Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1893-08-05
TAPPED FOR $40.
Bold Robbery in the Business
District.
DAVID IONS SAFE RANsACKED.

The Crime Committed Shortly Before
Noon Today-One Stranger Attracts the
Attention of the Proprietor While An
other Does Him-How it Was Accom-
pIished.
The safe in David Don's hardware,
stove and house furnishing store,
1915 and 1917 Second avenue, was
robbed of $40 shortly before noon
today.
1t was one of the boldest
and most audacious robberies ever
attempted in Rock Island, and
was undoubtedly committed by
some of the fine workers
who are temporarily soiourning in
the city, and of whom THE ARGUS
gave note of warning last evening.
How it Was Worked
1t being about the noon hour, Mr..
Don was alone in the store at the
time. His desk and safe are situated
on the west side of the west store
room. On the extreme east side of
the other storeroom, and in n corner
somewhat obscured from view of the
desk by a partial petition is 4 stock
of step ladders. The pair who
worked the game on Mr.. Don evi
IDENTIFY took all these points of van
tage into consideration for they could
view them from the street, and one
of them, a stranger to Mr.. Don, en-
tered the store and asked to look ut
stcp-ladders. There was no one
with the man at the time and Mr..
Don led the way back to where the
step ladders were kept After the
visitor had looked the ladders over
for few minutes. he asked Mr. Don
if he had such n thing as a iive-and-
a-half foot ladder-he wanted that
particular size There were .5-foot
ladders and 6-foot ladders in the dis
play, as well as ladders of greater
and shorter lengths, but the man
wanted five-and-a-half foot ladder
and nothing else would do, and so
five-and-a-half foot lengths in step
ladders; they don't come in frac-
tional sizes, being all even lengths,
and future developments would indi-
cate that no one knew that fact better
than Mr.. Don's visitor.
When the Robbery was Committed.
After Mr.. Don dismissed his hard
to-please customer, he made the dis
covery of the robbery of his safe. 1t
had been hastily ransacked, and all
the money in sight. together with
two checks, taken. The total amount
taken amounted to $40, part of
which loss is included in a check for
S25.S5 and one for 80 cents, payment
of both of which the police have
probably stopped. 1t is evident that
while the stranger was engaging Mr..
Don in the conversation concerning
Decentralization ladders, an ac-
complete entered by prearrange-
ment, and went through the
safe, but he was in so much
of a shurry to do up his Job that
he missed S25 in cash that was in an
other part of the safe.
Needing the general warming
given by Chief Sexton, Mr.. Don
locked his safe during the parade,
but had opened it afterward.
Police Points.
Smith Price, a colored man. was
run in by Officer Brennan this morn
ing for being drunk.
William Mcmillan, horse jockey,
was run in by Officer Ryan this
morning for intoXication.
Joseph WolIinoldegan, Belgian,
was arrested last evening, and this
morning Magistrate Schroeder i'm
posed a fine of So and costs.
Two colered men were arrested by
o ulcers Long and Mulqueen this
morning for attempting to pick pock-
cts in Forepaugh's side show. They
gave their names as George Taylor
and Scott Motion.
A box containing 81 in money was
stolen from Sauermann's harness
shop on Market square this morning.
Mr.. Sauermann suspects farmer
fr1,,, ,oo,, To P;I,rn ,f