The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1870-01-31
.8itIln1oltd 1ispatth,
MONDAY. JANUARY: 81, 1870.
THE HEcRCULATIoN OF THE "DIspATCH''
ts LARGER THAN TIE COMBINED CIRcu-
LArIos OF ALL gHE OTTER DArLYNEw
PAPERS OF THIS CITY. ye,t-,.5.
How They do Their work-Letter
from the Cashier or the Glen's Falls

dear Sir,-Having received from va
frious bank officers and others in different
sections of the country letters of inquiry
similar to yours Of the 9Th instant in re-
gard to the robbery of this bank on the
morning of the 7th, and % there is yet O
wider and more public interest in the mat
ter, take this method of replying.
"Our banking house was entered about
midnight, probably, by forcing open the
rear door with jimmy The burglars
at once proceeded to cover all the windows
closely with thick army blankets, damp
ened, for the double purpose of hiding their
ght and deafening the report of the explo-
sions. The vault was protected by two sets
of Lilies doors-the outer ones of chilled
iron, two inches in thickness; the inner Of
single, thick boiler plate. The chamber or
space between the two sets is, say eighteen
inches deep and three feet wiae.. Wedges
were inserted between the outer doors until
! the crevice was sufficient to allow the powder
(some of which was of the fneness of
marble dust) to be blown or otherwise gotten
through into this space. The crevice was then
tightly caulked, and the fuse applied. The
explosion tore apart the bolts and
the riveted fastenings through which
they worked, and the doors we're thrown
back upon their hinges with tremendous
force, smashing the castings and imbed.
ding the handles in the solid masonry. The
inside doors were next opened by being
wrenched from the hinges with powerful
sjimmies. A large Lilies safe, with
doors one and one-half inches thick,
now appeared. The wedges were again
applied (this time at the tops of the doors), (,
the powder inserted, and blast No. 2 blew
the doors completely off the safe, exposing
the inner and final stronghold Of the
funds--a Bacon's steel safe, manufactured
for us about three years ago, and fitting
the inside of the Lille as closely as
practicable. .:.s.G.-s. -s.tra., ..s.@
""This safe is composed of FIVE alternate
layers of iron and steel, and is divided into
an upper and lower compartment, each Sc
cured by Covert lock. The first move
upon it was to uncover the spindle of
the lock, preparatory to On attempt to drive
it through, and so effect an opening; but
this was presently left as likely to prove a
bad job,' and resort again had to the ma
terial ALREADY 80 efficient in the service Of
the villains. The wedges were introduced
most effectively at the side of the lower
door nearest the handle, as that side Of the
safe shows that it was badly sprung by
them. The powder was again inserted and
tie fuse lighted, but before the explosion
the outer vault doors were closed. AS they
flew open from the conclusion, the safe door,
weighing several hundred pounds, struck
one of them and glanced off into the bank
ing-room, crashing into the floor some eight
feet from where it started.
"As soon as the smoke cleared away the
booty which the robbers sought became
visible, as it was in this compartment that
the reserve of legal-tenders was kept, with
such private papers, securities, &C., as
might chance to be in our possession. The
greenbacks, directly exposed as they were
to the action of the powder, must have been
badly burned, as fragments of 81 900
bill, with many others of smaller denomi-
nations, were found in and about the safe.
A package of $4,000, not much damaged
was discovered under one of the fallen
doors, where it had been blown by the ex-
plosion. The upper section of the safe
was vet intact. In this were found four tin
tills, holding the funds, notes, &c., in daily
use. Two of these rested upon the bottom
Of the compartment, and the other two on
an iron Eucll IL. Lie
attacked the partition bet ween the two sec.
tions, and succeeded in partially prying it
down, and in drawing out one Of the tills,
containing few hundred dollars in bills
At this particular time they must have
taken sudden leave, as everything else was
undistu,bed, although a -ghurt time would
have suficed to clean out the upper
compartment. .....
"I have thus fully detailed the facts in
this matter, and as nearly.as I am enabled
to from the closest scrutiny because it il
due to the bank officers and to the public
that it should be known just what these
professional burglars are able to do, In or
der, if possible, that some adequate secu
rity may be provided against them. That
the constantly increasing cost, ingenuity
and care, expended in the construction o!
locks and safes, is being constantly met BY
a corresponding increase Of skill on thu
part Of operators fresh evidence is fur
nished almost nightly; in fact, burglar
proof as applied to these intended pro
tections, seems yet to be almost misnomer
setting aside the matters of time and un
sleeping vigilance.
1t seems strange, to be sure, that in
town like this three such blasts as tore anl
scattered massive combinations of iron anC
steel as if they were toy-house, tht
breaking of windows and oil the othel
unusual noises and disturbances attendan
upon the raid, should have attracted 30 lit
tie attention that nothing was known of tht
affair until the clerk entered the bank aftel
Z o'clock. But so it is, and perhaps we ar!
no sleepier than other communities where
there are banking houses with no more in
ternal security than ours.
"I believe with you in the necessity anG
propriety of some early, concentrated, and
earnest, action in regard to the matter o
national banks (those in the country espe.
cia1ly) being obliged by law to offer
premium on just such operations as this o1
which we have been made the victims. But
for the knowledge, compulsorily free alike
to honest men and thieves; that our safes
held twenty thousand dollars in legal-ten.
der notes, we should not have been robbed
because the ordinary amount of usable
funds in the vault of any country bank il
not inducement enough for frst-class bur.
glars to risk their precious (O lives and
liberty for. As tits, there is loss to the
bank and to this . business community
greater, venture to say, than would have
been entailed upon It By the business o.
twice twenty years, untrammelled by arb.
trary exactions like this or the gresuback
reserve Yours, truly, y
"WILLIAA a. WAIT, Cashier. !,
l"!o james Thompson, President Cam.
bridge Valley Bank
AN EXTRAORDINARY, RoBBERY.-A lette,
from Chill tells this story of q robbery.
| son the road from Mendoza to- Sant;apso,
two tradesmen of San Jnan Dor, TanIS y