In the days surrounding May 21, 1925, the town of Winthrop was embroiled in a manhunt for an unknown assailant (later identified as Harry Kirby), who was responsible for the shooting of Mrs. Emma F. Towns, along with the abduction of her niece Miss Aida Hayward. According to the paper, airplanes and dogs were used to aid in the capture of Kirby. After the dogs traced Aida to a barn and the scent dissipated, she was presumed to have been transported in an automobile. Roland Norcross was the man responsible for following that automobile trail.