The age-herald., 1898-07-24
CLEVER CAPTURE OF
 OFFICER SHIRLEY And Special Officer Burke of the L. & N.
 R. R. Company. EXPERIENCED A BURGLAR ln the Railroad Yards Early Yesterday
 Morning. A LARGE QUANTITY OF JEWELRY And Other Articles Found in His Possession Wanted in Caera For BurgIarzing
 the Store of Mrs. Finley
 Taken Back.
A LARGE QUANTITY OF JEWELRY

Charles Comings, a white man about 33 years of age, was arrested early yesterday morning by Officer Shirley, of the police department, and Special Officer Burke, of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad com- pany in the railroad yards, having in his possession a quantity of jewelry and other valuable s together with letter which proved him to be burglar
 The officers boarded Louisville and Nash vile fast mail No. 1, which left the depot at 1:45 a. m. in quest of deserters from the army camps, but failed to find any one on the train answering the descriptions that had been furnished them. They rode as far as the Sloss furnace crossing, where they left rhe train and started back to- wards the depot, through the railroad yards Between Twenty-fourth and Twen- ty-fifth streets they saw the figure of a man crouching in the darkness and imme- diately instituted investigation.
 Coming carried his coat on his arm and seemed to be somewhat nervous when questioned by the officers, who became suspicious. One of them took the coat from him and he opened it a small flour sack fell to the ground which being opened was found to contain a quantity of jewelry and other things which bore evidence of having been stolen.
 Coming was placed under arrest and talk en to the police station, where careful examination was made of the contents of the sack. small sized jewelry store was unearthed, each piece bearing the regua- ton shop tag, the cost mark and selling price.
 While the officers were busy asserting the jewelry, Coming was equally busy eX- plaining his side of the question. He said h1 hn lie ff. | a stand, and that he had arrived from Montgomery, where he had brother re- siding. Among the articles shaken from the sack was an envelope which, on in- vestigation, was found to contain a-e9r< tesSssrralAse quantity of uHeafceIled revenue stamps. The envelope was addressed to Mrs. E. A. Finley, Calera, Ala, and acting upon this clew, the officers proceeded to the Eighteenth street yard office and requested the operator to ask the Calera office wheth- CT or not Mrs. Finley had been burglar ized.
 reply was promptly received from the operator at Finley stating that Mrs. Fin ley kept general store at that place. but that he had heard nothing of a burglary, adding that he would investigate and re- port later. About o'clock an- other message came, stating that
 Mrs. Finley's place had been found open and that the jewelry department had been ransacked. About O clock Chief McDon- aid received the following message from Town Marshal ohm Pilgreeu of Calera
 Have officer bring man on rst train. City will bear expenses. There is about $50 worth of jewery missing"
 Chief Mcdonald at once wired to the Calera authorities that they would have to send an officer for the man and to bring some one to identify the goods.
 At 11:25 o'clock Police Officer Thomas Hill of Calera arrived in the city, accompanied by one of Mrs. Finley's clerks, who identi- fled the goods as the missing property of his employer.
 The prisoner and the stolen property were turned over to Officer Hill, who left on the southbound Louisvill eand Nashville train at o'clock for Calera, where Comings will be held accountable before the courts of Shelby county.