Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1908-08-01
; DOG CATCHERS
BEAT OLD MAN;
LAND IN JAIL
pouNDKEEPER'S DEPUTIES IN
DISGRACEFUL ROW
usE VILE LANGUAGE TO WOMAN: !:
ATTACK EXPREssMAN
Free-for-AII Fight Starts When Brutal
Tactics Usually Reserved for
CANNES Are Applied
to Humans

Because he demonstrated with three
brutal dog catchers for using profane
and obscene language in the presence
of women at First street and Santa Fe
avenue yesterday afternoon, A. Coplan,
an aged expressman living at 2219 Rog-
ers street, was attacked and terribly
beaten by the men, whom, he declares,
told him he would get his" for inter-
fering.
Bystanders, enraged at the unwar-
ranted and unprovoked assault rushed
to Cop1ans assistance and for snort
time there was free-for-all fight. 80
fierce did the battle rage that fright
ened spectator dashed off to find
policeman. He met Patrolman Brown
and declared that some men were being
killed near the Santa Fe station.
Brown hurried to the scene of hos
tilities and arrested the dog catchers.
An ambulance was summoned and
Coplan taken to the receiving hospital
where Police Surgeon Wright stitched
q long and deep laceration on the top
of the expressman's head.
]. Christopher, one of the dog
catchers, also was treated by the sur
geon, who sewed up a nasty cut be-
tween his eyes.
Dog Catchers Use Vile Language
According to the story of a witness.
the trouble began when the employees
of the city pound keeper had an alter
cation with a passing driver and in
which vile language was used. Sew
eral women were standing on the cor
ner waiting for a car and when Coplan
drove up he alighted from his wagon
and walked over to where the users OF
improper language were and asked
them to have some respect for the
cfn their flow Of
family.
They told me I had no right to in
terfere," said Coplan, "Gnd before
could protect myself they Jumped on
me and knocked me to the ground, and
but for the timely assistance OF a
number of men who witnessed the
cowardly attack I would have been
seriously injured.
at am an old man, as you can see
and am not able to put up good fight
Those men are young and strong ano
they had no difficulty in getting tht
best of me. When I struck the grounc
| lost consciousness for several seconds
and now my head pains me consider
ably The men should be given tn
extreme penalty of the law, for no
only are they guilty of assaulting me
but they are guilty of using vile Ian
guage in the presence of women, fol
whom these dog catchers seem to have
but little respect"
Britt Has Enough
After his injuries were dressed Cop
Ian went to the prosecuting attorneys
office, where the dog catchers had beer
taken. and identified E. Britt as the
man who struck him in the face. OW'
ing to the excitement and the pair
from his injured head he was unable
to definitely state that anyone else
had struck him.
mo more dog catching for me-" sale
E. Britt IT am going to quit it righ'
away; this will be my last day at tha'
business"
Britt would not discuss the fight, be-
yond stating that there was genera
mixup. He would not say how Il
started, but said it was "just fight
7 christopher, one of Britt's as
sistants, was crying because of tht
trouble in which he was implicated
He admitted that there had been pro
fame language used and declared n
was compelled to seek refuge unde
the dog wagon.
In connection with the trouble Milk
Catalina, another of Britt's assistants
was accused of having mixed up il
the affray and with having grabbed
the bit of an expressman's horse ant
stopped the team.
After hearing the stories of the wit
nesses, Britt, Christopher and Cata
lima were locked up on a charge OF dis
turbing the peace and will appear L
police court this morning.
Coplan suffered the loss of quan
tity of blood and was considerable
shaken and bruised, but it is though
he will suffer no ill effects as the re
suit of the brutal attack.
Woman Tells of Assault
Zone of the dog catchers had struc
an elderly Russian" said Mrs. Rut
Martin, 153 North Anderson street, a
witness to the fight, when
young woman stepped up and told tn
man that he should be ashamed c
himself for striking an old man. Thi
angered the dog catcher, who turne
his attention to the woman and bega
to use vile language.
About this time an eXpressman, ais
an old man, appeared and took he
part, telling the dog catcher that
should have more respect for wome
than to use such language. The do
catcher resented this interference an
turned on the old man and struck hil
a vicious blow, telling him to the stree
and cutting a large cash in his hea(
The dog catcher hit another man VIII
attempted to interfere and then an ic
man appeared on the scene and 500
there was a big fight"
Mrs. Martin declares that the actio
of the belligerent dog chaser was ur
warranted and his attack upon the oil
men was in her opinion, an exhibitio