BAYONET FIGHT IN A BEDROOM

Hokitika Guardian, 8 June 1920, Page 3

BAYONET FIGHT IN A BEDROOM

BURGLARS ROUTED. LONDON, April 42

A .desperate , figlj. in a Thorn to ji Heath bpdroom between two burglars armed with jemmies aucj -twp menibprs; of the liousehokj who wiejdetj in tipn a poker ,a shovel, tongs, and an Army bayonet occurred early oil Sunday morp ing. After a bad bpatiqg file burglars escaped by jumping through the glass of bedroom windows. The householder, Mr Gnrdjner-Smith, of Zion Road, Thornton Heath described the struggle ■ to a reporter yesterday afternoon, ‘‘About four o’clock in the morning,” he said, ‘‘our little girl screamed, and 1 rushed in and saw a map, \yhopi [ could easily'recognise again, I seized'a poker and set about him, aipl it) thp fight, I used a shovel and an Army bayonet ip addition. The man jumped through the window and escaped,” Here Mr .Smith’s stepson, Mr Robert Sniindor, a disabled ex-soldier, took up the story. ‘‘While father was in the back he said, “there was another burglar hiding behind the curtain. Father didn’t see him hut 1 did, arid I attacked him with the fire-tongs. There was a proper pitched battle, in which lie injpred me, but I think lie was getting the worst of it until I sort oi tainted: ■He also then made a jump through the glass of tlie window,' clearing the oldbuilding under it apd landing ip a bush. I fo|lowecj him as well as I cjuilil acrosp the garden, over fpnees, dowp a passage into the High-strept w])erp 1 lost him. The police found me-wander-ing in a dazed condition in the Highstreet some time after, and J had then lost a lot of blood from a cut in the hand.”

Blood was' spattered about' thp bed-i-oom . carpet and on the landing, the garden was covered with broken glass, and the hush into which one of the men jumped was bent over at its roots. The bedroom door was damageS* and tied up with rope. The ten-year-old girl, who occupied the back bedroom, said: ‘‘A noise woke mo up and I saw a hand come through the window, followed by a foot, For a moment 1 wa,s too frightened to move. Two men got into the room and I heard one say.: “Here,' this must be the wrong house; there’s kiddies here.’ Then I screamed, and there was ever such a fight after that—and oh! I really feel afraid to look at the room now.” The burglars left behind several tools including a jemmv.