St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1920-05-29
Blood Trail Marks Flight
to Store of Smith Hard
ware Company.
WOUNDS DRESSED
IN NEXT STORE
A Hard Days Work Ended
Without Catching the
Wounded Burglar.

Attempted robbery of the Patecek
store and the supposed shooting of a
man caused considerable excitement
in Covington Wednesday morning.
About o'clock in the morning
Mr.. Patecek was awakened by Miss
Werner, n ight operator of the Cum
berland Telephone Company, who in
formed him that a man had attempt
ed to break into his store at the back
entrance. Mr. Patecek did not aWak-
en- when she first called and she then
started the buzZer in his room, which
also rang the connected telephone in
the store and scared the would-be
burglar away. Mr.. Patecek found
the transom above the door broken.
Before retiring again Mr.. Patecek
went to the window to close it, when
he saw two men standing in the mar
row passageWay below and heard
them talking very low. He got his
gun, which was loaded with No. 8
shot, and fired both barrels at the
men. Examination showed blood
marks on the ground and ON the
fence where the man had jumped
over. Night Marshal Jones was at
tracted by the shooting and in trac-
ing the man found the door of the
Smith Hardware Company open. He
went in but found no trace of the
man. He then phoned Mr.. A. R.
Smith, who came to the store. He
found that a Smith C Wesson re-
volver had been taken, but did not
miss anything else. Later in the
morning the City Cash Store of Poll
car & Richard was found to have
been entered also and blood stains
were on the floor. Nothing was TAX
en- except two towels and jar Of
vinegar. 1t Is thought that the burg
lar took these to dress his wounds
and then went out through the sky
light, as he had entered. 1t is also
thought he entered this store on the
supposition that he was entering the
Smith hardware store. Nothing
more developed, so the citizens sub
scribed fund of $4,000 and wired
to Mr.. Cant, at Crystal Springs,
Miss, to bring his dogs. Mr.. Cant
was working on case, but got here
Thursday morning and the dogs took
up the trail, following it from the
roof of the Smith Hardware Com
pany out Jahncke Avenue and taru
St. Pauls College and then to the
Tchefuncta river about the old Fred
erick Camp and back to the Tche-
functa bridge, where it was lost, ap-
parently.
1t was learned that negro named
Nose Smith, living at Abita, was re-
ported wounded and that he had
been in Covington Tuesday night.
AS the dogs trailed to a house on
Florida Street and Smith was re-
ported as having been there deputy
sheriff was sent to Abita to get him.
He was examined by Sheriff Galatas,
Mr.. Cant and others, but he denied
all knowledge Of the affair. Mr..
Cant then took him outside and piac-
ed him about fifty feet from three
other negroes and brought the dogs
to the trail The dogs did not seem
much interested. One of them rolled
on the ground and scratched himself.
However, they rambled leisuroly
along towards Smith and finally,
short distance from Smith one of
them bayed. 1t was not a demon
stration that satisfied many Of the
onlookers that the dogs were par
ticularly interested in Smith, but Mr..
Cant seemed to think that the dogs
had crossed the trail of the other
three negroes and taken up the trail
of Smith. So Smith was locked up
pending further developments.
Many are Of the opinion that a
young negro named Boil Weevil Is
the man wanted. The trail followed
was a bare foot and Boil Weevil goes
barefooted The haunts and habi-
tats of Boil Weevil lay along the
trail and it is figured that he was
smart enough to fool the trailers.
1t seems to be another case or
burglary in which the burglar will
escape.