Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1902-11-17
BOLD BURGLARY.
FOOD Fair JeweIry Dealer
Robbed Of vaIuabIes.
Trunk Broken Open and Nearly $1,000
in Goods Taken.
Suspicion Points to Former Attache,
Who Has Disappeared.

Sander Decsenyi. who conducted a
jeWelry booth at the Food Fair at City
hall. last week, was robbed of nearly
$1,000 worth of jeweiry, sometime Satur-
day night. The jeWelry was in a trunk
which was left in the hall over night.
and when Mr.. Decsenyi reached there,
yesterday morning, he found that the
lock had been pried off and the greater
portion of his best jewelry removed
He estimates his loss at from $500 to
$1,000 although he cannot state with alb
salute accuracy the exact value of the
goods taken until ne goes over the in
voices and checks up what has disap-
peared. AS near as he ascertained he
says the burglar secured the following:
One hundred and ten solid gold rings;
39l gold filled rings; 100 pieces French
ievelry; 100 pieces Italian mosaic; 80
shell canoes; y lockets; 40 Egyptian
fob chains: "a long collar chains; l
fancy chatelaine bag, with belt and
hook; a small fancy enamel clock, and
numerous other articles. Mr.. Decsenyi
thinks the loss will reach close to $1,000.
AS soon as the robbery was discov-
cred City Marshal Breen was notified.
and he Immediately took steps to dis
cover the guilty party He was not
long in ascertaining that a man named
John Patterson, Jr., who claims to re-
side at go Eighth street, Wilmington,
Delaware. and who has been with the
Food Fair for two weeks, as an as
sistant TO S. 3. Moore, was missing.
Moore conducts a booth in connection
with the fair in which he manufactures
articles made from gold wire, and it is
stated that Patterson paid him $50 &
short time ago to teach him the bust
ness Moore, Patterson and another
man occupied a suite of rooms over F.
Fl. Gaslin's restaurant. After l O'Clock
Sunday morning, Moore and the other
man We're abed. Patterson came into
the rooms. took his light leather suit
case and went away. He told Mr. Moore
he was going to Bangor and would
meet hiri in Rockland on Tuesday.
Moore knew he was interested in 4 wo-
man in Bangor and supposed he wished
to go over there to see her. So he
thought nothing OF his departure, and
went 20 sleep again.
About lis o'clock, Frank w. Halpine,
who WAS in charge of City hall during
the absence of Isaac Clark, began TO
prepare to lock up for the night. The
proprietors and mana gers of the booths
had been at work after the fair CLOSED!
in packing up their goods ready for
shipment to Rockland, the next stand
the fair will make. All had gone home,
and there was no one in the building
but the janitor. so far as he could tell.
So he started for the door and put out
the lights. when he heard some one
moving. Then Patterson came out of
the Moore booth. which was in the mid
die of the south part of the hall, and
said to him:
Hold on. don't lock me in. / fell
asleep in there and came near being
locked in all night
Patterson then went out and Halpine
locked up the hall and went down
stairs, looked after the fires and came
back again into the hall. He carefully
| looked around and became satisfied
| that there was no one left in the build
| ing. He went away for the night, and,
yesterday morning, when he came back
| he found three or four gold rings on the
| floor near the place where the jewelry
| booth was located, in the center of the
hall In short time, Mr.. Descenyi
came in and the first thing he did WAS
to find that the lock on his trunk had
| been broken.
That he was excited at the unwel-
come discovery he made was putting it
| rather mildly; he was completely dis
heartened, especially after he had gone
| through his trunk and found that near
| ly all his best grades of jewelry had
been removed from the boxes and taken
away. The loss comes additionally
hard upon him for the reason that Il
portion of the goods taken was on con-
signment, and he must pay the full
amount of the invoices. In the bottom
Of the trunk his best jewelry was pack
ed in a good-siZed box, each individ-
ual piece enclosed in a small box. These
small boxes had been opened and the
contents removed. The trays contain
ing fancy jewelry were stripped clean
of their contents and everything that
was really worth taking had been pur-
Joined.
The man who conducted the electric
lighting apparatus during the fair also
mao story tO tell, yesterday. Iie
said that on Saturday, Patterson came
to him and wanted to borrow one of the
electric hand lamps which he had on
sale, saying that he wanted to use one.
The man refused him. Yesterday, how
ever, he found one of them gone. and
believes that the person who committed
the robbery also stole his electric lamp
to use while doing the job.
It is suspected that the rObber must
have had a skeleton key with which he
opened the lock on the hall door. 1t is
said that Patterson is a machinist and
an adept in the use of tools.
Although Patterson told Moore that
ne was going to Bangor on the morning
Pullman, yesterday, City Marshal
Breen was unable to find out from the
Bangor police that he had arrived in
that city The woman he said he was
going to see is staying at the Jewett
house in that city. Mr.. Breen telephon-
ed Marshal Gilman of Bangor, yester-
day. and after a careful investigation
by the police Of that city word was re-
turned that ne had not been seen there.
Patterson is described as follows: Six
feet tall, rather dark complexion, 81
years old, wore stiff black hat and a
l.. rrs,.l