Los Angeles herald., 1906-05-30
ALTAR UNTOUCHED
BY P|OUS THIEF
BURGLARS FOURTH ATTEMPT
is SUCCESSFUL
Small Sum of Money Taken From
Quinn Home, but Gold Crosses
and VaIuables Left
Intact

A thief who would not desecrate an
altar but who showed no signs of haV-
ing a conscience otherwise robbed the
home of John P. Quinn. night manager
of the A. D. T.. at 3633 San Julian
street, Monday afternoon.
The burglar made his entrance to the
bungalow occupied by Mr.. Quinn and
his family through the front window.
He cut a hole in the screen covering the
window and showed back the latch with
a knife. At the time of the robbery,
which the family believes occurred
about 2:30 yesterday afternoon, Mr..
Quinn was asleep in a back room
which was entered and $S taken from
Mr.. Quinn's trousers, hanging near the
door. The thief had previously taken
nearly all the valuables in the house
and wrapped them in a blanket and
laid them on the table in the dining
room, preparatory to taking them
away From the circumstances the
family believes that he was fright
away by Mr.. Quinns coughing.
All the silverware and bric-a-brac
in the house were heaped upon the table
and if the burglar had not been fright
ened away he would have secured goods
valued at about $1,000. A trunk belong
ing to Mrs. Quinn, in which Mrs. Anita
Thompson Mrs. Quinn's mother, had
her valuables stored, was broken open
by the daring thief and small writing
case was also broken into and an ink
stand was taken. The ink contained in
the stand was dumped into the CRATE
and the stand was wrapped up with
the rest of the loot.
Is Singular Incident
What is considered the most singular
incident of the burglary was that all
though there was beautiful altar in
the room occupied by Mrs. Thompson,
upon which there We're gold crosses and
candlesticks with several valuable
prayerbooks. not a thing was molested
about the altar.
In the closet of one room the books
upon shelf were thrown to the floor
and the bureau drawers ransacked.
This tends to show that the thief en-
tered the room, but why he neglected
to take the gold o-osses and other
valuables on the altar is not under
stood by the detectives at work on the
case.
From the trunk which the burglar
broke open there was missing a purse
containing SO and a pearl cross. Aside
from the $S which -'as taken from Mr.
Quinn this is all stolen.
Three Attempts at Burglary
Three other attempts have been made
in the last week to break into Mr..
Quinn's bungalow. The locks on both
the back doors were cut with a knife.
1t is believed that the burglars were
frightened away on those occasions.
Elena Thompson, Mr.. Quinn's sister
in-law, was the first to discover that
the house had been robbed. She quickly
gave the alarm to the police after
waking Mr.. Quinn. The neighborhood
was thoroughly searched without avail
Mrs. G. d. Hiscock, who lives across
the street at 1926 San Julian street.
| stated yesterday that she saw a man
whom she now believes TO have been
the lookout saunter up and down the
street in front of her house about the
time the burglary is thought to have
taken place.
Several attempts have been made on
other houses in the neighborhood. One
on the residence of Mrs. e. IL. Feldt-
macher, 1900 Adair street, was nearly
successful. The little son of Mrs.
Fedtmacher was alone i'm the house,
and when a man attempted TO enter the
front door he screamed for help. This
frightened the intruder away.
The only cleW to the Identity of the
thieves is that two men have been in
the neighborhood for several days past
whose apparent object has been to sell
buttons with photographs upon them.
A description of the men has been given
the police by Mrs G. D. Hiscock and
| detectives are looking for the men.