100 years ago in The Saratogian
Wednesday, May 2, 1917
“With the arrest of four boys ranging between seven and thirteen years of age, the police have undoubtedly put a stop to the series of petty burglaries which have been going on here during the past week,” The Saratogian reports.
The crime wave began last Thursday, April 26, when paint and brushes were stolen from the Ouderkirk & Paine store, while most of the public was distracted by a fire in Gardner’s Lane.
The spree climaxed on Sunday night, April 29, when approximately twenty boxes of soap were stolen from W. C. Barton’s drug store. The perpetrators tipped their hand yesterday when they were seen trying to sell the soap on the streets, claiming that “their school teacher had sent them out to sell it for the benefit of the school.”
Theodore Mabb, Joseph Notman, Pearle Stewart and Frank Washburn are arraigned this morning in police court. Since they were taken into custody yesterday, the boys have admitted to another break-in. Earlier last Sunday, after failing to force their way into the F. S. Steenbergh store on Caroline Street, they got into the basement of the Curtis Confectionery store. They made away with “a large amount of chocolate in cakes, but this loss was not discovered until they had admitted the theft.”
Since the break-up of the criminal ring, the Saratoga Springs police have been striving to recover as much of the stolen property as possible.
“Although somewhat damaged, through being broken open and distributed around the floor, a greater part of the soap was recovered this morning by Detective Mason, who was assigned to the case, in the Putnam Street garage, which is at present closed,” a reporter writes, “A large cake of chocolate was also found by Officer Morrison near Robertson’s carpenter shop under a plank.”
As yet, the paint and brushes from Ouderkirk & Paine have not yet been recovered. Some of the chocolate may never be found.
“Another link in the chain will probably develop through the illness of James Arpia, an Italian boy, who is under the care of Dr. B. J. Murray,” the report resumes, “The Apria boy says he was made sick through eating candy which he found near the Daniel building.
“As several other young boys have been reported as ill, it is believed that they may have discovered the hiding place of the sweets stolen by the four who have been arrested.”
Yesterday’s arrest thwarted further the boys’ admitted “plans to burglarize other stores in the vicinity of Broadway”. The suspects are paroled overnight into the custody of police chief James King.