Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1906-01-16

Two Canine Detectives Find a Rob-
bers' Den in a Water Tank
Stolen Articles Returned.

NICK davenport kept what II
called In the south "a general
store" ia the little town OF Valley
Head, Ala. One morning Mr.. Dav-
export went to the store to find
cans and boxes broken open, scat.
tered about the floor, while a desk
containing money had been
smashed and its contents stolen,
relates the Pilgrim. The robbers
left no clew whatever to their
identity. Luckily he had heard
about Echo and O'Higgins, two
blOOdhounds noted for hunting
down criminals. Possibly they
might trace the perpetrators Of
the crime. a telegram sent to De
tective Phipps brought him to
Valley Head the same night.
Without delay the dogs were led
to the store. Running around the
store for a moment and shifting
here and there among the articles
Uttered upon it, both with a short
bark started for the door, pulling
the detective along as fast as he
could run in their eagerness to fol-
low the trail. Straight they went
to the railroad track which passes
through the town.
News that the canine detec-
tives and their master had come
to the village to ferret out the rob
berry, if possible, had spread from
one end of the place to the other,
and back Of the dogs hurried a
crowd Of a score or more armed
with shOtguns and pistols. But
they were to have a long and hard
chase. Mile after mile the ami
mails, now unleashed, scampered
over the ties which their noses al
most touched. AT last they came
TO a railroad bridge, but not stop
ping they carefully picked their
way along the perilOus path,
although misstep would have
thrown them between the
ties and into the river below.
Long after midnight the dogs halt.
ed in front of a tank used for sup
plying water to the locomotives.
''I wonder if they're ia there"
said the detective. ''The dogs GER
tainIy would not stop here andact
the way they do"
al reckon they're right" said a
railroad man, who had joined in
the pursuit. "That tank sprang y
leak some time ago, and it's
empty, so anybody could easily
climb up the ladder on the outside
and let themselves down into it,"
"Well, l will just go up and
take a look inside. Give me that
lantern you've got" And suitiug
the deed to the word, Phipps, with
pistol in one hand and lantern in
the other climbed to the top Of
the tank, while the crowd waited
breathlessly.
Here they. are, boys. Just
stand in a cirCle round while tell
them to come out"
In response to his command to
surrender, in a minute a black
head appeared above the top OF
the tank, and it's owner silently
crawled down the ladder, until he
saw the dogs leaping at him, when
he halted. Echo and O'Higgins
were leashed, and then two other
black heads appeared above the
top of the tank. AS fast as the
men came @Swn they were tied to-
gether. Then some of the party
descended into the tank and found
enough provisions to last them for
m0nths-all stolen from Nick
DavenpOrt's store. Most of the
money taken from the store was
in their pockets. Needless to say,
Echo and O'Higgins had a choice
supper, or rather breakfast, Of
bones with plenty of meat on
them when they returned to VAL
ley Head long after daylight the
next morning.
Two Forms of Wit.