Democratic Sentinel, Volume 14, Number 45, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 5 December 1890 — FLUNG SAND IN HIS EYES [ARTICLE]

FLUNG SAND IN HIS EYES

BOLD ROBBERY COMMITTED BY MILWAUKEE THUGS. j A Sheboygan Man Assaulted on the Slreei’ by Robbers Who Throw Hand in Hi* Eyes, Take from Him a Sachet Containlag 920,000, and Get Away with 1L [Milwaukee dispatch.] William Clarke, President of the Sheboygan Electric Light and Power Company, was robbed of $19,500 fn cash on. Wisconsin street at 7:15 o’clock in the evening. After supper he started to walk from’ the hotel to the depot, passing up Wisconsin street, the main thoroughfare of tho city, and was passing an alley in the block between Cass and Marshall streets, and within half a block of the depot, when he was stopped by two men. Without a word one of them threw a handful of something in his face. Mr. Clarke believesit was sand or dirt, and before he could recover from his surprise the other had grabbed the sachet with the money and the two disappeared down the alley. No one happened to be In the vicinity at the time and Mr. Clarke ran down to the depot and gave the alarm to the lodc policeman he found there. Together they returned to the scene of the robbery, but there was no trace of the robbers. They then hurried to the Central Police Station, where Mr. Clarke gave as good a description of the robbers as possible, but that was very meager. Oneof them he described as tall and wearing a silk hat, while the other was short, wearing a cap and otherwise shabbily dressed.

Mr. Clarke, although much affected by his loss, immediately started out withtwo detectives, while half a dozen other detectives were started out on different routes, but up to midnight not one of them had reported a single clew that might possibly lead to an arrest. At first some of the police authorities were rather inclined to doubt Clarke’s story. They could not believe a sane man would bo traveling with so much cash about the streets, and they thought, too, that it would be but natural for a man to make an outcry when robbed, which Mr. Clarke admitted ho had not done, but instead had rushed down to tho depot tofind & policeman. But all doubt of Mr. Clarke having the money was dispelled late to-night when Mr. Clarke’s attorney, a leading lawyer of the city, was seen a his home and admitted having identified Mr. Clarke at the Second Ward Bank this afternoon that he might cash the« $22,000 check. He had spoken, to Mr. Clarke, he said, about taking tho entire amount in cash, but Mr. Clarke said hehad some bills to pay here and also a $17,000 loan to pay at a Shoboygan bank. Mr. Killelea further said that he had known Mr. Clarke for many years and! did not doubt for a moment tfiat he told the truth about the robbery.' The only theory he could advance was that someone must have seen him draw the money at the bank or had noticed of the sachel in some of tire places where he had paid out money this afternoon. Mr. Clarke is the sole proprietor of the Sheboygan electric-light plant, which represents an investment of $60,000.