The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1913-07-13
Little Trade That Locked Suspicious
In the Mind Of Sheriff
John J. c,rm-
nina.
TWO HORSES ARE MIXED
BY the skillfui Work Of the Officers
the Matter Seems to be
About Adj
Justed,

A peculiar incident which happened
last week has come to light from the
fact that an investigation was re.
CURED, which has not yet fully devel.
oped as to the motives involved in a
queer transaction.
1 Thursday man, stranger in the
city, drove up to the livery stable 81
H. e. Alton, at Ninth and Main streets
with horse and buggy which he had
cared for at the barn. In a short time
he reappeared at Atoms barn for his
horse and buggy, but the employee at
the barn who took charge of the ami
NAL was not at the barn. The EN-,
ploye In charge at the time knew
nothing of the transaction and did
not even know the horse of the stran-
ger and he was taken through and
identified an animal as his It was
hitched up to the vehicle and the
stranger drove off.
Discovering the mistake at the
barn, If such it was, the matter came
to the ears OF Sheriff j. ]. Crimmins
who is always on the alert when a
horse theft is committed and who
scarcely ever permits the thief and
horse to get away.
By some means 1t was ascertained
that the stranger had hired the horse
from Willis livery barn at Wayland,
Mo. While the transaction looked
suspicion, yet there was nothing def
mite in the matter of criminality and
the whole thing might turn out to
be mistake. Sheriff Crimmins, al
ways steady and safe in the matter
of protecting the innocent as we'll as
energetic in the punishment Of Grim
inals, went carefully to work and at
the same time somewhat impatiently,
awaited developments. The strangers
name was not even known. Friday
was day of watching, waiting and
thinking with the sheriff until after
Q o'clock In the afternoon, when Mr..
Crimmins concluded that the time for
action had arrived and he imme diately
dispatched telephone message to a
constable at Wayland, giving him
such particulars as was necessary
for him to have and as good de-
scription Of the man and the horse
he had come in possession Of at Al
tons stable, and using the telephone
in other directions. The first impress
sion of the sheriff seems to have
proved the best for 1t has brought
partial results.
The horse taken from Atoms stable
was a much better animal than that
which had been left by the stranger,
a suspicious detail in the transaction
and this is what exaggerated the idea
that no mistake had been made, but
that it was a concocted plan, a we'll
laid scheme to swap horses without
giving anything "to boot" AS Grim
minis is noted for having 1t In" for
horse thieves and is generally sue.
cessful in ferreting out their little
schemes. 1t is not surprising that he
was gratified on receiving a telephone
message from Mr.. Willis late yester.
day afternoon saying that the animal
described was in his stable safe and
sound; had been returned by the
stranger. The stranger was not at
Wayland and was possibly not aware
of having returned to the barn. an
other and very different animal from
that which he had hired from Mr..
Willis. the Wayland livery man.
This is as far along as the puzzllng
details OF this peculiar transaction
have developed. The missing horse
from Atoms stable has been found
and the horse that the stranger drove
to Keokuk is still here, getting rest
and three meals a day.