Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1891-01-12
BOUND FOR THE PEN.
Roger w. O'Mears, Davenport's Erst-
while Journalistic keformer Cor
nered by Several charges or Horse

while Journalistic kef0rmer Cor
nered by Several charges or Horse
stealing.
In Saturday mornings Chicago Herald
appeared the following:
Roger O'Mears, who has stolen half a
dozen horses within month, was held
to the criminal court yesterday by Jus
tice Bradwell on three counts of bonds
of $500 each. John NJ. Clark. of Wash
ington Heights. A. L. Strachart, of IS
Ada street, and John Coyle. of Orland.
appeared against him
Most people in the three cities will call
to memory the sensational course pur-
sued in Davenport by O'Meara as local
editor of the Times. 10 his efforts to re-
form the police force of that city. aud
also to promote morality and decency in
various walks of life, while at the same
time he was leading one of the most dis
reputable lives himself The Democrat of
yesterday morning, in speaking of
O'Mearas escapades and his having been
fired out of Davenport at last. saws:
Since that time the theft OF Daven-
Fort horse and of another at Burlington
have been clearly traced to him, but the
owners and the officers have always been
just too far behind him 10 do more than
camp on his trail. The Davenport horse
alluded to was the one that was owned
by John G.. Huntoon, cashier of the
Holmes lines. and stolen from him one
night while he was attending service at
the Calvary Baptist church in this CITY,
the animal and buggy being tied at a post
In front OF the sanctuary. He WAS here
about the first days of November He
had run horse and buggy to Burlington
and sold them there. and going on one Of
his accustomed hurrsbs with the pro-
ceess of The transaction. After hanging
around there as long as he could get
credit he stole 1926 horse from one
man a good road cart and harness
from another. and few days later came
through there. stopping long enough To
see one of the women whom he used u
be on familiar terms with, and gcing on
10 Chicago. Since then he has been heard
from in one direction or another. always
IN connection with some such transaction
There are men after him all over the
states OF Iowa and Illinois. He had been
horse thief before he came to this city,
and he dropped back into his old ways
again as soon as he got out of IT, His
operations were rather extensive. His
game was to steal horse and after get.
ting out of the vicinity where it was
owned TO sell it. have big drunk. and
then go on his way with another horse.
He always took q conveyance at the same
time. He ran large number OF animals
into Chicago in this way. there being
three of them there at one time The
police there learned thst he had brought
them there and sold them, but where he
had gone 10 or where he had got the
horses they did not learn.
In addition TO these few Jobs he did
unnumbered others OF like kind ali over
this part OF the country. He is known
to have run of number of animals on
the other side of the river. and there have
been good proofs of his connection with
numerous cases of the same sort through
out eastern Iowa. He moved in such a
smooth manner. using his grand army
ostentstion as passport to good graces
and making himself solid with the masses
by his lavish 'wGste of money at the bar
aud in other ways, that he was never sus-
pected where he was till he WAS gone,
and he seldom left clues of tangible
sort.
He seems to have become so bold in
his work as to carry it on right under the
nose of the police in Chicago nothwith-
snding that he was a character with them,
listed on ali their books. and always
man to be watched, aud in cise of any.
thing crooked occurring to be suspected
and arrested on suspicion.