showered Upon

Superintendent Baldwin

And His Hard Working Men — New

Chief Not Long In the Business

But He's Getting There —

Burglaries to Cease.

Dermit Jarvis, larceny.

George Purcell, larceny.

Otto Rains, receiving stolen goods.

Carl Rains, receiving stolen goods.

Martha V. Hickman receiving stolen goods.

London Purcell, suspicion.

The above names make one of the most interesting pages on the slate at police headquarters that has been found at this temple of justice for many a day, and as each and every officer glances at the slate he has reasons to feel proud.

Superintendent Baldwin and every one of his officers have labored untiringly and almost without sleep, since Thurs­day night of last week when they were called to the home of Robert Hemingray on East Main street, to view the work of robbers. The officers were enraged at a score or more of other robberies that have occurred in Muncie within the past few weeks, and have been working hard to get some clue, and when the Hemingray case was reported the men went to work with renewed vigor that night and the other cases that developed next day from Corbeley, Whiteley, Baker and Meeker homes somewhat excited Superintendent Baldwin and his men, and they decided that they would not let up until some of the night prowlers were in jail, and their vow has been made doubly good, and one of the best catches ever made in Muncie stands recorded.

The police have had several persons suspected but it was useless to make ar­rests unless they could find some of the stolen booty or catch the men in the act. House after house has been searched, but nothing of consequence could be found until Sunday morning near 7 o’clock, when for the second time officers were leaving the home of Mrs. Martha V. Hickman on Beacon street, just north of Main, in disgust at their failure to find stolen articles which they were positive had been taken there.

The patrolmen had worked all of Saturday and Saturday night without rest, and Superintendent Baldwin had not the nerve to ask them to continue Sunday, but the men were over anxious and when patrolmen Benbow and Bennadum suggested that they make another search of the Hickman house Captain Seldomridge and patrolmen Alstadt, Gallagher and Vickery joined them.

The search that had been made before was repeated. After Mrs. Hickman admitted them every nook and corner in the house was thoroughly ransacked, and again the big policemen with bowed heads were leaving the place when sud­denly they were rewarded for their per­severance.

Patrolmen Benadum and Alstadt were standing in the rear of the house, when simultaneously they espied a large board that seemed to form the covering to a milk trough, and both gave it a kick. As the board came off it disclosed the fact that it was a box filled with clothing. Without further hesitancy the two men called to the officers in the house to hold all the inmates, as a find had been made.

More than three arm loads of fine clothing were found in the box, which had been buried in the ground, and with a brick bottom was used to keep the milk cool. This was enough, and the officers called for the patrol wagon and soon had the woman and her two sons Otto, and Carl Rains in jail, in company with so­me other man who boarded at the house but was not implicated, and has been re­leased. The officers then continued the search with the result that another lot of stolen stuff was found in the loft of an out house, and other buried boxes were found but they were empty.

This was the evidence so long desired, as the house is the one where Emmett, who was arrested Friday, boarded, and it was also the home of Thomas Duffey, the much wanted man, who is a partner of the Purcell boys and Jarvis, and on a previous raid; a couple slung shots, such as are used by highmen, were found in Duffey's room.

The stolen booty was brought to police headquarters and most of it has been identified as belonging to Burt H. Whiteley, Miss Belle Painter, Henry Baker, Lee Corbley and H. T. McElfresh, but in no instance was all the goods stolen at these places found. A pair of spectacles, two black capes, several yards of dark dress goods, a dress skirt and some silverware are some of the unidentified articles awaiting identification.

Very naturally all confessed ignorance of the stuff, and the woman stated that a large feather fan, found in her trunk, had been her property for years, but it was identified by Miss Painter as having been stolen at the Whiteley home last Thursday night.

Superintendent Baldwin has the key to the boarding house and has since been working his men on other important clues, one of which resulted in the arrest of Lowden Purcell, a brother of George, last evening, and officers Benadum, Beall, Vickery, Ball, Benbow and Gallagher visited the Purcell boys home east of the city two miles last evening, in an effort to find Duffey there, but failed.

The officers were given some valuable help by outsiders in the case, and they have other clues that will land the whole outfit within a very short time, and Muncie people can then sleep with ease. In addition to the arrests Superintendent Baldwin is positive that he will recover much more of the stolen goods, as he has reasons to believe that he knows where it has been placed. He will also land Duffey.

Other evidence as to the guilt of those in jail is the fact that patrolman Beall yesterday found the small house dog lost from the Hemingray home the day before the robbery there, at the Hickman house attempting to get in. It had been sent to a neighbor's home but came back yesterday just in time to be caught by Mr. Beall.

One of the first thefts of this crowd was likely at the borne of James Boyce several weeks ago, when Councilman Zook ran the thieves, but was made to stop his chase when the robbers pointed a couple revolvers in his face. Miss Etta Mohler was one of the victims of this raid, and at the suggestion of a friend she employed George Runyan, a spiritual medium, to tell her where the articles were. He stated that five men and two women were implicated in the robbery and located the house where they were taken as the one where the booty was found Sunday, and stated that some of it was taken to a house on the public square.

Later Miss Edna Boyce, who saw the robber in her home, was passing the Hickman house one day recently, and saw a man who she identified as the same man, come from it, but fearing a damage suit if she told the officers and caused an arrest, Mr. Boyce objected to any report being made to the officers

Ex Superintendent of Police Fortner is spending this month at headquarters with Superintendent Baldwin and no one is more pleased at the success of the patrolmen than him.