Pages of History: Thief grabs car, dog, crutches

Crescent City Police are looking for the “meanest thief in Del Norte County” following a complaint filed by a local man that his car had been stolen.

Emil Hartig of Crescent City reported that someone had stolen the family car, a 1958 model, as it was parked in front of Veteran’s Memorial Hall.

The car contained his 14-year-old Chihuahua dog and his wife’s crutches. The Hartigs have had the little 3-pound dog all these years. Due to its age, the dog has no teeth, needs special care, and can only be fed certain food.

If the car is not found, Hartig will have to buy his wife another set of crutches so she can get around. Both are retired senior citizens and are living on a modest pension.

Oldest veterans sought

He said this week that the California Commission for the Aging is looking for California’s eldest living veteran of the Indian War, Spanish-American War and World War I. King said that any Del Norte veteran that might qualify should contact the office by letter, mail or telephone.

Follow-up on dog and car

The search continues for the missing 14-year-old dog belonging to Mr. and Mrs. Emil Hartig, although their car was found in Seattle. There is a chance that the little dog is still here in the county though, as two crutches were turned over to the police after being discarded by the car thief.

Anyone seeing the 3-pound dog with no teeth is requested to call the City Police.

Selling pickles not a sour job

If anyone should get the idea that selling pickles is a sour business, he or she should talk with members of the sheriff’s posse. Secretary Lee Hescock reports that the results were excellent this year.

To help with expenses in equipping the new rescue boat, the posse members sold pickles at the Klamath Barbeque Festival, Fourth of July Celebration, Lily Festival and Del Norte County Fair.

In these four places, they sold a total of 294 gallons of pickles that averaged about 30 to the jar. That is a total of 8,820 pickle-eaters in Del Norte County.

The posse patrol boat has been in operation on the Klamath River this summer and will move to the Smith River as soon as some minor repairs have been made. They will be on the Smith River an average of two days each week.

Hescock says the reception by Klamath River fishermen was a warm response and many people thanked them for the time spent on that river.

Wood duck homes

Wood duck nesting boxes have been installed on several forest lakes in Del Norte County.

The boxes, made by Cub Scouts and others, were built because of a lack of suitable nesting locations, which is known to be a limiting factor in the reproduction of these types of birds that do not nest on the ground.