Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-11-26
THIEVES BLOW SAFE
AT Clarendon P.0.
Eighty Dollars in Money and
Stamps Taken-0verIook
$500 Booty.

Three yeggmen who apparently work
on the theory that big prizes como in
small packages, got only $50 instead
Of $500 in postage stamps whom they
picked tho smallest Of two safes to
don. Va, shortly before o'clock this
morning.
The safe which they demolished was
in the front room Of the post Office,
which also is occupied as a drug store
by DR.. w. d. Boyer. The larger safe,
in which the druggist kept the bulk Of
his stamps, was in a back room. The
Alexandria county authorities believe
store they realized they could not blow
both safes and get away and decided
to take a chance on which held the
most loot.
only disappointment which befen the
robbers. When the iron door of the
smaller safe sprang open the thieves
beheld little steel compartment,
locked. Thinking this contained money,
the yeggmen grabbed up $50 In loose
stamps and about $50 in cash, which
were in the open drawers, and then
ned with the steel compartment. DR..
Boyer said the thieves found the box
empty when they opened it.
Robbed in July, 1916.
A little over a year ago-July. 1916.
the Clarendon post office. then operated
by z. L. Payne few doors from
Boyer's drug store, was entered and the
the explosion aroused E. C. Washburn,
who lived next door, and he frightened
the men away before they had time to
take anything.
RI,
three doors from the drug store, was
awakened again this morning when the
explosion shook his house, and Mrs
Washburn ran to her front window in
tim time s to see three figures running up the
Railway Company toward Washington.
Mr.. Washburn ran to the corner. saw
the safe door shattered in the drug store
and hurried to arouse DR.. Boyer. who
lives few hundred yards away. The
druggist telephoned to Fort Myer to
have the guards on the bridges across
the Potomac watch for the men. He
also notified the police of Washington
and Alexandria, Sheriff Howard B.
Fields Of Alexandria county hurried to
the drug store. and, after a hasty ex-
animation. started through the sur
rounding country. but found no truce Of
The yeggs began their lob" by fore
ing entrance to the blacksmith shop Of
D. T. Demarest. short distance from
the drug store, where they procured a
monkey wrench and chisels. Then they
broke into the Masonic Hall, over the
store. and from there entered the drug
store by a rear door.
Passed by Larger Safe.
They passed by the larger safe on
their way to tho front room. The
smaller safe was rolled out in the
middle Of the room and a counter was
pushed around to obstruct the view
from the front street. The strong box
was then "soaped," after which a
powdered explosive was poured in the
cracks of the safe. Finally the safe
was wrapped in a blue coat and A
flannel shirt. which were hanging in
the back OF the store.
The explosion stopped the clock on
the drug store wall at exactly $40
o'clock.
County authorities are confident the
robbers were the same men who broke
into the post ofhce at Falls Church last
Friday night and lad the safe ali "f1x-
ed" for cracking when they were
frightened away. Tho robbery also re-
called an attempt to enter the Mount
Rainier Nd, post Office a few days
ago.
Only q few weeks ago, October "a DR..
Bowers drug store was entered and
about $50 in stamps taken from n
The druggist Is of the opinion how
ever. that the previous robbery was
committed by boys in the community