Old Town Miner Fights Off Attackers
An elderly miner in Old Town successfully resists a mugging in a dark alley, leading to the arrest of three suspects.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Two burly men made a desperate attempt to hold up and rob Helmer Krantz, an aged miner of Old Town, about 2 o'clock yesterday morning. Krantz was walking through Opera Alley between 11th and 13th streets when the men assaulted him, seizing him by the shoulders. One of them pressed the muzzle of a revolver against his cheek. Krantz, however, shook the men off and seized the armed assailant by the wrist. The men wriggled free and ran down the alley at top speed. Krantz reported the encounter to Patrolman Andrews, who arrested a man named Albert Scott a few hours later based on the description. After Scott underwent police interrogation, two others, Claud Davis and Frank Johnson, were arrested by detectives. The three are suspected of acting in concert, and Scott is further suspected of a recent assault on a woman named Mrs. Pockman.
“Krantz, however, shook the men off and seized the armed one by the wrist.”
Opera Alley remains a recognizable part of Tacoma's downtown topography, though its character has shifted significantly from the dangerous transit corridor described in 1909. This account highlights the persistent vulnerability of residents in urban spaces, echoing contemporary concerns about public safety in the city's densest districts.
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