Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1888-12-06
3IRS. POTTER'S DIAMONDS.
A Youthful Thief Caught With 50, 600
Worth Of Them I'm His Pocket,

Worth of Them I'm His Pocket.
HE ROBBED HER ROOMS AT THE ARLINGTON ANT
HIS CAPTURE WAS cLEvKRLT KFFEcTEp BY
coLoRRD wATcHMAN THRRR-rHR THIEF NOT
WILLING TO FACE \ coLr's REVOLVER
Since the robbery Of nearly 81 900 worth o.
diamond jeweiry from the room of Mrs. Jessie
Bartlett Davis, in the Arlington hotel, on the
9Th OF November, extraordinary precaution,
have been taken by the hotel people to protect
their guests. The rooms occupied by actresses
are watched more closely than Others as they
are the apartments to which expert thieve.
usually go when searching for valuables. Mrs
James Brown Potter engaged q suite of rooms
in the hotel, which she has occupied during
her engagement here. Her rooms. Nos. III
and liz, are situated on the Vermont avenue
side of the hotel. Last night, between 8 and
10 O'Clock. William Jackson. the colored night
Waterman, was going through the corridors
when he heard that a suspicious looking indi
vidual had been seen in a corridor near the
rear end OF the building.
JACKSON on THE TRAIL.
Jackson, who at once thought of the robbery
Of Mrs. Davis diamonds, got his heavy Colts
revolver and started on an exploring expedi.
ton. On tip-toe he went from room to room
until he reached the apartments occupied by
Mrs. Potter. Room No. Ill Is her bedroom
and there Jackson thought she probably kept
her valuables. He listened moment and heard
a noise In the room that sounded like q person
opening packages wrapped in tissue paper.
Then the elevator landed on the fourth floor
and Jackson beckoned for the elevator boy to
come to him. He whispered 70 the boy to tell
Mr.. Bennett, the manager, to come up and
bring one OF the porters with him, that there
was something wrong in Mrs. Potters room.
When the elevator boy started away to deliver
the message he ran through the corridor and
made so much noise that the thief in the room
became alarmed. He waited a couple OF min
utes until he thought that the elevator had de.
scended the shaft and then he started out.
Jackson, however, had not gone, but was still
waiting, and when the door of room 112 opened
and out walked a goOd-looking young man,
then there was
SURPRISE PARTY.
How to escape the intruder did not know
but quick as a flash he informed the Waterman
that the lady in the room would like to have a
hot cup Of tea. The Waterman told him to GO
into the room and call the porter, who would
get him the tea. The young man returned to
the room and pretended to give the order for
the tea. Then he walked out of the room
again, and turning, said:
That's all right, my dear; the tea will be
here in q minute"
dor. Jackson knew that no one had any bust.
N IS in the rooms, because Mrs. Potter and her
mai were at the theater and would not return
until about IL o'clock. 1t was then tive nty fl We
minutes before 10 oclock. So. when the young
man started to walk away, jackson
DREW HIS REVOLVER AND COVERED HIM.
WHAT do you do that FORE" asked the young
man.
Never mind what do it for" answered
Jackson, IF you move I'll kill you
The prisoner begged the Waterman to put
the pistol up and let him go, as he had an en-
gagem mt he wanted to keep. Besides, he OBJ
jected to any such familiarity on the part of
a hotel Waterman. Just then Mr.. Bennett ar
rived in the elevator, and the prisoner was
taken downstairs to the cloak-room. A mes
sage was sent to police headquarters, but there
third precinct were notified. Sergeant Harbi-
son and Ofcer Hart responded in the patrol
wagon and took the young man in custody.
BUNCH OF KEYS.
Mr.. Bennett identified the prisoner as guest
of the hotel. He had arrived between and 4
O'Clock in the afternoon and registered as J. B.
Buck. He carried in his hand q small valise
and was shown to room No. 70. His satchel
was searched and was found to contain a bunch
of about fifty keys, which would open almost
any door. Mr.. Bennett then remembered that
he had received a description of young man
who had been seen acting suspiciously about
the hotel.
TWO THOUSAND DOLLARS WORTH OF JEwELRY IN
HIS POCKETS.
When the officers took charge of the prisoner
they proceeded to search him, and took from
his pockets nearly $4,000 worth of diamond
jewelry which he had taken from Mrs Potter's
room. In addition to this jewelry he had on
his finger a valuable diamond ring, which Mr.
ROessle thought was the property of Mrs. Davis.
The officers then drove him to the third pre-
cinct station. The prisoner refused to give his
name, but said: You can call me Joe Brown, if
you choose"
When Mrs. Potter returned from the theater
her rooms were looked through. The lock had
been broken from her trunk, which, like the
bureau drawers, had been ransacked. The
jewelry she left wrapped in tissue paper. which
was the means Of discovering that there was
visitor in the room.
MRS. POTTER IDENTIFIED THE JEwELRY
taken from the prisoner as her property. The
room door was not broken and it is thought
that the prisoner opened it with one of his
keys. Mrs. Potter was then summoned to ap-
pear in the Police Court this morning.
The prisoner is a good-looking young man.
He gives his age as twenty-one years. This
morning. probably for the first time in his life,
he ate his breakfast behind the prison bars
Afterward he was taken to police headquarters,
where description of him was taken, and be
was subsequently photographed to add to the
collection in the rogues' gallery.
MRS. POTTER AT THE POLICE COURT
This morning Mrs. Potter, with her manager
and Mr.. Bennett, visited the Police Court and
were accommodated with seats in the Judges
room. Mrs. Potter said that this was the first
time she had ever been robbed, although it
was not her first appearance in a courtroom.
Each afternoon, she said. she took little time
TO herself for rest. and would not receive any
visitors. Yesterday afternoon, while lying
down, some one ratified the door-knob. She
thought it was the chambermaid, and felt
like scolding her, but she now thinks
it was the thief. Mrs. Potter swore
to a warrant charging the prisoner, under the
name of Joseph Brown, alias j. b. Buck, alias
j. b. Hunt, with the grand larceny of the fol-
lowing articles: Two gold lace-pins, $500; four
gold safety pins, 5000; three gold bracelets,
$500; one diamond hat pin, $500; one gold
badge, ESQ; one diamond pendant. SIS; one
sleeve button, SIS: one link button, SIS; one
gold pencil, $40; one gold flower pin, SIS; one
pOcketbook, 50.
THE PRISONER
was taken back to the station and will be taken
to the Police Court tomorrow morning, when
the case will be tried. The prisoner was seen
in the Arlington hotel two days after the rob-
was seen at the Congressional hotel, where he
was engaged in political discussion. Among
the articles found in the prisoners possession
were several tickets for the articles pawned in
Philadelphia. Some of the articles described
on the tickets answer the description given by
Mrs. Davis Of some Of her stolen property.