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DARING BURGLARS
Break into Brown Bros’ Liquor Store-Night-watch Eastman Knocked Insensible
[Welland Tribune, 11 December 1896]
Brown Bros’ liquor store, Main street, was robbed of a quantity of small money and liquors on Wednesday night. The burglars attempted to blow the safe, but the drill broke and remains in the disabled safe-which contained about $60 in silver. The street electric lights were extinguished at midnight as usual (that is, as usual in this town, not other places) and then the burglars began to get to their work. One or two parties met a quartet of men, before 1 a.m. who hung their heads and could not be recognized in the pitchy darkness. Night watch Eastman in his rounds, about 3 o’clock, heard somebody working back of Browns’ liquor store and saw a man apparently on watch. He stepped into the TRIBUNE alley and awaited developments for a few minutes and as he returned to the walk, a man approached in the darkness and ran a revolver in his face and said, “Open your head or move and down you go!” Eastman clinched and got his man down, when a second man came and down went the three. Eastman tried to pull his revolver, but one jumped on his arm till two more ran up and clubbed him into insensitivity, took his revolver away, took him to an outhouse and placed one of the gang as guard over him. As they struck him one man said, “Kill the d-d old s-b-,” and Eastman cried “murder,” two or three times. His cry was heard at the Dexter House and thought to be the pranks of a night bum and went unheeded. The three burglars went through the store while Eastman was imprisoned at the point of a revolver, and carried off about $5 in coppers and small silver, and three bottles of Hennessy brandy, one of sherry and half a bottle of whiskey.
Entrance was effected by prying open the back door with a sharp poker or bar, which had been stolen from Clark’s blacksmith shop during the night. The men were dressed in dark clothes and were without overcoats. While guarding Eastman a burglar remarked, “You’ve been a good while on this job, Stogie.” They also offered him some whiskey saying that he had made a gamey fight and expressed regret at handling him so roughly.
Turnkey Gilchriese and Constable White were aroused as soon as the robbers left, and search was made at M.C.R. and G.T.R. stations, and other points, but no clue is yet made known.
Mr. Eastman has several cuts and bruises on his head, and feels very sore, but is about as usual.
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