Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1897-08-13
BOLD BICYCLE THIEVES.
Daring Theft of Two Bicycles
in This City Saturday
Night.
BOTH BICYCLES WERE RECOVERED.
One of the Thieves Was Cap
tured, and the Other Is
Still at Large.

CURED Saturday nlgnt III tnlS CITY,
and but for the prompt action VI the
owners Of the stolen property the
thieves might have been successful IN
getting away with their booty.
The stolen wheels belonged to Dr.
F. H. Nero. the dentist, and ). X.
Martin, cashier of the Northern Pa
cific freight Office in this city. These
two gentlemen were visiting at the
residence OF Mayor Tanner. on IMro
street and Second avenue southeast,
and left their bicycles in the front
yard. Al they were taking their de-
parture at about $3.50 they discovered
that their wheels were missing. AT
first they attributed their disappear
apce to someone trying to play a
Joke on them, and said but little
about the matter. At about
O'Clock Sunday morning Peter La
fond. who knew nothing about the
disappearance OF the wheels, saw n
stranger riding a wheel up the bank
of the river from the flats. and across
the Broadway bridge, going west at
a rapid rate. MIR. LafOnd's attention
WIS attracted to the incident by the
color of the enamel on the wheel. 1t
was yellow, and DR.. Mero's Is the
only wheel In this CITY enameled In
that color. The police and the own
ers of the wheels were notified ut
once. Policeman Heroux httched up
his horse and followed the bicycle
track west to the brick yard. and
returned and notified Nero and Mar
TIN of the direction the thief had
taken. Securing other wheels these
two gave chase, and just the other
side of Flensburg they overlook a
boy, about II years OF age. walking
and pushing one of the wheels ahead
of him. The boy said that the other
thief had gone to Minneapolis. Not
believing the boy, and supposing
that as the other man was good
rider he was ON ahead, Nero lett
Martin in charge of the boy, and
taking the only revolver they had
with them continued on the road TO
Sank Center. Martin. started to re-
turn to the city with hia prisoner
and the stolen wheel, and when
within five miles of the city lie dis
covered the other stolen wheel III a
wagon that stood in the barnyard
on the premises OF a farmer. He I'M
mediately took possession OF the
wheel, and in few moments the
other thief appeared on the scene.
coming from the barn loft, where ne
had evidently been taking g. snooze'
Martin caught him by the throat
and told him that he was going to
take him back to the city. While
Martin was having this little seance
with the man, the boy attempted to
escape, so he had to leave the man
and re-capture the boy. While Mar
tin was looking after the boy the
other thief drew knife. and told
Martin that he proposed to defend
himself with it. and would not ne
taken back to the city. He also at
tempted to get the boy away, bue
Martin had the boy in a wagon. ana
with a big rock in his hand he held
the boy prisoner by threatening to
brain him with the rock II he at
tempted to escape. A small boy was
driving the team which Martin had
hired to convey himself and his pris-
oner to the city, and fearing that the
other thief might again attempt the
release of his pal, he hired a farmer
to come with him.
Martin did not like to give up tax
ing the other man, but he had no
weapon, and could get nonefr the
farmers. and was compelled to re-
turn to the :city with one prisoner
and bothswheels. Lodging bis pris-
oner IN the county jail, Martin, with
DeputyI Sheriff Crest. started out
with a team in search of the other
thief. They discovered where he ate
his breakfast t farm house about
one mile west of Flensburg. He In
ouired the road to Sank tCenter and
left thelfarm honse about 8 O'Clock
in the morning, and although the o.