East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1909-02-16

Charles Dickens, Frank Ely and
William Edwards are now charged
with petty thefts that are said to have
extended over perion of perhaps two
years and which have amounted to
a considerable sum. 1t is alleged they
& n. freight depot.
They were arrested last night after
sufficient evidence had been secured
to establish the belief that the parties
were guilty of the crimes. Local off,
GERS assisted Special o. X. & n. De-
tective Wood in making the arrests.
Wood has been here for several days
for the purpose of ferreting out the
evidence that would convict the men.
The system of securing the goods
was smooth one, although the rail-
road officials knew that the thefts
were going on, yet they had no evil
dence to prove who were the guilty
persons.
The goods which were taken were
those which were en- route to points
distant from Pendleton and which
were transferred here to be sent to
other points. For some time thu
company knew that the merchandise
was being tampered with, but could
not determine whether the thefts
were being committed here or at
Umatilla. as transfers were also made
at Umatilla. For a long time the
company's officials were on the look
out for the thefts. but they never
could get any evidence for a convic-
tion.
After several weeks Wood finally
obtained a clue and warrants were
sworn out for the arrest of the men
believed to be guilty. Search war
rants were also issued and late in the
evening the railroad detective and the
local officers proceeded to make the
raid upon the unsuspecting victims
Edwards Arrested
The first man to be found was
William Edwards, a truckman for the
company. when he was arrested heI
denied the charge of his guilt, but was
shown the search warrants and the
party proceeded to his home on Bluff
street. where they found a part of
the missing articles Two little ex-
press wagons and pair Of shoes
were found and at this discovery and
proof of his guilt, he finally confess
ed to the offense, so the officers state.
The man is a. yars old and has a
WIFE and children,
ELY Denies Guilt.
The next man to he found was Ely, |
the trans-continental freight inspec-
tor. who lives NJ the home of Henry !
Thompson He was arrested and his
room was searched and some articles |
of clothing and pair of leather pill
low cases were found, which the O.
Il. & n. men identified as part of the
missing plumber Ely protested that
he was innocent and claimed that a
pair of shoes which were found and ,
claimed by the officials were somo
that he had bought from a hobo.
Dickens Makes Confession.
ln0lltS Dlth'lS was tl' ll'NN III
line. When his arrest came and the
search OF his promises was brought
about he made complete confess
ion and when a dray stopped before
the door a huge pile Of merchandise
Of all kinds and descriptions was
ready to be taken to the offices Of
the court Dickens is young man
ana has a wife and baby. They live
NJ Sl3 Aura street
All three gave bonds to appear in
tine Justice court and were released
on furnishing the required amount.
They appeared before the justice this
and upon the request Of the
attorneys for the defense Of Ely, who
Is intending to fight the case, his trial
wiz be postponed until Friday
The hearing Of the others was post