Birmingham age-herald., 1895-01-27
Holds Up and RObs Two Ladies
 Near the Fair Ground.
NEATNEsS AND DISPATCH
Exercised by the Robber in His Work-Other Robberies
 at EnSley City.

Two women were "held up'' and re- lieved of their cash and valuab!es near the fair grounds by~a lone highwayman yes- terday afternoon.
 The work was done in thorough man. ner and not an item of value Was left in the possession of the women.
 At ten minutes before 9 o'clock yesterday afternoon Mrs. Letcher of Ensley City and her visiting frieud, Miss Moncrief, were stopped near the state fair grounds by A disg white man, who emerged frcm the woods as they appI cached. At his command their horse was checked and item by item they handed over their money and such other things as the high wayman desired.
 Their cash amounting about to SO, he first appropriated, then he took their handker- chiefs and shook them well, to be sure no money was therein concealed. Miss Mon- cref wore gloves. These were ordered off. They were turned inside out. The women were then ordered to get out ofthe buggy, and they didn't wait for second com mand. When they were out the highway man removed the seat from the buggy and thoroughly examined it.
 When satisfied be had in his possession everything he could use he told the women 10 get in the buggy aud then ordered them to "move on.o
 They moved.
 Mrs. Letcher was badly frightened and could not give much of description of the man who had held them up. Miss Moncrief did better. At first she was ex- cited, but soon regained her self possession and closely inspected the man. She de- scribed bim being about feet 10 inches high, stout build, dark har and clean shaved. lie had blacked his face and hands, but streaks in his cheeks showed him to be white man. He tried to dis guise his voice when he talked. He wore black shirt and dark clothes, well worn.
 As soon as he told the women to ''move onn they applied the whip and drove rap. idly to the city, and went immediately to Sheriff Morrow's office and there related the incident.
 Mrs. Letcher and Miss Moncrief both positively declined to give their names for publication, for what reason they said not.
 The robbery occurred within few feet of the place where the dead body of J. r. Thornton, the Ensley City merchant, was found few days before the holidays.
 It is believed the highwayman was watching for bigger game than he caught, and had he let the women alone and waited only few minutes longer he might have succeeded in getting more money.
 It was known around Ensley City that MT. Goodwin, a merchant of that place, had come to the city to draw some money with which to pay off ome hands. It was also known that in returning to Ensley he
 
 is that some one who knew this disguised himself with the intention of robbing him, and the women coming along he merely "held them up'' for the fun of tue thing.
 A short distance from where they were robbed the women met MT. Goodwin, and acquainting him with the facts, he re- turned to the city with them.
 About 3:30 D. m. Sheriff Morrow and Deputy Sheriffs B. A. Thompson, Henry Cole and Tom Roebuck took the dogs and went out to look for the robber. The dogs struck his track and followed him into the quarters at the Thomas furnaces, where the trail was lost.
 OTHER RoBBERIES.
 At at early hour Friday morning seven or eil ht houses at Ensley City were entered and robbed. Money to the amount of about S100 was taken, several watches and other articles of more or less value.
 Thursday was pay day there and this fact probably led the robber to believe he could make a "big haul.'
 IL is believed by some that the man who robbed the two women near the fair grounds yesterday is the same who did the robbing at Ensley City Friday morning.
 He is also believed to be the slayer of Thornton,