FIGHT IN A HOTEL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVI, Issue 170, 17 January 1914, Page 7

FIGHT IN A HOTEL.

■ ' "A HARD SCRAP." 'i Additional particulars of a sensational affair which occurred in C'oker's Hotel Manchester, Christcluirch, on Wednesday morning, when a violent struggle for supremacy ensued between a detective and a man whom he wished to interview in reference to a burglary that had occurred in the. neighborhood some hours before, show that the chain of circumstances which led to the arrest was rather remarkable. About '.) a.m. on Wednesday the barman of tint hotel in which the alleged 'burglar was arrested ■found a gold medal lying on the door of a lavatory near tin* bar. He took .the medal to the manager or" Hie hotel, who saw thai; the names "Triggs and Denton" were engraved on it. The manager went to Messrs Triggs and Denton's shop, meaning to return the medal, and then learned that a burglary had taken place then-. He. went buck and questioned, the barman as to the customers who had come into the bar that morning. The barman said that with ■.the exception of one man who happened to be in the -bar at the moment all the people who hud come in were known to him, so naturally enough the manager suspected that the solitary occupant of the 'bar who was sitting in a corner might be connected with the burglary.' lie, therefore, rang up the police station, stated the facts of the case, and asked that a couple of detectives should be seat down, to interrogate Hie man. Only one officer, Detective Regan, came along and when he arrived he spoke to the man, and asked him to come outside into the passage. The man v/ent with the officer,'but directly they got outside- Detective Regan saw the suspect put his hand into his coat pocket and clutch ■ something there, the ollicer grabbed at thi! man's hand, and at once felt a re.vo'.ver in his pocket. Then began a tierce si niggle.- The detective could not let go of the revolver, and bad only one free hand to stall oil' the onslaught of his opponent, who fought like a tiger, using his feet and hands impartially in his .efforts to resist an'c«t. The ' (wo men struggled hard, and were pretty -well matched, judging by the lengthened period of the melee, ami though some of the hotel staff were willing to assist, the detective preferred to do the 'business himself. The manager'of the bote! went outside to see. if he could get a constable, but there were none about, and it was lucky that just at that moment he saw another detective strolling up the street. He called him. and even' with the .united forces the officers had a strenuous tussle to get the man handcuffed. Eventually this ,was. done, a, couple of pairs of ''bracelet's" being put on for good measure, and the man was taken to the station in a cab. , "Altogether, it was one of the hardest scraps that I have seen," said a bystander.