The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-12-01
ROBBERS WERE SEEN
WOMAN IN LANE WATCHED THEM
GO UNDER GRATING.
HEARD NO EXPLOSION.
TWO MEN ENTERED FNoYE d Eek
STEMS BEFORE O'CLOCK.

Police Have Unenrthed n witness,
hut She would Not BE Able TO
Identify the Department store
BurgIars-WOmnn Thought That
Because They Were White Men
They Were Employed in the store.
Detectives Were Unable TO Secure
Evidence Against Foley and
Draper and They Were Released.
The discovery of a woman who saw
two men enter Foye & Eckstein's de-
partment store early Sunday morning.
and the release by the police last night
of f. c., alias Spike" Foley and Guy
A. Draper, arrested as suspects by the
detectives. were the chief develop
ments in the safe robbery case yes
terday.
Two men entered the basement in
Broughton lane at about 80 o'clock
Sunday morning, and at 2 O'Clock, were
still inside the store. A colored wom-
an living just back of the place, saw
the robbers when they went under the
grating. They were white men, but
she would not be able to identify eth
er. The woman. however, makes
clear statement, and the officers be-
lieve all that she has told them.
She had been drinking some beer,
she stated, and was restless. She was
looking into the lane through her win
dow when she saw two men walk to
the corner and stop. The stout man
went over to the grating and stopped
down. He appeared to be fumbling
with something. and a minute or two
afterwards lifted the grating and went
below. His companion remained at
the corner for several minutes and APP
peared to be on the lookout.
Saw Men Enter store.
In a few minutes he too, went down
the steps under the grating. At the
time the woman in the window did
not look with suspicion upon the ac-
lions of the men. Had they been
negroes, she said, she would have dress
ed and gone for the police. but being
white men she thought that they were
probably employed in the store and
were going into the basement to work.
She was standing at the window, she
says, when one of the city clocks struck
two, and at that time the two were
still below. The woman never thought
any more of the incident, until she
learned that the safe had been blown
open, and did not hear any explosion.
The police are at work on several
important clues, but the information
furnished them by the woman is of
no value, except to fix the time at
which the robbery was committed. She
declares that she would not know the
men If she saw them again. While
the officers have some hope Of finally
running the robbers to cover, they ad-
NIT that their chances are not the
brightest at this time. They know at
about what hour the robbery was COM
mitted, and that at least two men,
both strangers, took part in the blow
ing open of the safe.
Suspects Were Released.
The officers were unable to make out
a case against Foley or Draper, and
for this reason the two men were re-
leased. No evidence could be secured
against them, and the officers realized
that mere suspicion would be of no
avail at formal investigation. When
the suspects made a formal demand to
be allowed bail, and were refused, they
instructed their counsel, Col. Robert L.
Colding to institute habeas corpus pro-
ceedings. The aff1davits were drawn up
and signed in the station house, and
Judge Barrow set 10 o'clock this morn
ing as the hour for the hearing. After
the papers had been served on the SUI
perintendent of police he released the
suspects.
The firm that was visited by the
robbers has not yet been able to state
the exact amount that was stolen. The
cashier has been detained at home by
the serious illness of her father and
Mr.. Eckstein stated that it could not
be told just how much money was
taken until she had gone over her ac-
counts carefully.