The Paducah sun. [volume] (Paducah, Ky.) 1898-1906, 1903-06-09
James Lane, Contractor, Found
There by Officers.
Is Alleged to Have Beaten Number
Of People in Decatur,
Ala.
FORMERLY LIVED IN pADUCAH

telegram from Memphis asking IL
James Lane, formerly a contractor
here, was wanted on a charge Of OBJ
tanning money by false pretenses.
There is no warrant or indictment here
against him, and the officers ct Men,
phis were so informed.
1t was learned that Lane is under
arrest at Memphis on charge of try
ing to beat people at Decatur, Ala. He
left Psducah two or three years ago,
after several years residence here.
1t is said that when he left Paducah
he beat everybody he could. He con-
tracted to build church at Princeton,
KY, and according to reports collect
ed the money and neglected to pay for
lot of the material in it, with re-
suit that the bondsmen had to pay for
it. Captain George o. Hart, of the
city, was one of the bondsmen, and
suit was brought here against the
bond by the Princeton congregation.
Lane is alleged to have done the
same thing In Nashville and many
other cities, and today's Memphis
Commercial Appeal says of his arrest
there:
BY shadowing and following a wo-
man from Decatur, Ala, to Memphis
the city marshal Of the former city.C.
ID. NJ. Young, aided by two policemen,
Nutzell and Koran, arrested James
Lane, former Memphis contractor,
at the union depot last night. upon
the charge Of being a fugitive from
justice.
Lane left Decatur Saturday night
under the preteuse, it is said, of look
ing for another contracting job. Ac-
cording to his own admission, he for
got to settle mp with some Of his cred
itors before he departed. Two war
rants were sworn out against him. one
charging him With the crime of petit
larceny and the other with obtaining
money under false pretenses. A copy
of these warrants was left at the po-
lice station last night, when Lane was
locked up.
According to the statement Of the
marshal and two interested parties, A.
B. Lsmbkin and j. d. Scruggs, who
arrived over the Southern railroad
from Decatur, Lane was . contractor
in that city. He erected five room
cottage for James Mitchell In Decatur
and received check in full for his
services.
The officers claim that $3.50 of the
money which he received from the
owner of the house was to have been
paid to d. Jervis, who furnished
part Of the material for the building.
They claim that Lane promised to pay
this amount to Jervis, but that he
failed to do so.
On last Saturday night Lane left De-
catur in buggy, saying that he was
going into the country to figure on a
job of building . barn for . farmer.
When he reached the farmers house
1t is claimed that he left the buggy
there and walked TO a small railway
station, where he boarded a train for
Memphis.
When searched at the station Lane
had the sum of $3.50 in greenbaoks in
his pockets. He asked the amount OF
his bond, and stated that he could
give one in any reasonable sum. Pend
ing the arrival of his friends whom
Lane said would come to his rescue he
was locked up.
ut is one of those unfortunate
cases." said Lane last night to re-
porter for the Commercial Appeal. 81
got into debt at Decatur and decided
to leave until | could make enough
money to pay my creditors. They had
me arrested upon these charges. That
is all there is to il. -
Lane is we'll dressed man, about
80 years of age. He was originally
from Paducah, where ne was a con-
tractor for several years. From that
city he moved to Nashville. and then
came to Memphis. He erected sew
eraI houses in this city. and then de-