The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1913-07-04
GANG OF FLOATERS IN A ROW
ONE is SLASHED WITH knife;
NIGHT OF THR|LLSFOR POLICE

F0li0We0 by Suppihg oWodt
OF STILL" blouse Party at
City Jail After "Coppers' Ha'
Rounded Up ''Boes;;" Figb', -
Which Gun, Brickbats ? e g
Stick Played Promir Fart.
Things happened - ,lankato last
night. The city was rVelier than it
has been for some time, and the po-
lice force had something to do nearly
all night along. The most momen-
tous and thrilling occurrence of the
nights adventures was a scrap
among a crowd of "'boes" who had
camped in the "jungles" southwest
of the CITY, The affair ended when
one of the number was badly cut on
] both arms with a sharp jackknife,
and taken to hospital. The per-
petrator of the bloody deed was then
| followed by the companions OF the
victim to the Union depot platform,
where the timely Intervention of Elk
pressman Henry Blatzheim with
man-sized shooting iron, stopped fur
Their bloodshed, and caused the man
with the knife to be put behind bars.
EdibIes and Drinks.
According to the story of both
sides to the quarrel, ten or fifteen
"fioaters" decided to have big
"mulligan stew and all the embeil-
ishments which only a knight of the
ties knows how to use, and the
bunch, all but one, "chipped in" to
buy the necessary edibles to produce
this rough life delicacy. Among
their number were three young fell
lows who claim to be "steeplejacks,
and have been painting some high
smokestacks and towers in this vi
chit Yesterday they painted the wa
ter tower on the Patterson Mercan-
tile company building. The one who
would not "chip in" calls himself R.
K. Doyle of Kansas City, and as the
others considered him a "sponger"
, they did not welcome his company.
' After the supper a few drinks were
, INDUCED in, and the company repair
ed to box car where the presence
of the red liquor seemed to put spir-
it into them, and Doyle was forced
/ out of the box car. According to
his own story he walked some dis
lance down the track and then made
detour through the woods, and
came back to the railroad tracks
near the Minnesota river bridge. He
says he saw five of his companions
sitting on the tracks.
Knife Was Pulled.
e II didn't want to meet them" he
ii said, "but l didn't see them soon
g enough and there was nothing else
e to do. | walked up alongside, and
e they all arose and someone said
something about making up and
a calling it square and one of the
IS steeple-jacks, a hunehback by the
n name of Jimmy Ireland, held Out
1t his hand. l grasped it, and he held
r, me, and then the rest of the bunch
ID began to pelt me with sticks ant
If stones I pulled the knife, and uset
y it. l had over $40 on my person
p money that I had saved up, and
do not see what they all jumped on
Re to me for if they did not want tt
p, rob me. l was a news agent run
IS ming out of Kansas City, but / go
IL tuberculosis, and had to quit.
v started roughing it, and doing odt
at jobs outside, and | was going ives
n into the Dakotas to find work"
st Robbery Not Intended.
The story told by Jimmy Ireland
lie the man who was cut, and hi
ne friends, differs slightly from this one
is They claim that they did not know
1t. that Doyle had the money on hi
". person, and had no idea whatever o
ny robbing him. They admitted tina
n Doyle left the car in a scrap, an
cause he was sponging. When h
r met them on the tracks, someon
| made the suggestion to make up
just as Doyle says, but they clair
that when this remark was mad,
OF that Doyle spurned the proffere
hand, and drew the knife. Doyl
slashed only once, but he cut o
one of the tendons in Jimmy Ir
lands left wrist, and put goo
OK sized cash in the right forearm. Th
zie loss of blood made Ireland ver
in weak, and he was helped by his cor
in panions, directed by some boys VIII
es were bathing in the river, to DR..
In w. Andrews office. Here his WOUND
b. were bound up, and he was taken
A. St Joseph's hospital. BY the tin
he he had reached the physicians offic
ne, Doyle had run to the Union depc
en- and here the fracas ended.
srs reached the depot ahead of his pu
lrt suers, and when they came upt
him one of them grabbed a stal
Nv from near by baggage truck al
Ter started for the man with the knife.
Gun Was Drawn.
This man says that Doyle had t
his knife in his hand at the time, al
{ 4 that he made lunge at him. E
md jpressman Blatzheim saw the tro