The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1895-10-02
A Horse Thief Hotly Pursuea.

AlouS ABOUT Midnight OF TUESDAY last,
horse and buggy were stolen from the
premises of DR.. West, at Phillipsburg.
The thief drove away without detection,
and the theft was not discovered until
some hours afterward. AS soon as the
discovery was made, however, dispatches
were sent in all directions, and an Easton
detective started in pursuit. He followed
the rig down the river road, and found
that the thief had stopped at Limeport,
Pa, and fed the horse.
The detective pushed on to New Hope,
where he found the man at the Delaware
House. He ordered the thief to drive the
horse into the stable yard, and he made q
pretense of doing 80, but instead, gave
the horse the whip and dashed across the
river bridge into Lambertvile, at ter
rife speed, the horse being fast trotter.
The detective followed and others joined
in the chase, but the thief drove away
from all and escaped the city.
He was next heard of ascending the
bill meas George Alvater's farm on the
Sand Brook road. This report was made
in Pennington by the Stockton mail car
rier when he drove in with the mail at
noon or soon after. Thereupon Freebooter
Chas. F. Felmly and Sanford r. John
son hitched up fast pacing horse and
started in pursuit. They learned upon
inquiry along the road that the fellow had
turned to the right from the Sand Brook
road and was going in northwesterly di-
rection. They hurried on and found that
he had bought four quarts of oats Of a
farmer near the old Frog Tavern, near
Croton. Still pursuing, they finally saw
the man near some farm buildings, not
far from Everittstown. The man was out
of the wagon, standing alongside OF the
horse. AS Felmly and Johnson drove in
fairly good sight, the fellow jumped into
the buggy and drove Off at rapid rate,
all the time looking behind him. AS we
have said, the stolen horse was fast one,
but the PAGER kept close behind him, and
at last the fellow, realizing that he was
being chased, began to shout to people
whom he passed in the road, to stop the
two men behind him as they were drunk
and fixing TO murder him. No one paid
any attention to his cries, however, and
being so closely pressed, he suddenly stood
up in the wagon and put whip to the horse
setting 1t OF on run. In the meantime
he repeatedly called out that he would
shoot his pursuers, and several times took
small wagon wrench from his pocket
and leveled it at the two smen, trying to
convey they impression that the weapon
was pistol and so soaring them from his
track. The game didn't work.
BY this time the long hill at Mt. Pleas
ant was reached, and down it the fellow
ran the horse at most frightfu speed,
Felmly and Johnson following closely.
Just before entering the moIe thckly pop
ulated part of the town, the fellow stop
ped his horse and jumped out of the
wagon, begging Johnson, who was armed
with pistol, not to shoot With a view
OF frightening the fellow into surrender,
Johnson did fire once in his direction, and
thereupon the man leaped the fence and
struck,off across the country. While John
son held the horses Femly started after
the man, but be was not fleet enough OF
foot to overtake him, and he escaped. You
see, Charley has net run much since he
ran for Freebooter (and caught it in a
Democratic township, some two years
ago.
The owner of the horse was Lotified and
he came on Thursday morning and took
the animal home, after paying the reward
of twenty dollars for the horse. Had the
boys caught the thief, too, they would
have received twenty dollars more.
The thief had made several efforts to
sell the rig for $35 along his route Of
travel, but the low price only excited sus-
pcion instead OF securing a buyer. He
was a good sized man, dressed in grayish
clothes, and wore light colored SLOUGH
hat. There was an ugly scar upon one
cheek, within an inch OF his nose. This
scar was very prominent mark. He
looked altogether like bad man to taekle.
-Hunterdon Democrat.