Evening journal., 1913-09-15
THIEVES TRY
TO BREAK INTO
THREE STORES
Window Broken at Notion
House; Men Detected at
Brennan Store Doors
ROB METER THIS TIME
IN KLEITZ BUILDING

Robbed twice within the past week
is the record of the Kleitz Building
at the northwest corned Sixth and
Market streets. Some time Saturday
evening or early yesterday morning
slot meter thieves paid visit to the
basement of the building and robbed
the quarter gas slot meter. Just what
amount of money was secured is un-
known. That the place was entered
was discovered by Leonard Wealth
crby, the care taker of the building,
yesterday morning.
The robbery follows close upon
that Of the Johnny Jones cigar store
in the same building last week, when
over $500 was taken.
The slot meter was in the base
ment and was used by the proprietor
Of the restaurant who formerly oc-
cupied the corner at Sixth and Ship
ley streets. The restaurant closed on
Friday and while it was not in use the
meter contained considerable money
that had been placed there earlier in
the week. Entrance was effected by
raising a cellar door opening into
Sixth street which had been left un-
locked.
What looks like an attempted robbery
reported today was that at the Della
ware Notion House, No. 200 Market
street. This was made late Saturday
night and il was discovered in the morn
ing when the store was opened. The
rear window opening on TO Shipley street
had been broken. II is thought that the
glass falling TO the iron grating on the
sidewalk frightened the would be thieves
away.
Harry Topkis was not inclined 10 re-
gard the incident as a robbery attempt
Another attempt at robbery in the
same vicinity was made late Friday
night, when two men tried TO enter the
furniture store at 2l9-22l Market street,
occupied by the Edward II. Brennan
Company. The store, which occupies the
two buildings, runs from Market street
back 10 Shipley, and there are two rear
entrances. The two men were seen to
approach the entrance of No. 2l9 and
tumble around the lock for n few min
utos, after which they attempted TO en-
ter the one at 22l.
They had just started to work on
this building when seen by William
S. Prettymap,. who lives at No. 221
Shpley street. just across the street
from the rear of Brennan's store. Mr.
Prettyman watched the men as they
worked on the first door and when he
saw them begin on the second one he
started to give the alarm. When he
left his house, however, the two men
heard him and ran away.
The same night thieves tried to pry
their way into the store of the Della.
ware Hardware Company, at Second
and Shipley streets. They we're seer
manipulating about the doors, but rar
when discovered by a man who lives
nearby.
Residents of Sixth and Pine street
had visions Of robbery about on'
O'Clock yesterday morning when falling
glass awoke them. An investigation
showed that window in a grocery
store at the northeast corner had beer
broken by a brick Those whopeered iron
their bedroom window saw two mel
running away II is thought that tn
men were in a fight, when the brick wa
thrown and no attempt at robbery hat
been made.
Thief Resembled Virgins.
While the police are running dow
clues in the robbery of $500 from
the Wilmington and Philadelphia
EAR barn Office on Wednesday morning
last. they as yet have been unable &
clear up the mystery. When the rob
berry occurred there was a suspicion
in the minds of some that il Nigh
have been committed by Homer
Wiggins, formerly of Wilmington
escaped from the Eastern Peniten
tiary, Philadelphia, where he had bee
serving a sentence of twenty year
for killing a policeman. On Wednes
day last Morris Councill, the clerk i
the car barn who was compelled a
the point of a revolver to hand owe
Philadelphia, and, on being shown
photograph of Virgins in the polio
gallery there, said il resembled closel
the man who held him up and robbie
him. The Wilmington police. how
ever, received word from the Phila
delphia authorities that Virgins wa
supposed to be in Chicago at the tim
of the car barn robbery, according
a report they had gotten from ths
city.
Another report received by the pc
lice is that some time before the ca
barn robbery a strange woman Ell
tered the home of Virgins mother