Six Burglaries Last Week

SIX BURGLARIES LAST WEEK

Thieves Entered Six Business Places.

BROKE GAS COMPANY SAFE

Entered Mann's Drug Store Goetz's Grocery, Rhode's Schmidt's and High School.

Six daring, but amateur robberies were committed in Ann Arbor on Thursday night of last week, when thieves broke into the safe of the Ann Arbor Gas company, Louis Rohde's coal and wood office, Mann's drug store, Wm. Goetz's grocery, the High School and Adolph G. Schmidt's repair shop. No clue has yet been found as to which way the robbers took for their departure. The police were called about midnight and Deputy Sheriff Kelsey searched the streets until morning. He was called shortly after William Goetz's grocery was broken into, which must have occurred between 10:45 and midnight as Mr. Goetz left at 10:45. Night Watchman Campion discovered they had pried off the back shutters of a window, and turned out the lights. When the store was opened $11 had been stolen in nickels, dimes and quarters. Two dollars in pennies were left untouched.

It is thought that the gang broke into Schmidt's first and secured tools. yet only a hammer was missing from there up to a late hour this afternoon. Here as elsewhere they broke in through the back door by prying off the hinges. At the Ann Arbor Gas company they showed their amateur work, for they mutilated the safe badly in getting off the combination lock. It is supposed that the noise of pounding the heavy vault door caused them to suspect they had attracted attention and they left without getting into it, though they had it practically unfastened. However, they carried off $30 to $40 from the cash drawer. At Rohde's they broke the safe lock, but did not get the safe open. Here also they entered from the back door. From Mann's drug store they carried off $2 in nickels and dimes, together with 18 fountain pens. The pens are the only thing the police know of with which to identify the robbers if caught. At the High School three desks were broken into and the contents strewn upon the floor. Here it is supposed the entrance was effected through a window.

The police are of the opinion that if the gang was not local, they had evidently been posted by persons who knew all about these places. All the entrances were effected in very much the same way.

Practically the only clue to the whole affair is that several suspicious characters were seen yesterday on the north side.  All neighboring towns and cities have been notified and detectives are searching everywhere.