Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 39, Number 56, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 March 1907 — WILD CHASE FOR A WILD THIEF. [ARTICLE]

WILD CHASE FOR A WILD THIEF.

Thursday when the 11 o’ clock train arrived from the north Captain George, Chief of Police of Marion, this state, and a man re nowned as a thief catcher afld who. Is said to have killed two whom he could not capture alive, got off the train, and soon canght sight of Policeman Ziia’s glittering badge of office. He explained that he had been out in search”of a you.ug man named Ernest Bunker, who was wanted for stealing three horses: He said he had been located over southwest of Remington, where he went by the name of Ernest Brown, by means of a letter he had written to his wife at Marion. George ask ed Lyman to go with him to help capture Bunker, who was described as a bad man and a professional runner, and brother of auother horse thief now in *jail at Marion, aud who gave the officers a lour mile run before he could be captured. A team was procured at Harmon’s livery stable and they drove to Remington, where they got a fresh team of Liveryman Wood and drove two miles south and three west into Benton county, where Bunker, alias Brown, was working for a man named Zinser. Arriving there they found Mr. Zinser had gone to Remington, but matters were explained to Mrs. Zinser, aud she pointed oat where Banker was trimming hedge at a remote part oi the farm. They started out after him across tne fields, with the team, but soon the Captain had another think coming, and said Bunker was such a fleet and long winded runner that be would see *tbeiu coming afar off aad run so fast across the fields that tiey could not catch him. So back they drove to the house and pre pared to lay in ambush until Banker came back from his work at night. They explained some more to Mrs. if Zinser and the Chief also divided his forces, by sendingl Wood, the livpryman, to a house about two miles away, where he was to wait until telephoned for. Why he was sent there no one on earth knows unless it was to illustrate the Captain’s idea of aigh strategy. The livery team was driven back, however and left hitched outside. Meanwhile Mr. Zinser returned from town, and the cause of the official state of seige of his premises was explained. He fell in readily with the plans of the Police Captain for buncoing Bunker, and which plan involved the concealing of the two officers, the Captain aud Lyman, inside the house, and the tolling of Banker inside the same by telling him there was a letter for him in the house. About dark Bunker came up from his work, and Zimpson met him in the back yard with the statement about the letter. But Bunaer spied the livery team ont sidt and asked what it was doing there. He had also noticed the buggy tracks where the party had started for him across the field and then turned back, and he asked about that also. ZinSer was a pretty bad actor and had no very plausible explana tion at hand. However Buuker ventured carefully into the house but wary as a fox investigating a tiap. Chief George Btood behind one door and Chief Zea behind another, while Zinser followed Bunker into the house, but neglected to close the door as he came in. As soon as Bunker came within easy reach of Captain George, he made a grab for him bat like the feller iu the old song when he reached for “Ethel Dreeme” he “only grasped the vacant, vacant air;” Bunker turned and went out of the door like the proverbial cat shot in the rear kith a boot-jack. Chief and Lyman piled ont after him and shouted for him to stop, and not {laying any attention to the com-

mand, Chief banged away at him a couple oi times, ati d Lyman once, but he only ran the faster. He took nort|ii thru a plowed field, and tho all hands joined in the chase, including one man on horseback, he was soon lost ’sight of in the shades of evening and the darkness of the field, and was seen no more. .■ ./ A _ The disappointed party finally gave up the search and left, but still to quote another old sentimental song “a dark cloud hovers over the scene,” the same l eing a con densatiou of the blue haze iu the atmosphere, caused by the curses of the disappointed Police Captain.