The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1895-12-29
THEY STEAL COAL
RAILROADS WILL ASK FOB MORE
POLICE PROTECTION.

They Claim That They are Losing More
Coal Than They Can Well Siapd and
That the Thing is Getting Very Monot-
onous-Missouri Pacific Is the Victim
That suffers Nost-On That Road Peo-
pie Climb on the Moving Cars and
Throw on What They want-An Exam
pie TO be Made of Somebody.
The railroad companies have COM
menced war on the coal thieves and
from now on ii will be war TO the knife
1t is estimated that as high as five
tons have been stolen from the Missouri
Pacific every night during the past week
or two and the thing is getting monot-
onous 10 them.
IL was said last night that a string Of
people were on the Missouri Pacific
tracks getting coal wherever they could.
being driven TO take desperate chances
in anticipation OF the cold Wea Their. To
illustrate how desperate few people
were IL is said they crawled on the NOV
ing cars as the train came south from
Twelfth street and threw coal off. and
before they would desist the brakemen
had 20 fairly fight them of by peIting
them.
The same condition OF things prevail
on the Santa Fe tracks but the latter
place has better police protection. There
IS no city police beat at the Missouri
Pacific tracks and the entire duty %
watching the property of the company
devolves on the company's employees.
The railroad people insist that they are
entitled 10 protection and they will ap-
peal to the commissioners for il.
The law is more severe on man who
steals coal from a railroad company
than If he steals the same amount from
private individual. II he steals from
the railroad company the offense is
punishable by confinement in the peni-
tertiary while if he steals from a pri-
Vate person, unless the value OF the coal
stolen is over SO. the offense is only
simple misdemeanor. Notwithstanding
this the people steal from the railroads
and as a general thing let the private
people alone.
The railroad people find that IL is
difficult matter to enforce the law
against stealing coal. No one can car
~ away more than about so cents worth
a a time and the authorities do not
feel like prosecuting a man for the
theft OF that amount, especially when
they take il for granted that the man
who steals coal does so 10 keep his
family warm In other words they do
not care to send person TO the peniten
tiary for the theft OF from 10 TO so
cents worth Of property and in add
ton TO that they do not like 10 take up
man who steals a dimes worth of
coal, keeping in Jail maybe sixty days al
cost OF 40 cents each day and then
spend from S25 to $50 10 convict him.
AS stated, the railroad companies real
ize this fact but they argue that while
each man steals only a small amount
the aggregate amounts to a great deal
and the punishment they demand il an
exemplary one. In other words they do
not ask 10 have every man who steals
coal sent to the penitentiary, but they
think If one man is convicted that will
prevent others from committing a like
offense. The county commissioners as
we'll as the police commissioners will
be asked TO enforce the law and II is
probable that some poor devil will be
sent to the penitentiary as a firightful
example TO others.