The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1899-12-07
ARE AFTER Stokes
Police Thought They Had the
Wiley Negro.
STOLE ACTORS WARDROBE
And Paraded the Streets in a
CakewaIk.

George Stokes, termed by the men who
frequent the resorts of Wichita the
human locomotive" the ex-slave of the
Dalton gang, the "colored idiot ETC., is
in good shape to be sent to the county
jail again, as the police are close on his
trail. 1t was thought Stokes was at a
place in North Wichita, but he could
not be found last night. He is wanted
for having broken into the dressing
rooms of an Uncle Toms Cabin show at
the Crawford Grand two weeks ago and
walking away with a lot of wardrobe
and grease paints, including a fine suit
in which the principal cake-walker of the
show did his little turn on the stage.
Stokes act was remarkable for its
audacity and cleverness. He avoided
sight of the police on the night he stole
the articles from the showman's dress
ing room and all next day and Sunday.
Then he dressed up in his swallow tail
coat whose tail drug several feet on
ground, took the cane which belonged to
the cake-walker's outfit, got his best
girl, who was a vivacious little "yauer
gal" and they strobe up and down Doug
las avenue in regular cake-walk fashion
on that Sunday afternoon, he proud Of
his new clothes, plug hat and cane, and
the girl smiling in her pretty ribbons
which Stokes had taken from the Tom
show. 1t so happened that the show peo-
pie were at the Union depot ready to
take the train out of town at the very
time Stokes and his girl were march
ing down Douglas avenue in the vicinity
Of the depot. Finally the man who had
lost the wardrobe looked up the street
and saw Stokes in his cake-walk suit
He Immediately raised a commotion and
the entire company began pointing
Stokes out to a policeman, when. If they
had exercised discretion and kept still,
Stokes and his girl would have run right
into their hands. Stokes was cutting
great swaggers and Ding neat little
cake-walk of his own, when he sudden
~ noticed the show people pointing him
out to the policeman. That was enough
for the "wit-idiot," for he broke away
from his girl and took up the alley north
from Douglas avenue like streak of
lightning, and If the Tom show had
set It's blood hounds after him they
would have had harder trip than when
they were crossing the icy river after
the mother and her babe No policeman
could possibly hope to have overtakenl
the negro, for he is very fleet of foot.
The show people had to leave town
minus their wardrobe and grease paints,
for Stokes got away. Nothing more was
seen of him until last night, when the
policemen thought they had located him
in the northern part OF the city.
Stokes is the negro who came here with
a show some time last summer and was
arrested for attempting an assault on
woman on South Mosely avenue. Not
much was made of the case and he was
released from Jail a few weeks ago. He
carries scars on his legs, said to have
been inflicted with burning irons by the
Dalton boys when he was their slave.
He earned a livelihood previous to this |
escapade by giving limitations of a pas |
senger train, which is said to be wonder !
rul in its likeness.