The San Francisco call., 1909-12-16
FEARS ASECOND
visit FROM THE
DEFIANT OUTLAW
Mrs. Irene FIOras, Who Was
Held Up Tuesday, in Dread
of Thugs Return
Narrates Experience With Ban
dit When He Makes DemOn=
stratiOn in Candy Shop
By MARY ASHE MILLER

By MARY ASHE MILLER
Deep purple beneath her eyes. a
nervous twitching Of her lips and a
slight tendency toward tears depict all
too plainly the state of Mrs. Irene
FIoras' nerves since her experience il
her candy shop at 1856 Market street
with the Saturday night holdup man.
who upset all the plans and specihca-
tions for his capture by appearing
Tuesday in a shop where he was not
expected, the theory seeming to prevail
that he was solely repeater"
Mrs. Floras says she has made no
plans. but she feels as though she
wanted never to spend another moment
IN her little trapezeid shop. I don't
believe he viii come back again. she
said. Captain Anderson had a long
talk with me this morning. and he said
] ought not TO be afraid but"-and she
gave a shudder-"a person gets her
nerves upset by thing like that
don't know what / want to do. / won't
stay here alone d minute, and even
wien my husband is here" and she
gave smiling glance at her stalwart
SIX foot and more protector, who was
waiting for her. even then I hate stay
ing in the place"
RETAINED PRESENCE OF MIND
Mrs. Floras told Of her encounter
with the man with an elaboration of
detail that was astonishing. but there
Is no doubt Of the exact truth of all
she told. She says she was afraid, but
her presence of mind seems not to
have deserted her for a moment.
I was sort of stunned" she said;
Il was weaker after he went out than
I was when he pointed that gun at
me. 1t was a great, big one, or at
least" with little smile, 'ft looked
big TO me. 1t was black. TOO. I thought
/ stood a better chance If 1 just did as
lac said and didn't scream. It passed
through my mind about that man at
the Hammam baths that didn't do a
thing and got shot down."
When ! asked her if she thought it
was the same man who had robbed the
it must be, but she had not really
thought whether he was or not when
he was holding her up.
WAS NOT ROUGH
There is one thing, though she
said. he wasn't rough like the others
said he was. He spoke all right. I
am not sure about his being an edu-
Gated mamie didn't say enough. and
what he did say was too exciting for
me TO tell much about his education.
The only time he was really rough
was when he was going out and told
me not 10 turn around He said, Don't
you turn around. Hear? and when he
said hear he said it sharp, rough, rude
like
when he came in the light was out
and he walked down and sat on that
stool"-pointing to small cane-seated
stool which at once assumed the fas-
cination of a famous spot-"and be-
gan to eat a cake out of that saucer.
] was standing at the front window
and / Just followed him down the
store. behind the counter; then [
asked him what he wanted, and he said
some candy and any kind.
Then he said What you got in
that drawer2' and he spoke so nicely
that I thought he was just fooling
with me / said: What difference does
that make TO your and he said: Don't
you get smart. missy and then he
pulled out that awful gun"
WAS 4 DECIDED SHOCK
The matter seems TO have come as a
more decided shock to Mrs. Floras be-
cause she had evidently paid but little
attention to the robberies of the drug
store near her.
'I was out to dinner last Saturday
evening" she said, and ! didn't come
back here at ali, so I didn't hear about
the robbery at Gleason's until Sunday
morning I didn't hear about the first
one either until my father told me the
next day Ny sister and I have been
here about two months and l thought
il was a pretty good lOcation-before."
Mrs Floras' husband says that he has
no fear that the place viii be subjected
10 a second visit I think that fellow
lust came here to show those detectives
that he wasn't afraid of them Say
he said, with a grin of appreciation,
I'D like 10 see that fellow for about q
minute just because he's such a lot Of
pluck-just walking right in here with
those detectives standing there next
door"
When I asked him what he thought
Of his wife's courage, he said:
'-Oh. she's pretty brave all right, too.
It's been awful tough on her, though.
asked him II he believed that the
letters that the police are receiving are
genuine and he answered:
I Just believe its clique, just a
band Of holdup men. The one that
came in here was one of the gang sure,
even II he wasn't the real one"
And then he declined to talk to me
any more because his wife was ready to
go out to dinner. and he tucked her
hand under his arm and took her away
with a protecting air that made me
rejoice that the holdup man had not
chosen a lonely little candy girl to
r..1f TO- =