Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1913-02-25
NEGRO HEN THIEF.
BAT Ties POLICE
Shot Down After Terrorizing
Neighborhood for Week,
and ConfesseS.

An extensive and studied campaign
~ chicken thefts, conducted by the
EASTER hand of Tom Simmons. a negro,
.amc to an end in the police court to-
..y. after a gun battle in the streets,
when The negro confessed to having
..,ron l42 chickens within the lag,
week.. in his pocket was an inventory
~ his depredations on the hen roosts
NJ north Atlanta residents, and he de-
..f,ed the amount Of spoils and the To-
ation Of the victim in each case.
simmons was arrested early this
norning when alarm was given by W.
+. Frazer, 4S0 North jackson street the
.sfcken house OF whose mother, Mrs.
y NJ. Frazer, the negro entered. Four
policemen. responding to the alarm,
rsnlmed the negro II the block formed
rv the four streets, North Boulevard,
Angler avenue Jackson and Rice
streets. Finally flushed. the negro at
.zmoted to give battle. He was armed
with a section Of iron pipe. He fed at
the sight of the policemen's guns how
.rer and was shot in the heel before
..- was overtaken and captured
served ok Y ear ) or HS1lS.
The vocation of Tom Simmons is the
,1eft Of chickens. He only recently
Completed two terms Of three years
each for the same omenso.
His first false move in his last Sc
Ties Of raids came when at O'Clock
this morning he entered the hen house
of Mrs. Frazer and was so indscree;
as to make a noise. w. T. Frazer
heard him, and threw open the win
dow.
Get out of that hen house" ne shout
eli. not quite certain that anybody was
inside
His alarm was needed. A negro with
large sack over his shoulder ran from
the chicken house, and hid in the shad-
avs of the yard. MI Frazer telephoned
tile police.
Negro Shows Fight.
Captain Poole and Policemen Mat
Williams. Watson and Anderson re-
~nonded. They flushed the negro still
i'm the back yard of one of the houses
af the block. He ran into Angler ave
nue.. and into an alley and the police
men surrounded the block, and waited
for him. from 1870 until 4 o'clock.
Williams and Watson saw him
-,.althilv enter chicken house of one
ot the back yards, apparently intend
ing to continue his robberies under the
noses Of the policemen. They called
him out.
Drawing his iron pipe. Simmons
showed fight, but the revolvers flashed
i'm his face intimidated him, and he ran.
The policemen fired at him several
times, one bullet striking him in the
heel. Thus wounded, he was caught.
simmons home at 346 billiard street
was searched. and six large sacks OF
feathers, evidence Of his successful
raids. were found hidden under his
house. A sack of nine chickens, each
with it's neck wrung, was taken from
him when he was caught. Mrs. Frazer
this morning identified the chickens as
hers one of them, a pet chicken. hav-
ing a bandage about its leg where she
had carefully nursed an injury.
The negro confessed to wholesale
tlefts He voluntarily gave the police
men the following list of his depreda-
lions within the last week: IS Prospect
place, Il chickens; IA Prospect place,
-: 346 North Boulevard, s; 24G For
est avenue. 90; POI Lift Jones street,
is; % Boulevard place, 21; $40 North
Jackson street, 16; $50 North Boule-
ward, Il; SO Highland avenue, G; $50
North Jackson street g
simmons was bound over under the
sum of $1,000 in the recorders court
his morning.