The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1869-12-07

nois.
HE Is ARRESTED AS HORSE THIEF AND Re
COVERS HEAVY DAMAGES THERFFoRE.
CIIIo lnn

HE Is ARRESTED AS HORSE THIEF AND Re
COVERS HEAVY DAMAGES THEREFORE, f.,
r.. ~ CHICAGO, Nov. %, 1869.
10 "e Editor Of the Press:
One of your late;readars Mr. Joh, %. vyohh
late vi DrIusVoh IN your State, has lust obtain
cd Judgment Tor eight hundred dollars
against John II. Giesks of Elgin and William
Courtright of Rockford in this State i'm tbs
U. S. District Court in this city, Hon. Thomas
Drummond presiding.
The ground of this action was false arrest
on charge of herse stealing. 30. -rr-
MIR. Webb is now resident Of Davenport,
Iowa, where he is engaged in the manufacture
OF boots and shoes and in pursuance of his
business made trip into this State TO sell
goods While on the train from Freeport to
"ineDago station where he intended to visit
some friends from Maine, two men entered
the car which was crowded with passengers,
one of them presenting a revolver at Mr.
Webbs head and the other carrying a clothes
line to bind him. They required him to sur
render, or they would blow his brains out.
Taken completely by surprise, Mr.. Webb
manifested some exitement which was inter
preted by his captors as signs of guilt. Not
withstanding he showed them his cards, let
tiers, order book, and urged them to get of
with him at Winebago where his friends lived,
that he might be freed of the suspicion by be-
ing identified, ,lthey took him to Elgin.
AT Rockford, an officer came on board the
train and after a moments conversation, told
the captors, who were acting without eithe
warrant or official authority, that Mr.. Webb
was not the man. did not answer the descrip-
tion and was evidently man of honor and
respectability.
persistinp in takinU him 10 EI.;, ,.,Lo.o -.
stealing was committed, Mr. Webb was expos
ed to the disgrace of being dragged along like
felon, and threatened with death, in the
midst OF crowd of passengers, many of whom
will probably never hear contradiction Of the
disgraceful accusation. At Eigln the defend
ants got an express wagon to take him from
the station, and ordering him gruf1y to get in,
they drove through the town followed by
gaping and excited crowd, TO the livery stable
OF Gieske where MIR. w. was subjected to an
examination by half dozen persons who pro-
fessed to know the thief, all of whom decided
that Mr.. Webb bore no resemblance to him
As soon as the train arrived at Elgip, Mr.
webb wrote telegram to his partners, 10 the
Mayor and the First National Bank of Daven-
port for credentials. The defendant Gieske,
however, would not send it, but after keeping
webb in the custody of an officer until eve
ming, sent dispatch himself, the answer to
which with the evidence of those who knew
the thiefs appearance caused them to release
him without the official investigation which he
had repeatedly demanded.
During the time Mr.. Webb was in Elgin
under arrest, friends were not wanting, al
though he had never been there before; and
Gieske's conduct in suppressing the telegram
to Davenport was severely denounced by sew
eral bystandess, causing Gieske to quake with
fear. ..'It. .... ...f. = =
As soon as Mr.. Webb was released, he took
steps to commence this action; finished his
visit at Winnebago, returned to Elgin and sold
two bills of goods, came on to Chicago and re-
tanned Emery A. Storrs Esq, whom he had
heard speak last fall in your State; assisted by
Hon. Isaac G.. Wilson as his COUNSEL and this
suit was entered
Since its commencement Gieske has put his
property into the hands of his father-in-law,
and endeavored to deter Mr.. Webb from pros
ecuting the suit by assertions that he had il all
fixed so that if Webb ever got judgment he
could not realize anything out of il, and offer
ing to give him real estate worth S4OO to $500
if he would abandon the case. To this Webb
paid no attention and the result shows he was
wise in adhering to principle.
When the defendant was ON the witness
stand, he said that the reason why he arrested
Webb was, because he picked his teeth with
pen knife, and had peculiar look out of his
eyes, and seemed uneasy until the train start
ed. Commercial ''guerrilas' will please make
a note of this and beware of uneasiness when
waiting for train. ... Dds.
Bridgton and Mr. JAS Webb Jr., boot and
shoe manufacturer of your city, is his brother.
His old friends in your neighborhoOd will be
amused TO hear of Mr.. Webb being arrested as
a horse thiefan will rejoice at the result OF
the suit.
One Of the defendents is a livery stable keep.
er and the other a professional detective, an
ex-Sherif, one of those Overwise people who
will probably learn something from this that
will do him good. FRANKLIN.