Omaha daily bee., 1896-12-21
South Omaha News .

-rtST I8J t2I V! 81 i&J q fiST ~ J i&I sISJ ~
Police officer David Brown was brutally
assaulted by three men at $50 o'clock Sun
day morning and is now confined to his bed
with a number of severe bruises and long
cut on his head According to the officers
version of the affair, he was standing in
front of Stott's stationery store, 2i0S n
street, at the hour mentioned when three
men, all unknown to him, came along. One
of the men stepped up to him and said,
Hello, Paddy and as the officer turned
to return the salutation he was struck a
blow on the head with some blunt instru-
ment and knocked down into the areaway.
In falling the officer struck a large window
and broke a pane of glass. Immediately
after the blow was struck the three men
ran to Twenty-fourth street and turning
north soon disappeared. officer Brown
staggered to his feet and managed to get
to the corner of Twenty-fourth and n
streets, where he got to telephone and
called police headquarters In response
to the call for aid officer Riches hurried to
the corner and as the assalants of rown
were out of sight, turned his attentioa to
the wounded policeman. Surgeons were
called and staunched the flow OF blood and
sewed up the long cut on the officers head,
after which he was taken to room at one
of the hotels and put to bed.
1t was at first thought that Brown had
DceH seriously injured, Dut atter q IeW
hours sleep he awoke, refreshed, and told
his story of the assault. From the fact
that one of the men addressed Brown as
Paddy II is inferred that the assailant
thought he was speaking to Captain Nc
Donough and not Officer Brown.
Tho doctors say that the officers head
shows evidence of having been struck with
some blunt instrument, the cuts having
been caused by the fall. Nothing was found
on the sidewalk or in the areaway which
might have been used as a weapon and the
police are inclined to think that a loaded
club or billy was used and was carried away
by the man who struck the blow.
A negro who was working about a saloon
across the street at the time of the assault
gave to Chief Brennan a very good descrip-
tiOn OF the three men and the chief at once
went to Omaha and obtained assistance
from the police there to prosecute the
search for the men. From the description
given the chief is satisfied that the man
who struck the blow was Patrick Ford a
cousin of the notorious young Pat Ford
who escaped from the county jailer about
a year ago. 1t Is known that Ford had n
grudse against Captain McDonough who
arrested him for raising a disturbance a
month or two ago and as the overcoats
worn by Officer Brown and Captain Nc
Donough are similar, it is surmised that
young Ford supposed he was assaulting the
night captain.
The officers visited all of the haunts of
the Ford boys in Omaha yesterday, besides
searching the homes of the Fords, but Pat
rick Ford could not be found. During the
afternoon the chief went to Council Bluffs
In an attempt to locate his man. but did
not succeed. Officer Brown said that he
did not know any of the men who assaulted
him, but asserted that he could Identify
them If he ever saw them again
Late last night the Omaha police located
Ford at Metz's hall and placed him under
arrest. He Is now at the Omaha city jail
awaiting the pleasure of the South Omaha
authorities.