The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-21
PRISONER A THIEF
CHANGING TRUSTY ROBBED A
GROCERY WAREHOUSE.
cADDY OF TOBACCO
PLACED WITH SUPPLIES PUR-
CHASED BY COUNTY.

Eddie McHenry, Notorious Negro
Thief, Caught With the Goods ut
Place of Dixon Lumber Company.
Man in Stripes Transferred from
County Wagon to Police Patrol.
He Had Finished Loading County
Wagon and When Shipping Clerk
Turned His Back the Tobacco
Was Swiped.
Wearing the stripes of a convict for
innumerable thefts. Eddie McHenry. a
negro known in police circles as "Shor-
ty." added one more to his lists of
crimes yesterday morning by purloin-
ing a ten-pound caddy of tobacco from
the shipping rooms of the Dixon Lum-
Der Company on Wheaton street.
The theft was committed within a
few yards of Vice Chairman A. B.
Moore of the County Commissioners,
who was in conversation with Alder
man James M. Dixon. Nc
Henry has been doing time on the
changing for long while, and is a
trusty. He has a reputation as a thief,
however, and the police declare that
whatever touches his hands usually
sticks there-one of the sort who will
take anything that isn't nailed down.
McTIenry had come to the city from
one of the camps for supplies. The
wagon had been loaded and the Dixon
Company's shipping clerk turned to go
into the Office for a minute. His back
81 Il h,rf 10
Henry could have almost stolen a red
hot stove in sixty seconds. The ship
ping clerk turned in time to see the
convict covering the caddy of tobacco
with his coat.
The theft was at once reported to
Mr.. Dixon and Commissioner Moore.
McHenry was caught with the goods
and could make no denial The caddy
of tobacco was in the wagon and the
order for the supplies purchased by the
county didn't call for tobacco. A teIe-
phone message to police headquarters
brought the patrol wagon, and the
trusty stripes and all, was put on the
inside. No charges were lodged against
him at police headquarters, however.
He was taken to the county Jail and
probably to-day he Will go before Judge
Norwood and enter a plea of guilty to
charge of simple larceny, thus assur-
ing himself an extra sentence.
Although a notorious thief McHenry
is of much service to the county and
when sent out can generally be relied
upon to come back. The theft yester-
day calls to mind a somewhat similar
incident several years ago. The negro
had just finished a sentence and drop
ped into the Court House to see Clerk
Butler. 1t CHANGED to be Wednesday
and the clerk told McHenry that he
would be up again Friday, the day
upon which criminal sessions of the
City Court are usually held. McHenry
was inclined to resent the prediction,
but Clerk Butler was called from his
office.
When he returned a few minutes
later he discovered that a coat and a
pair of eye glasses, the property of
Janitor Brantley Donovan, had disap-
peared. The detectives were at once
notified and told that McHenry had
been closer than a city block just ten
minutes before. One of the officers hur-
ried to a pawnshop and reached there
in time to get McHenry with the goods
He was disposing of the coat and
glasses when made a prisoner, and
served a year for the theft. At the
same time McHenry left a handsome
gold watch and other valuables owned
by Clerk Butler. He explained this
after his arrest by saying that he liked
Mr. Butler