The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1900-10-19
ROBBERY OR
WHAT !?
Mrs. Hume Says Two Men
Bound, Gagged and
Robbed. Her.
POLICE SAY HYSTERIA
Most of the Money Was Left
on Her Person. The Story
She Tells.

The police say it is dream. Mrs. John
| Hume, of No. IS Jewett avenue, who
evolved it says it is fact. Her husband,
who is treasurer of the local branch of
! the Painters Union, does not know what
l to call 1t, but admits it is peculiar.
| This is the story Mrs. Hume tells
! Wednesday afternoon Mrs Hume went
| shopping and returned at five o'clock.
/ When she reached the house though the
basement leaving her ten year old sister,
| Elsie, who had gone with her, in the
dining room with her mother Mrs. Hume
then went to the second floor, where she
removed her wraps and went to closet
to put htme away. The closet door would
not open when she tried it. Suddenly the
door was thrown open and out stepped
colored man burly stature and gray
eyes"
Mrs. Hume turned to leave the room
when she was confronted by white man,
whom she described as old, with gray
hair and gray mustache. The white man
struck her on the face, she says She
next remembers standing by table with
the colored man by her side and the
white man on his knees before trunk
endeavoring to open it. After trying
many keys he found one that worked and
the lid of the trunk was thrown open.
The colored man removed some clothing
and found SAG in a bunch of bills. The
white man handed the bills to the colored
man, who laid the money on the table.
The roll of money was parted into two
divisions Mrs. Hume says she put the
money in her dress. Then the white man
found another bundle of bills containing
$S1, which he also handed to the colored
man. This money the colored man kept
that is he did not lay it on the table.
Near the sS1 was bag of silver contain
ing $10 which the men did not take. The
white man then went into an adjoining
room and in a drawer of a washstand
found pocketbook. He said:-
"Here's a pocketbeok with some money
in it, The colored man replied Mrs.
Hume says
1--WE only want the locals money"
meaning the funds of the Painters Union,
which Mr.. Hume had in trust.
The white man then said:-"We'll take
union money and ALL But she says he
left the pecketbook with the money in it.
Mrs. Hume remembers no more until
she found herself sitting in a chair. She
says she recollected later that the colored
man tied her hands and feet to the chair
Mrs. Hume had sent her sister to the
store before she went upstairs. When the
little girl returned she found Mrs. Hume
sitting in the chair with a handkerchief
in her mouth, a towel over her head and
some fish line tied around her head, hands
and feet. Elsie screamed and her mother
came upstairs. She saw her daughters
position and cut the cords. The fish line
belonged to Mr. Hume
Mr.. Hume is a painter of excellent repu-
tation. He has lived in this city for many
years and bears good reputation. Mrs.
Hume says she heard noise and saw two
| men go out the front room, which would
be to the porch over the front door.
/ The police have thoroughly sifted the
story of the alleged crime. They learned
that at the hour the men were supposed
| to go out on the porch over the front door
| it was MT dark. Several people who live
| on the opposite side of the street were in
| terviewed and none saw the men.
| Mrs. Hume is a delicate woman and sub
! ject to hysteria.
| Mr. Hume was at Police Headquarters
last night. Chief Murphy told him to go
home and make thorough search of the
house, as the police have known of cases
where women suffering with hysteria,
have hidden money and jewels about their
homes and forgotten all about the Incl
| dent. The case rests here.