The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-07-17
OWED TO AVOID ARREST.
DEMERE THOUGHT HE'D DE SHOT
AND JUMPED IN THE RIVER.

come by the Enormity of the
Guilt Involved in the Theft OF
Fifty Cents and shirt and
Thought the Penalty for His
OGensc Was Death, Tried to Swim
the River-Then He CrawIed Tn
der n wharf and Refused to Come
Out-Did Disrobing Act while
Swinging on the Anchor Chains of
ship.
An exciting chase in which the pur-
suers were Senior Sergeant Reilly and Pa
trolmen Crosby and Lovett of the police
force and the pursued Frank Demere a
negro thief, attracted the attention OF
those who CHANGED to be yesterday morn
ing in the neighborhood of the wharves
or were called to the spot by the NOISE
of those who had preceded them.
Demere had stolen so cents and some
shirts from Isaac Graham ard about il
O'Clock in the morning Graham pointed
him out to Policeman Lovett and asked
chat he be arrested. This was at the
corner of Bay and Barnard streets, ana
Lovett started in The direction Of Demere,
mentioning as ne approached within hail
ing distance that the negro was his pris-
oner To this Demere was not willing to
agree and he eft at once for a more
congenial and safer cline. Down Bay
street he rushed, with Lovett and Police
man Crosby who had by this time Joined
In the effort to capture the fug tive, in
close chase. There were quite number
Of persons on the street at the time and
they, too, Joined in the race Demere
seemed to be making for the river, and
The crowd that followed him thought that
they had him surely and that escape was
OUT Of the ques ton. Al Abercoru street
the man turned and ran down the bluff
straight toward the river
From the policemen and their posse
went up a cry of eXultation, but in think
ing that they had seen the last OF Demere's
efforts to escape they We're never more
greatly mistaken. The negro stood for a
moment on the edge Of the wharf strip
ping off his coat, and then plunged head
foremost into The water He swan out to
the stern of a ship that was lying off the
wharf and caught hold of the anchor
chains that dipped into the water Tne
policemen yelled for him TO come ashore,
slightest heed
At this juncture Sergt. Reilly appeared
on the scene and he also besouGht Demere
10 come ashore and submit to arrest A
pistol was drawn and pointed in the di-
rection' of the negro of course with no in
tention of using il, but merely in the hope
that ii would sufficiently frighten him to
induce his coming ashore without giving
any further trouble Ii did not have this
effect
out in the middle of the stream Demere
commenced to do a dlsrobing act kicking
off his shoes, divesting himself OF his 9TH
ed garments ara allowing the whole bunch
TO drift down the river. He continued, in
this condition TO hang on to the anchor
chains, draped, as Bob Taylor says of
Father Adam in the garden of Eden in
climate and tattered undershirt When
the pistol was again used with eXhortatory
intent he forsook the chains and swan 60
and under the wharf
Here he stuck and the combined efforts
OF the policemen and the crowd did not
Tor a long time suffice TO get him out. He
refused 10 bulge or even 10 answer THEN
hai.s and in the darkness of the space be-
meath the wharf they could not see him
Threats, prayers, clamorous demands and
gently moduiated requests were alike OF
no avail and moved Demere not a whit
Coming from Charleston the negro seem
ed to be of the opinion that the penalty
for petty larceny n Chatham county was
sudden death, without benefit of clergy
and in the strength of this opinion de
termined chat he would moi be captured
alive.
Finally Crosby started under one end
of the wharf and Lovett under the other
and began moving towards the center
Crosby struck the tran Of the negro, Ii
the mud ana slime that formed the bot
tom of the = ace, and followed IL unit
he came across Demere. crouched back
against the extreme end of the wharf He
was pate with fear as mis- color permitted
and his teeth were chattering from
combination of this cause and the colt
produced by the ducking IN the river tha
he had undergone. Furthermore, he wa.
making violent efforts to make an alb
normally short undershirt 90 an abnormal
~ long ways-with scant success. eros
by and Lovett hauled him out into tn,
open air and telephoned for the closed pa
troll wagon, in which Demere was takei
10 the station house
Before the wagon arrived Sergt. Refill,
said to the negro: where do you com,
from, my mani"
"Over home, sab" the negro answered
with chattering teeth.
And where the devil is over home?" in
CURED the sergeant.
charleston, sab" answered Demere
''dey shoots niggers for stealth over dere
and OATS de reason l jumped in de river
This answer SO convulsed the sergean
with mirth that he scarce could music
sufficient determination 10 give the negr
the cursing that he deserved for leadin
himself and his officers so long and $
herd chase. But he glanced his eye owe
the wet and bedragg,ed uniforms of eros
by and Lovett and did. Unbiased specta
tors, who were within hearing distanc
of the lecture that Sergt. Reilly delivered
declare that at it's conclusion Demere'
skin and the remnant of the undershir
were completely dry.
AID. DOYLE AT TRIn HELM