Lynchburg Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1829-185?, 1835-11-05
From the Ntn inrk Courier.

rom me Ntn 4 rh Courier.
P"iicr.-Contession Of a Bank Robbsr.-Ouf
readers may recolcc, ,ha, in tho month Of Juno
last \ most daring robbery was committed on tho
branch Bank Of Daricn Al Savannah, and notes
and specie to the amount of nearly ono hundred
thousand dollars stolen from the vaults Notice Of
the robbery was despatched to all parts Of The u
mon, and large reward offered for the recovery Of
the property. Circumstances oil a suspicious nature
led TO the arrest OF two individuals named Savage
and Fitzgerald al Savannah, who after UNDERGOING
rigid examination were dismissed with certi6-
cato of their honesty and integrity, from tho drec.
tors OF the bank. a few days alter the robbery
twenty -"ph, thousand dollars-bank bills, in mu.
'latcd condition, wero found concealed between
two bags of cotton on tho steamboat wharf but
the residue, amounting to nearly seventy thousand
dollars, remained undiscovered Through the VIZ
p'lancc and sagacity olour worthy Iliph Constable
Hays, who ccranl, talks less and does more than
any officer in our police the affair has been brought
TO light, and nearly the whole of the stolen money
recovered.
Having by those mra,s best known to himself
learnt that person calling himself John Finger
aid had lately arrived in the city from the South
with several hundred dollar notes Of the Bank Of
Darlrn m possession, some of which he got chang.
ed, he suspected the man 10 have been concerned
in the Savannah robbery, and ON his own rcspon-
sb'lity arrested him Ills next step was to inform
Justice iiopSon OF the arrest and the circumstances
which led To IL. The prisoner underwent "A
private examination and in the course of il
admitted that he was one of tho individu-
ais suspected and examined by the Director,
Of the Bank IN Savannah, and dismissed by them
with a certificate in favor OF his honesty. In this
instance, however, he found examiners of n ye-
~ different description, men perfectly familiar
with the tricks and devices ofrogues, and capabls
at .tt..T Al,
the difficulties resulting from, their cross csamina-
ton he At length made virtue of necessity, and
ona pledge given HIM by the magistrate, that hi.
confession should not operate to his prejudice he
made deposition to the following facts.
In the month OF June last, the dcponcnt, in con-
junction with a man by the name of Savage, in the
employ Of Mr.. Warner coach maker at Savannah.
undertook to rob Tie Branch Bank of Daricn in
that city, by means OF false keys which tho dcpo-
ncnt made for tho purpose. BY some means they
oontr,ved to possess themselves of tine Keys of tho
outer door of the bank from, which they made nm
impression in wax, and then restored it to tho
place from whence ii taken. The false KEY
was cast alta blacksmitl,'s shop attached to tho
mandatory of Mr.. Warner, in a place called
Gibbons lot, on the side of West Broad
street Alter two or ihrce attempts they succeed.
cd III hitting the key 10 the lock, and in the night
Savage entered the bank, took cast of the KEY
necessary to open the vault, and the deponcnt, at
ter much trouble and difficulty, manufactured ono
that would FIT two nights after they both entered
the vault, and deposited the specie and bank notes
in Il sack, with which they got of undisc oycrcd,
carefully locking the doors after them They next
went to Gibbons lot, where they dug hole in tho
sand, and buried the paper money aud gold. Tho
silver Wa. lodged III hollow tree, which stands in
front q the bank.-Aicr Il few days had elapxcd
and the excitement occaSoned by the robbery had
subsidized, they dlSncrrcd the sack, and took out
the bills twcnty-ihr"o thousand dollars of which
being cut and otherwise marked, they feared it
might lead to their detection if they attempted to
circulate them, and accordingly they enclosed
them in a paper and deposited the parcel under
some cotton bags on one of the public wharves.
The notes were discovered the same day, and 70.
stored to the bmk. The remainder OF the bills
were placed in box which Fitzgerald made for
tho purpose, and were taken by Savage to tho
shop At which he worked, AMI secrc,ed be.
tween the ceiling and floor above, on the second
story. In the course of a fortnight the dcponepe
left Savannah, and arrived in this city few dYy,
since.
Amer being in possession of Filzgcrah's comics.
sion, the next step was to dcpute proper persons
TO 80 to Savannah, IN order to arrest Savage, and
recover the property. Accordingly, Ben HAYS
and Huntington, the Il rmeI chip of the old bloch.
and the latter iavorre pupil of the iiisi, Consta.
bic, were selected for the purpose aud immediate.
y set.sail. In less than two hour. after their ar.
rival at Savannah, to the sarprise of all concern
cd, they had arrested the robbcr and restored the
treasure, amounting TO si,ty-nino thousand three
hundred and ciehtyone dollars, TO its owners, hs-
wing found it safe in the place where it had been
srcrct"d. This sum, together with the $4,000
found under the cotton bags made $92, 3Sl. We
understand that the Bank Directors, with true
Southern libcratv, have rewarded die officers
with ten thousand dollars for their trouble.