The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-07-22
TO BE TAKEN BACK TO-DAY.
OFFICERS ON THEIR WAY FOR THE
GOLD THIEF.


Less Than Half the Amount Reported
TO Have Been stolen Accounted
FOr-Only About $500 Cash RecOv-
ered-Hicks Was Sporting High
While He Had the Gold and I'M
pressing Upon His Relatives That
There Was n Rich Man In the Fam
iIy-His CaptOrs TO Get the Reward.
John Hicks. alias John King, the negro
who stole pot Of buried gold belonging
to his employer, w. A. Foraker of Bald
win, Fla, will probably be taken back to
Florida to-day to stand trial for his crime.
Hicks does not want to go back, as he
says that he is afraid the people at Bald
win will lynch him. There is not much
likelihood of this, however
Chief McDermott received a telegram
from Deputy Sheriff Upton at Baldwin
yesterday saying that he would arrive
here to-day with requisition papers to car
~ Hicks back. Later in the day tele
gram was received from Deputy Sheriff
Vinzant at Jacksonville. saying that he
was coming after Hicks. Chief McDer-
mott will have a clear understanding as
to who is entitled to take Hicks before he
gives him up, as there is a considerable
amount of money involved.
About S725 Of the money stolen by Hicks
has been recovered from him and his
brother, Jackson King, and there is nearly
800 more in sight which can probably be
recovered, including the $1S5 paid by King
for a horse. Adding the amount of money
known to have been spent by the two
brothers since the arrival of Hicks in Sa-
vannah with the money, the total amount
accounted for so far Is s1,O3255. AS the
amount said to have been stolen was $500,
this leaves considerable sum yet to be
found.
Hicks says he does not know how much
money was In the lot stolen by him. He
left what he did not take with him on his
trip to the Ogeechee in a sack in his room
in his mothers house, he said. This has
all disappeared, with the exception of the
$S1 recovered from Jackson King, though
the latter claims that the S55 of the money
found on him was his own private prop
erty. This is not very probable, as $50 of
the amount was in gold.
Hicks says that his brother stole this
money from him, as he only presented him
with small amount.
The house occupied by the mother and
sister of the two prisoners on Anderson
street, near West Broad, was searched
Tuesday night, but without anything be-
ing discovered. The detectives were sat
isfed that the women had had very lit
tie of the money. Either there was not
s., 500 in the hoard rifed by Hicks or his
brother Jackson King has sailed away
a good pile with which to make himself
comfortable while mis- brother Hicks is
doing time in the Florida penitentiary.
Some charge will probably be brought
against King, either as an accessory after
the fact or for collision in shielding the
criminal and disposing of the proceeds of
the crime.
There is a published reward of 800 for
the arrest of Hicks which, will doubtless
be paid to Messrs. Oliver and Ferrill, who
made the arrest. Mr.. Foraker stated,
however, when in Savannah that he would
give $3.50 for the arrest of Hicks, so that
Messrs. Ferrill and Oliver may come in
for a larger sum.
Hicks conduct after stealing the gold,
as well as the story which he told the
police, was thoroughly African. Hicks
declared that he did not steal the money,
that he found it. He saw the chickens
continually scratching at a certain spot,
ems scratched there that there must be
something there. SO he dug down a short
piece and found a jar full of gold. He
poured the contents into a crocus sack,
walked seven miles with his burden and
boarded a train for Savannah, arriving
here Saturday morning. He soon located
his relatives, whom he had not seen in
in the family and gave them a small sum
of money each. After dazzling the eyes
of his relatives here for a couple of days
he remembered that he had a lot OF rel
atives out on the Ogeeehee river, where
he was raised. He hired a hack to take
him to Pooler. He had worked there
once and desired TO startle the natives.
He was not long in making himself known
and proclaimed that he had lived in New
York since leaving Pooler thirteen years
before, and was now rich man. He dis
played some of his gold as proof Of his
assertions. This attracted suspicion and
led to his arrest the next day.
From Pooler Hicks drove over to his
old home on the Ogeechee. On reaching
the settlement he questioned every negro
whom he met and If the countryman
could lay any claim to relationship he was
given half a dollar and told that he had
a rich cousin, who had just arrived from
New York. Hicks also says that he loan
ed a white man on whose place he was
stopping S25. There is no doubt that
Hicks was playing the nabob 70 perfection
when his game was suddenly interrupted
with a demand to throw up his hands, and
he found himself facing a shotgun in the
hands Of Oliver. He was handcuffed and
brought back to Savannah.
hicks is a genuine Ogeechee coon, black
and very ignorant. His brother Jackson
King Is a shrewder negro, but this did not
keep him from serving a ten years SEN
tence for burglary. which he completed
about two years ago.
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RROXNN STILL IrNCONSCIoTs