Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1913-08-05
Catching the Horse Thief.


Boone News-Republican: This
morning Ollie Rocho and Sheriff
Reid stopped in the News-Republi-
can office on business and while
here were persuaded to relate some
of the incidents connected with the
chasing of the man Dickerson who
is now in Jail here. Among other
things they enjoyed good laugh
over the assertion of Attorney Bray
of Grinnell, who had previously an
nounced that Boone county was har-
boring a gang of horse thieves. 1t
was discovered in the course of re-
cent events, despite the fact that with
an association of two hundred Grin
nell men avowedly an anti-horse
thief organization with Attorney
Bray as it's legal advisor, that the
horse thief gang have been for
months past renting barn just two
and one-half blocks from the police
station at Grinnell, and that there
they took many of their horses. 1t
was also learned that a similar barn
was maintained at Marengo just
across the street from tbs haass zoe
the sheriff Of that county. The
Boone horses were in the Grinnell
barn over night.
In relating their experiences, Mr..
Rocho said that the first call he had,
the one which took him from here
to Marshalltown and from there to
Gilman, was a blind and was per-
petrated by a member of the gang
who intended to throw him off the
track by getting him there and out
of the way again before the arrival
of his team. Mr.. Rocho, however,
hung around several days waiting
and inquiring, until the arrival Of
the men with his horses. Many
farmers joined in the chase around
the cornfield as has been related in
this paper and yet they were UNI
able to land their man. Then it was
they sent to Waterloo for the hounds
which took up the trail at once. The
animals took the pursuers to the
railroad yards at Belle PLANE where
they lost out. AS it was later learn
ed the man had gotten on train
here and rode several miles into the
country to the south. AS all the
farmers for miles around were on
the lookout Dickerson was spotted as
soon as he alighted from the pass
ing train, by the children Of a farm
er near They told their mother at
once and when Dickerson thought
he was suspected he went boldly up
to the house and asked the direction
to a town in the direction opposite
to where he intended to go. He
thought this would put them off the
trail but one lad suspecting his true
character climbed the windmill tow
er and watched him depart. He saw
him go in the opposite direction and
at once reported to lis mother who
telephoned to town. The message
was relayed several times until it
reached Mr. Rocho and the men
with the dogs at Belle Plaine and
they started out at once.
The action of the dogs was quite
remarkable. said Mr.. Rocho in re-
lating the experience. for although
they had lost the trail and were TAX
en- thirty or more miles and started
out again they did not forget what
they We're after. They ran along
with their noses six or eight inches
from the ground bowling and bay
ing as they went They picked up
the trail at once near the farm
house where Dickerson had stopped
and it was not long before they had
their quarry.
Now that he is in custody, Dick
erson steadfastly refuses to divulge
the names of his accomplices who
will no doubt lie low for the time
being.