Los Angeles daily herald. [volume] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1873-1876, 1874-05-22
FOOT-PADS AT ANAHEIM.
They Waylay n Lady ut that Place
Full Account Of a Dastardly Attempt
t. Rob u DefenceIcss Woman. n la
Vasquez.

They Waylay n Lady ut that Place
Full Account Of n Dastardly Attempt
t. Rob u DefenceIcss Woman. u la
Vasquez.
Our Anaheim correspondent sends
US the following letter, containing q
full report of an attempted robbery at
that place last Tuesday night. An act
so cowardly and so base ought to insure
its perpetrators some grand and lofty
tumbling from convenient tree, with
rope to break their fall; and doubt
less they will be called upon to per-
form some such circus act, should they
be caught by the indignant people of
Anaheim. These men claim to be
humble followers of the chivalrous
Vasquez, and we suppose that this is
an example of the doughty deeds
prompted by the caJon de caballero:
ANAHEIM, May 20, 1874.
EDITOR HERALD: Our community
was startled from it's usual quiet this
morning by report OF the attempted
robbery and murder of lady of our
village Mrs. Flora Eldridge, propri-
etOr of a millinery and ladies' furnish
ing store here, was returning from Il
walk little after sunset last evening,
and while passing through an unfre
quented street in the eastern part Of
the town, was attacked by two MeXi-
cans who had been secreted in the
willow hedges on either side of the
road at that place. The larger OF the
two villains announced himself in
good English as Vasquez, and de-
manded the lady's money. She
started to run, but was pursued and
overtaken by the robbers. Selling
her, one of them drew large knife,
and with an oath declared that
he would kill her. She snatched
the knife from his hand and
threw it away, whereupon he felled
her to the earth, and placing his foot
upon her neck ,choked her until she was
unconscious. The robbers then
dragged her through the willow hedge
and into ditch in Mr.. Lendke's vine
yard, where they left her for dead. In
taking her through the hedge a portion
Of her dress, containing her purse,
off. This the robbers failed to find,
and the purse was picked up this
morning with it's contents untouched.
After lying for several hours in the
ditch, she at last partially recovered
consciousness, and, still bewldered
and half Supplied, she wandered
around until near midnight. Seeing
light, she approached it, and was
met by Mr.. Lendke, who was up at
that hour Irrigating, and had taken
lantern out to light him at his work.
The lady's clothing was saturated with
water from the ditch where she lay,
and upon finding Mr.. Ledke, she was
so thoroughly chilled and worn out as
to be ready to sink with exhaustion.
She was Immediately taken to her
home, where she has received the best
Of care from her many friends. She
has not yet recovered her cons cious-
ness fully, and is still in critical con-
dition from the effects of her fright
and rough usage she received. The
authorities and citizens are doing
everything in their power to discover
the perpetrators of the cowardly act.
This attempt at robbery and murder l
consider one of the direct results pro-
duced by the lionizing of the thief
and murderer Vasquez. Were some
of the lackadaisical persons who go in
to ecstaces of sickish adulation over
Senior Vasquez to suffer what Mrs.
Eldridge has at the hands of his imi-
tators and confederates, perhaps they
would be cured of this silly propensity
to make hero of cut-throat. The
individual who will lionize thief
simply because he has shown unusual
boldness in the preparation of his
unlawful acts, only lacks the courage
to be rs the robber himself. Yours,
MOLINERO.