Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1902-11-20
OFFICERS SATISFIED
Are Sure the Man in Custody is
Fletch Franklin.
WIKI NOT DEMAND REXUlSIllON
800
Many Wild Acts Ere Charged Against
Franklin w lated for Crime in
Many PIae'-'s a Desperate
Man.

Ma
lFrom Wednesdays Daily.l
! Sheriff r. j.. Dali and ex-Sheriff Ed
ward Barton, of Linn county, Mo-, ar
rived last evening from Linneus in
answer to. the summons sent them by
Chief of Police John Gray regarding
the capture of Fletch Franklin on
Monday. The Missouri officers will
remain In the city until tomorrow, in
all probability, as they have not yet
received their requisition papers CIV
Ing them the right to take their pris-
oner from Iowa into Missouri They
are loud in their praise of the ability
of the Ottumwa chief of police and of
Mayor Picker, who was with Mr.. Gray
at the time his man was taken into
custody. The Missouri officers say
that this is the first time of which
they have any record when Franklin
has been put behind the bars and they
tell stories of him which stamp him
as almost as desperate man as Har.
ry Tracey whose wild flight for life
was watched with interest by the en-.
tire country a few weeks ago.
Officers at Jail.
This morning Messrs. Dali and Bar.
ton visited the county jail and talked
to the prisoner for several minutes.
Sheriff Dali addressed him as
"Fletch," but he refused to admit that
q {c 1.-Two, I,
seen Mr.. Barton. Neither one of the
Missouri men has ever seen Franklin
but they both feel sure that the pris.
oner Is the man they want, and their
conviction Is strengthened by the in
spection they made this morning. Mr.
Barton has in his possession photo.
graph of Franklin, taken about four
years ago, with a description of the
man as he then appeared attached.
The picture shows him with nous.
tache, but the prisoner has none.
However, the resemblance Is so per-
feet that there is little room for doubt
as to the mans identity. In addition
to this the description states that
Franklin had a mole or wen on the
right side of the back of his neck This
morning it was noticed that although
there Is now no wen there. there is a
scar showing where one has been re-
moved. Everything points to the fact
that Miller is the right man and the
Missouri officers are jubilant over their
good fortune in securing him.
Denies 1t.
The man seemed very anxious to
prove to the Missouri officers that he
tr ,o& ~ Eroro1yIin
iff Dali had read the warrant to him,
which charges him with grand lar
ceny, he smiled and said:
II suppose you will pay my fare back
home If get down there and you find
out I'm not Fletch Franklin.
20, yes Sheriff Dali replied,
But you needn't make any arrange
ments to hurry back because l be-
lieye we will hold YOU"
He was then asked whether he
would go before requisition papers
were secured, and at this juncture his
brother, Alex Franklin, who resides
in South Ottumwa, and who was pres.
ent at the Jail at the time, advised him
to waive the right to demand requi,
sition and go with the officers at once
After little parleying he decided
to do this, first exacting another pro
mise that his fare would be paid back
to Ottumwa If he proved to be other
than Fletcher Franklin. Sheriff Dali
and his man will leave on the Wabash
at 1928 o'clock tomorrow morning and
will reach Linneus at about O'Clock
in the afternoon.
Strong Suspicion.
The police believe that Franklin IL
the man who stole the horses from
William O'Malley, S. D. Baker and
| Others In this city last spring. 1t viii
be remembered that three or fouI
horses disappeared completely on thu
| same night, together with deliver.
| wagon belonging to Hahn Bros, gro
GERS In the East End. The wagon wa!
1 found along the road not far from
Blakesburg some time afterward
showing that the thieves passed alon,
there and were evidently going in tn,
! direction of the old haunts Of Frank
4 lin. Several horses have disappeared
from this part of the state recently
and the local police believe tina
Franklin is the man who is responsible
for their disappearance.
The Present Case.
The theft for which Franklin
wanted at Linneus is the larceny of
4 team of horses belonging to maj
named Brown, living near Sumner,
town on the line between Sullivan an
4 Linn counties. The horses were hitch
ed to rack in Sumner and disappear
ed the same evening on which Frank
lin arrived in the city on freigh
train. The Missouri officers tell stol
les OF numerous cases OF horse stea
\ ing in almost every county in norther
4 E~oh n0