The Savannah morning news., 1902-03-05
HAD A BAGFUL OF COIN
OFFICERS FOLLOW CLUE TO THE
WHISKY HILL TRAGEDY.
NEGRO SUSPECTS TRACKED.
ALL TRACE OF THE MEN LOST IN
JACKSONVILLE.

They Left savannah Early Saturday
Morning, Before II Was Known to
the Authorities That Schrenk and
Carter Had Been Murdered and
Burned-One of the Negroes Had
an Injured Hand, and Ii Is Believ-
ed That He Was Either Shot by the
Clerk, Carter, or Burned in Setting
Fire to the StOre-Suspects Chang
ed Large Quantity of Small Money
for Greenbacks-Chfef Deputy
sheriff Sweeney Followed Them in
Florida.
The brutal murder of Micheal
Schrenk and Jake Carter at Whiskey
Hill Friday night, the robbing of the
store and the burning of the buildings
containing the bodies of the two men,
was the work of two negroes. The
county authorities are now confident of
this fact, although it is doubtful if the
suspected men will ever be captured.
Chief Deputy Sheriff Thomas
Sweeney returned from Jacksonville at
2 o'clock yesterday. after a futile, but
hot chase for the suspected negroes.
The officer left the city Sunday morn
as Jacksonville, where all trace of the
men who are believed to be RESPONSE
BILE for the killing of the aged German,
and his clerk, was lost. The negroes
had a start of over "a hours on Deputy
Sweeney and while they were traced
more could be learned of their where
asbouts.
While the identity of the negroes I'M
der suspicion is not known to the dep
uty sheriff, he had been furnished with
an accurate description of them, and
left no stone unturned in an effort to
locate them in Jacksonville, where they
landed Saturday morning, over six
hours before the commission of the
crimes was made known to the authori-
ties. They disappeared completely in
Jacksonville's large negro population,
and as hard as he tried the Savannah
officer was unable to find the slightest
clue to their whereabouts. Two ne
groes were arrested in Jacksonville by
Deputy Sweeney, but were released i'm
mediately. They in measure answer
ed the description of the suspects, but
it developed that they are residents of
Jacksonville.
The suspects appeared in Savannah
in the vicinity of the Plant System
depot-at an early hour Saturday
morning This was several hours after
Schrenk and Carter had been killed,
and the store in the Black Ankle dis
trict had been fired. The men APP
peared to be flushed and flashed"
money enough to attract the attention
OF the negroes who infest East Broad
street during the early hours of morn
ing. One of them had an injured hand
that he had bandaged up, and it is
believed that he was either shot by
the clerk, Carter, or was burned in
setting fire to the store. The officers
think that either theory is altogether
plausible, and it may be that the man
with the wounded hand received the
bullet from the young clerks rifle, the
fact having been established that Car
ter fired shot before ne was NOR tall
ly wounded.
The negroes with money enough to
attract attention, and cause comment
remained in the neighborhood for some
little while and purchased tickets to
Charleston, S. c. A short while later
they called at the ticket office and ex-
changed their tickets for transporta-
ton to Jacksonville. One of the ne
groes had a handkerchief filled with
small change-such as is taken in over
the counter of a country grocery store
which he gave to the ticket agent
for bills. At that time it was not
known that a robbery had been COM
mitted and no special significance was
attached to the conduct of the negroes.
The men remained at the depot I'M
til AIS o'clock when train No. % for
the south departed. The manner and
conduct of the negroes attracted the
attention of the conductor, and he
suspected that there was something
wrong somewhere. He watched them
closely, talked with them several
times and was able to furnish the
officers with a splendid description of
the negroes. At Jacksonville the sus-
picious passengers got off, and the
train continued on its journey south
The men had been in Jacksonville
twelve hours before the officers were
in possession of the facts connected
with the tragedy, and that space of
time had elapsed again before the
slightest clue could be obtained.
Although the negroes had gotten a
good start Deputy Sweeney deter
mined if possible to run them to
cover, and followed in their wake.
While the track became cold in the
Florida city the officers have not
given up all hope of landing their
men, although they fully realize that
they have but a slim chance of again
getting trace of the negroes. 1t is
known that the suspects gave an
East Side negro, who probably knew
something, or appeared wiser than
the others. 500, but he, too, did the
disappearing act, and has thus far
eluded the vigilence of the police. He
was nthe act of giving Greek fruit
dealer the money to keep for him
when Patrolman Frank Smith came
in sight. The man with the hundred
lost no time in getting out of the way
before the officer had time to fire
upon him.