The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1900-08-02
sYReWD THIEVES ARRESTED.
NIT THEY WERE NOT sHREWD
ENOUGH FOR SAVANNAH.


U.ed Telescope valise, Which
one Man Loaded With Goods While
..,s Partner Engaged the Attention
~ the SaIesman-Both Men Evil
dentaIIy Professionals.
Rem Loeb and T. e. Hall, two of the
.,ost daring and clever thieves that have
aver operated in Savannah. were captured
red-handed yesterday by Detectives Gar
rity and Shea.
Loeb and Hall reached Savannah Tues
dav afternoon, and Immediately went 10
vork. I. NJ. Frank & Co., on Broughton
street being their first victims. They
continued opera tons yesterday morning,
and within a few hours had stolen goods
,,aIued at hundreds of dollars from 1.
F.pstein and Eckman & Vetsburg.
In each case their mode of operations
was the same; They went into the stores
pretending to be country merchants, buy
ing fall stock and asked TO be shown
various notions, principally gloves, hand
kerchiefs, and fine silks. They were taken
to the wholesale departments of these
various articles by a clerk whom Loeb,
who seemed to be the business partner of
the firm, kept busily engaged in quoting
and haggiing over prices and discounts,
while HALL the other partner, who car
ried a capacious and innocent looking
valise of the telescope style, unnoticed,
slowed away in it goods to the value of
a hundred dollars or more according to
the bulk of the goods and the time he
could work unohserved. In each case
Loeb picked out a most substantial stock
Of goods, which he asked to have packed,
saving that he would return soon
he could get check cashed, and that he
would then pay for the stock, and give
the shipping directions. This game he
worked in each of the stores from which
he got goods and in no case was he
detected at the time, and but for an ac-
Jdent would not have been detected at
all. or not until so late that, both he and
his partner would have had the time 20
escape.
The accident that led to the detection
of the fraud that had been perpetrated,
occurred in the store of l. NJ. Frank yes
terday morning. The bill of goods that
had been supposedly bought by the two
men the afternoon before had been placed
aside, but another order coming in from
a country customer for certain style
>
over the stock for the gloves, was led 70
believe that there were some of the kind
wanted, sold to Loeb and Hall. and start
ed to look for them in that lot of goods
To his surprise he found that there were
no gloves to be found in the assortment
Knowing that they had been selected and
pat aside with the remainder of the order
he at once reached the conclusion that
they had been stol n, and with equal rap
he. al haf 40
chants were the thieves. A teleohcne mes
sage was sent 10 the barracks for the de-
tectives, and Messrs. Clarity and Shea
responded, To them he circumstances of
the case were told. and they were given
a thorough and accurate d description of
the man. Within ten minutes from the
time that they left the store they had
both prisoners, and were on their way
back to Franks to have them identified.
1t seems that the thieves had decided
TO make extensive hauls, while they We're
about it, trusting to their daring and
cleverness not to be caught. So starting
out yesterday morning they had visited
the store of 7. Epstein, and while Loeb
kept the clerk employed. Hall had not
only filed his telescope once with the best
silks he could get hold of, but had taken
1t home, emptied it, returned to the store,
filed il she second time. and for the
second time, got away with II, when he
was caught by the detectives. Previous
to his visit to Epstein's he he'd gone to
Eckman & Vetsburg, and made haul
of goods to the value of about 500.
Even up TO the time of the capture OF
the thieves, neither of the Congress street
houses knew that they had been robbed.
and their first intimation to that effect
was when they were called on by the de-
tectives. and asked to go to the barracks
and identify property supposed to be
theirs.
The men were arrested in Johnson
square as they were on their way to their
room at No. POI Congress street, east. Hall
walked ahead with the telescope, while
Loeb came along behind. The detectives
knew them to be the men wanted as soon
they saw them, so oVertaking Loeb.
Garrity told him he was wanted. He
made no resistance, but Hall Immediately
suspected that the game was UP and at
tempted to escape by running. He went
down Bryan street far as Sullivan s
bar, into which he turned, stiS carrying
the telescope, but he was so closely press
ed by Shea that he dropped 1t and at
tempted to get away by running through
the rear door of the bar. Before he could
accomplish this, however, the detective
caught him.
When the room of the men was searched
trunk, valise and a dress suit case
were round. In the trunk was stored most
of the plumber that had been secured from
Eckman & Vetsburg, and from Epstein,
while the other receptacles contained the
personal effects of the men. In them were
found no letters or papers that threw any
light on the past history or acts of the
men. To the detectives they said that they
came here from New Orleans. and that
this is their first job Little credence how
ever, is given this story by the police au-
thorities.
The men are well dressed and apparent
ly well to do All of their wear is of the
best class. Nearly all the ties that were
found in the valise are marked Kansas
City, which leads the police to believe
that they or at least one of them, spent
some time in that city. The trunk bears
various marks showing that 1t has travel
ed all the way from Portland. Oregon, via
san Francisco to numerous cities of the
west before IL reached here.
The men will be measured and photo
sraphed this morning and the police au-
tnorlties Of Kansas City and New orleans
furnished photos and measurements and
asked If the men are wanted in either Of
those cities.