The record-union., 1891-02-09
A Footpad's Attempt to Hold Up
a Grocery Merchant.
HE NOW LIES IN THE RECEIVING
HOSPITAL
Although He is Battered Almost Be.
yond Recognition, the Police are
Satisfied That He is the Same Party
Who Lately Committed Two Bold
Daylight Robberies-Accounto of His
Capture.
Special to the REcoRD-Us1os.

special 10 the RECoRD-UNIoN.
SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. S.-The sensation
OF the day around police Headquarters
was the capture of footpad night before
last by William Ring, a grocer on the
corner of Nineteenth and Castro streets.
The robber himself was of course the
center OF attraction, and all day long a
stream of officers went to and from the
Receiving Hospital, where he lies, most
of the time unconscious, in vain hope of
being able to recognize him as an old
time criminal whom they had met be-
fore. The condition of the man is very
critical one, for Ring did his work thor
oughly and battered the robber nearly to
death. He has no less than seven frac-
lures of the skull, three of which were
trepanned yesterday, and his face is not
in condition to make recognition easy.
Since his arrest the man has given four
or i've different names, all of them prob
ably being fictitious, but Frank Quinn,
as he called himself last, is the name he is
booked under.
Chief OF Police Crowley is satisfied that
Quinn is the same man who boldly made
several men throw up their hands while
he robbed a grocery store on Seventeenth
ana Sherwood streets and at 207 Main
street recently.
William Ring, who, single-handed,
captured Quinn and beat his head with
scale weight, called at the hospital to-day.
although 1t had been reported that he had
received injuries in his fight with the
nocturnal visitor to his place which were
OF SO serious nature as To contine him To-
his bed. Besides few scratches on his
hands, Ring has suffered no damage.
King states that the man came into the
front part OF his place, which is divided
from the bar-room by a partition, when
he was about to close up at Ii p NJ. When
asked what he wanted, he gave no an
SWer, and pointing to the little dog in the
store and rubbing his leg, he claimed to
nave been bitten, sinking out of the
front door at the same time.
mad read about these grocery-store
robbers" said Mr.. Ring, "and 1 did not
like the fellows looks, SO just put big
scale weight into my pocket and fol-
lowed my customer to the sidewalk,
where | found him leaning against a
whisky barrel.
dog mad bitten him, and asked him
sharply what business he had around my
place at that hour of the night L want
your money; that's my business was the
answer l received, and then | saw two
pistols leveled at me. OF course got
mad, and just struck the fellow with the
weight right on the forehead. He fell
and .grappled with him. He snapped
one pistol, but it did not go off. Pretty
soon managed to wrench one of his
guns out of his hands and to throw it
some distance, and after that l succeeded
in getting the other pistol away from him,
which used in clubbing him over the
head until he cried for mercy. 1 then
turned the subdued robber over to the
police"
Tonight the robber, who gave his name
as Frank Irwin, was given morphine to
which he is accustomed, and then he gave
an account of himself. He says that he
came here from Seattle about four months
ago, and was unable to find work Satur-
day night he went into Rings store 10
buy package of cigarettes, when dog
bit him: He complained, and was driven
out OF the store by Ring, who hit him
with weight. He then tried to use his
pistol, but was too weak.