Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1919-02-14
WILL ANSWER TO BURGLARY

aged 10, and Houser Lemons, alias
Dockery, aged Is, are in jail awaiting
further legal proceeding against them
on the charge Of burglary and larceny
from the office of the Cannon mill Of
fee and vault, in Yorkville.
The crime for which the boys were
arrested was committed during last
Tuesday night or early Wednesda!
morning, and there is no doubt abou'
their guilt, for the loot they are accus.
ed of stealing, was found in their pos
session and they have, after nndlne
that further denial was useless, made
clean breast Of the whole affair.
The burglary was discovered by
John Cummings, the janitor, when ne
went to the mill office wednesday
morning to clean up. The floor was
Uttered with papers, desk drawers
were open, and the whole situation
presented a scene of confusion whlcr
could hardly have been created by un-
authorized persons, and the 1anltor Inn,
mediately reported to Mr.. f. A. Han
the superintendent.
After giving instructions that every,
thing be left just as 1t was, Mr. Hai
telephoned for Sheriff Quinn, who, ac'
companied by Constable w. s. Peters
went out to the mill and began an IN
vestigation. -,
The office door showed no sign o1
violence, and the conclusion was tna'
it must either have been left unlock
ed or it had been opened by dupn-
cate or skeleton key. The outside
vault door had been opened wllnou,
resistance, because, as 1t turned out, II
had been only partially locked; pu,
the fire door had been forced py means
of prizes, chisels, etc.
The interior of the vault showed evil
dence of thorough and more or iess
deliberate ransacking. Every JOCKEY
lock that was breakable had been prok-
en-, papers Of all kinds had peen PICK
ed over. and those that were not con-
sidered desirable in the estimation Of
the prowlers had either been tossed
about on the floor or left where they
we're. The only cash in the vault, II ap'
pears. was certain different sums In pay
Envelopes that had not been given te
the people to whom the amounts were
due and these were all missing. Tnere
was also missing quantity of postage
stamps. revenue stamps, LEAD pencu'
and Various other articles OF more ol
less value.
With it all there was no apparent
clue until a lady living near the OF
Ace told the sheriff Of the presence
around the mill for several weeks pas
of a boy named Bynum McClain, wht
was said to have come from Gastonla
and who 1t was reported had been or
the Castor county chaingang, and VINO
further. had been running with Housel
Lemons, alias Dockery, and VINO II
was understood was living In the nome
of Bill Dockery in the mill village no.
The sheriff proceeded at once to the
home of Bill Dockery and through
window he saw McClain lying IN pea
apparently asleep. The sherin wen,
inside aroused McClain out OF peg
and undertook to question MIN; ou,
the boy had been nowhere, mad peer
doing nothing, had heard nothlng ane
knew nothing, until the sherln pro,
duced a roll of bills from under nls
ni1low and then he began to talk, own
ing I'D where the money came iroifi
and how he had got it, etc.
During the search Of Dockerys
house the officers found an expensive
pistol that attracted their interested
attention: but about which they un-
dertook to do nothing until later, wnen
somebody remarked about Superln.
tendent McCloud Of the Lockmore
having lost such q pistol. BY that time
the pistol was missing from the peo
where the officers had first seen IT,
and the next time they ran across II
was only after a dilligent and persls-
tent search. This time it was care
fully wrapped in cloths and was lying
under some plunder in back ROOM
Somebody, of course, had made fur-
ther effort at concealment.
Houser Lemons, alias Dockery, VINO
belonged at Dockerys was not there
when the officers called upon McClaln, !,
but somebody remarked having nearo
him say that he was going to Gastonla
that day, and the sheriff called up tne
chief of police Of Gastonia with a ieW
suggestions as to where the cnap
might be found. 1t was not long De,
fore the Gastonia officer teiepnoneu
back that he had the young felioW uIL.
der arrest and Dockery was prousn'
back by Mr.. ]. r. Cannon ACCOM-
aimed bv Constable Peters.
Young Lemon, alias Dockery, had
sto,tIv denied everything in Gastonla,
and he continued his denials after ms
return to the Cannon mill; until ne
Harmed something about what McClaili
had told and after he had heard the
sheriff say that at the Jail his shoes ana
clothing would be taken on anG gwen
q thorough search, he saw that the lls
was up, and going down in one OF ne ne
legs of his knee pants he produced IzS
in bills. He said he had given a part
of the balance to his mother, ana ne
accounted for various other little Items
that aggregated S4S. IT. ,,,,o,,
McClain had S42 under his pillow
and 81 in his pocket. He said that tne
total amount Of cash secured was $50
Dockery confirmed this and the unoer-
standing is that a checking up or the
mill nav roll showed that was rignt.
After the return of young Dockery
from Gastonia, Sheriff Quinn overheard
the elder Dockery tell the boy Una.
there was trouble about the pistol ana
unless the boy should acknowledge
that the old man bought the pistol
from the boy, the old man would De
nunished. and the boy agreed to the ar
rangement, saying that although the
story was not true, he would be Will
ing to stand for the lie and take the
old mans punishment
Bill Dockery is in jail with the poys'
LOCAL lACONlCS