The Night the Spauldings Went to the Princess
A quiet night at the theatre turns sour when a burglar raids a prominent doctor's home, leaving the lights on and the windows shut behind him.
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.
While Dr. and Mrs. L. G. Spaulding were at the Princess Theatre Sunday evening their home on Second street was entered by some unknown thief who carried away two gold watches, five gold rings, a pair of earrings and about $6.00 in money. Other articles of jewelry, bearing marks of identification and some checks were discarded by the robber. It is thought the burglar must have been more or less familiar with the premises. He entered by the unlocked front door and left by the back which was locked from the inside after having made a thorough search of the house. He lowered the window shades and turned on the electric lights in every room. He left behind no clue as to his identity and the police have been unable to discover anything that might lead to his capture.
“He lowered the window shades and turned on the electric lights in every room.”
This crime highlights the early 20th-century anxiety over burgeoning residential security and the growing domestic wealth of the town's professional class. The thief’s strange behavior—locking the door from the inside and turning on every light—adds an eerie, psychological dimension to an otherwise routine burglary.
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