The north Mississippi herald., 1923-03-02
BLOOD HOUNDS TRAIL
NEGRO BURGLAR
Thad Holladay In Jail Charged
With Entering Two House.
Tuesday Night.

Thad Holiday young negro man
apparently FL or 20 years old Is in
the County Jail awaiting to answer to
TWO felony charges Of breaking and
entering two houses in this city
During Tuesday night some one en-
tered the home of Rev. E. N. Smith
presiding elder of the colord M. a.
Church, but the intruder failed TO
secure anything of value. The burglar
entered the house by removing a
pane OF glass from window In an
unused room, but was frightened
away before he secured any loot.
About 4:30 o'clock Tuesday morn
ing neighbors were startled and
aroused by screams coming from the
house located on the Catholic proper.
ty north of Leon Hirsch's residence
Inc house is occupied by Miss
winter Halter an old lady 81 years
OF age who lives alone in the house.
Mr.. Thad Ragland living in the
Thompson house across the street
was the first to hear cries of distress
and rushing to the door called to the
lady who answered and said, .there
Is man in my house." Mr.. Ragland
tnen went into his house, secured
his gun and started across the street
to the old lady's house. Other neigh
oors came up by this time and one
went after Father Joseph (the priest)
while the others remained on guard
on the walk in front of the house.
When Father Joseph arrived they
entered the house and found the aged
occupant in a nervous state of COL
lapse. The old lady said she was first
awakened by noise or rustling
paper on her trunk across the room
from the bed on which she was Sleep
Ing. Thinking 1t was a mouse she
first paid but little attention to the
noise, but later the noise made her
suspicious and she sat up in bed to
try and see what was causing the
disturbance. When she raised up she
could see large bulky form like
dog at the trunk-and as she
raised up the form moved toward the
open window. She still believed It to
be dog until the object got to the
open window on the south side of the
room then she saw the two hands of
man, crawling like dog. She call
ed out "For the love Of God, speakl"
The intruder jumped through the
open window and ran, while the
frightened old lady began to scream
for help. Officers were notified, citi-
sens made up purse and a message
sent for the Cant bloodhounds.
Mr.. Cant and his man trailers
arrived Tuesday night on the z
o'clock train and were Immediately
taken to the scene. The dogs were
put on the trail where fresh shoe
tracks were discovered leading from
the south toward the house across
the soft ground In the garden. The
hounds followed the trail to the open
window then on from the house
north on Main street, then west and
back south to negro house. The
dogs were a second time put on the
same trail and followed it over the
same route as the first time. Quite
q number Of negros had congregated
ct the scene by the time the dogs had
covered the route Of the trail the
two trips, and Mr.. Cant let the dogs
pass among them. When the hounds
came to young Holiday they re-
fused to leave him, indicating that
he was the man wanted. The officers
took the fellow to the house and had
him put on his shoes, then had him
fit his shoes to the tracks in the
soft ground in the garden. The
shoes exactly fitted the tracks.
The officers then put Holiday In
jail to await investigating trial.
Before putting the dogs on the
trail at the old lady's home, they
were first taken to the negro preach
er's house that also had been burg
larized that night, and the dogs run
the trail from the preachers house
TO the same negro house that ended
the trail from the house occupied by
the old lady. This centered both
crimes on the same culprit. The Of
ficers feel positive that they have
the right party.