Omaha daily bee., 1896-02-11
INSANE CONVICT GETS AWAY
Dr.. Abbott Reports the Escape of George
Smith, Tough Burglar.
WAS ALLOWED TO VISIT HIS MOTHER
Permission 90 Take Dinner mt Home
ON sunday Extends Into n Per-
mnnent Vacation by the
Crazy Criminal.

LINCOLN, Feb. 10.-(Special.)-At the po-
lice stoton this morning DR.. Abbott, super
intendent Of the Lincoln Hospital for the
Insane was an agitated caller. II appeared
that George Smith. a patient in the hos
pital, had escaped and the doctor desired
the assistance of the police force in locating
him Yesterday Mrs. Smith, Georges
mother. called at the asylum and secured
permission to bring him into town for din
ner. Soon after that repast George was
missing The patient, a young man, Is in
reality a penitentary convict, and was trans
ferred to the asylum because his mind ap-
peared to be affected. He attempted to
commit a burglary at the home Of e. s.
Hawley and was struck over the head with
a stick of stove wood and captured by the
owner of the premises He had been re-
garded as tough customer and has fire.
uuently been in other scrapes quite as Sc
rlous. DR.. Abbott said that II Smith would
get outside the state he would not care
much, but he was afraid that he would
commit some other depredations which
might result in something more serious than
mere escape from the asylum.
The case against Steward William Dech
and Deputy Warden j. B. Jones was dis
missed in justice court this morning. They
were charged several weeks ago with ma
licious destruction Of property by Molie
King a keeper OF a bagnio on the Lincoln
preservation" and the case was up before
Judge Walters of the police court The de-
PENDANTS took change of venue and the
court soaked them for S21 costs before he
permitted the case to go to Justice Nc
Candless. The complaining witness, the
King woman, after thinking the matter over,
decided that she was not in position to
swear to the identity of Dech and Jones,
and, in fact, made an affidavit to that effect
this morning, in consequence Of which the
Justice dismissed the charge against the de-
PENDANTS.
There Is considerable excitement in Lin
coin over the result of the trial OF the case
OF Kendall G. Smith against the sanitary
district Of the city OF Lincoln, In which
the plaintiffs we're awarded verdict of
$61 800 The verdict was rendered in Saun-
ders county Saturday last. 1t was claimed
by the plaintiffs that far ao a mill is
concerned the action of the sanitary COM
missioners in Strengthening Salt creek made
the property Of Kendall & Smith utterly
worthless. The condemnatory board awarded
them $4,000 but the proprietors Of the mill
declared that sum was inadequate and COM
menced suit some two years ago. Attorney
Wilson, who tried the case for the city.
expresses himself as firm in the belief that
a new trial will be granted and thinks that
Judge Sedgwick himself was surprised at
the amount of the verdict. There is now
$4,000. the amount Of the condemnation
money in the hands of the clerk of the
district court of Lancaster county. The re-
mainder of the judgment, $57 100, will have
to be raised by means of mill levy,
which the act of the Legislature empowers
the trustees to make each year.
Omaha people in Lincoln: At the Lindel-
S.. r. Helfry, Leo M. Franklin. At the Cap
ital-J. G. McKell, Charles Granden. At the
Lincon-W. w. Morsman, Charles Rudio,
Charles c. Rosewater II. d. Estabrook.