Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1921-01-09

New York, Jan. S.--New York
has thrown away its nickel novel
OF 1920, to begin reading the 1921
thriller of Dead Mans Gulch moved
into Broadway and the Black Hills
set down on Fifth avenue some
where between the Waldorf Asto-
ria and Forty-second street.
With something like 400 rob-
berries and "stickups" on the news
paper lists of crimes for the past
year, and more than 100 murders
and killings set down by news Of
fees as "unsolved," the New Year
has had set for it penny-dread-
full record and it will take two
gun men from Coyote canyon a
lifetimes endeavor to beat.
A ride from the Grand Central
in a taxicab now is conceded by
leading papers of the city to have
nothing on trip in the Deadwood
stagecoach and the big hotels and
restaurants loom up as CHEEKY as
the Santa Fe saloon in the Wild
West days of the six-gun toter and
the Bad Boy Bandits of Bloody
Hollow. Twenty police riflemen
patrol the streets at night in auto
mobiles. The curfew rings out at
midnight when Central Park is
closed to vehicular and pedestrian
traffic, and all persons abroad
must give account of themselves
when asked.
"a In the past month judges on the
criminal courts bench have urged
formation of citizens committees
on a par with the vigilantes of the
frontier because it was accused of
moving back east to metropolitan
centers. The mayor has warned all
persons carrying or possessing val
uables to procure permits to arm
themselves against highwaymen
and the police have tried to get
back to something like first prin-
ciples in life and property protec-
ton.
Crimes have been chronicled as
though they were robbery and muir
der cyclones, and the subway
newspaper reader has felt all the
thrill of riding the overland limit
ed in the days when Jesse James
and his gang held no prairie rail-
road immune from their ravages,
Estimates have placed about
$4,000,000 as the total value oil
loot obtained by burglars, thieves
and yeggmen in New York during
1920. Daylight holdups, attacks in
leading Great White Way hotels
and automobile banditry have
Yielded much of the valuables
stolen. AS many as forty robber-
les and thefts have been featured
for a months acts of violence OF
note. and six such attempts in a
day have been recorded.
OF the more than 100 "unsolved'
murders listed by some papers, a
number now are nationally, if not
internationally, known. Beginning
with killing last New Years day
1920s record started strong. Con-
spicuous in the twelve-months
list were the murders of Joseph B.
Elwell, Miss Renie Constance
Hoxie, and Frederick c.. Ecker.
Elwell, known from coast to coast
as a whist expert and horseman.
was shot to death in his handsome
ly furnished West Seventeen street
home; Miss HoXie, 17-year-old
girl, was found mutilated in her
fathers house; Eckert, a former
government agent and alleged
whisky runner, was found shot
dead in an automobile in Staten
Island
In the robberies, organized bands
of gunner have seemed to pre-
dominate. Thefts of valuable goods
from railroad freight cars bulking
big in packing cases, haye been
considerable. Stolen automobiles
have been reported constantly But
holdups of the old time type, by