Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1870-05-04
An Attempt to Rob a Bank.

! III Ihliuuelphla. ms banking INST
, tuition is located on Second stree
below South. The night watchma
at 10 o'clock, p. NJ, stepped into th
watch box placed against the souther
wall of the bank, and in close proxim
ity to the vault. Many minutes ha
not elapsed before he was disturbed b
suspicious clicking, as though som
one was tampering with the vauI
door-lock.
Tho watchman went coolly abou
an investigation. He first notified hi
c0nrere who was stationed on th
-tuthcr side of the building, and the
informed Cashier Peter Lamb, wh,
resided next to tho bank. The tri
softly approached the side cntrnnc
of the institution. They inserted th,
key in the lock and met with an Oh
struction, and after working it they
managed TO push out lcy, whicl
had been inserted in the inner side o
the door. This alarmed the burglars
One of them ran TO the door and KEEP
it from being opened. The watch
man broke a pane of glass and at
tempted to put through a lightcC
candle. From the inside the fam,
was extinguished, and the candl,
knocked out of the watchman's baud
The trio then commenced bombardinl
the door, and being reinforced by
Lieutenant Erickson, OF the Second
district, soon burst it in.
They entered the building just a,
the marauders left it. A rope wa;
found running up to the roof, along
the stairs, by which the exit of The
burglars was accelerated. Licuten
ant Erickson followed to the trap
door, from which be speedily emerged
on to the roof. Hc crossed each ad.
joining roof, trying the trap doors
He found them all tightly closed save
that of 20S South street, which was
found open. This was possibly the
avenue OF escape. He saw light in
the room below, and upon descending,
it was extinguished. Upon entering
the apartment he found q man who
represented himself as a doctor. lie
was taken in custody. Another man
who was closing the shutters Of the
bar-room, on the first floor was also
Gagged. lt-was clear to tho Lieuten.
ants mind that this building had
been used as a means of exit to the
street for the burglars.
During the absence of Erickson,
the cashier and the watchman exam.
ined tho bank. This presented no
satisfactory picture. The doors of all
the apartments had been forced open
by huge jimmies, and the rooms had
been thoroughly ransacked. In the
same manner the room by which the
safe is reached, was entered The
floor was covered with brick and
mortar They had worked through
three layers of brick encasing the
fire-proof In their fight they left
all their appliances for smashing safes,
consisting of sledgehammer, jimmies,
chiscls, augers, bits, fuses, powder,
drills, saws, &c, of the finest work
manship.
That the scheme to rob this bank
was well digested, this one fact will
SETTLE: The roof is of tin. The bur.
glars did not make their ingress and
ceress from the trap. door for this was
easily dscerniblo from the lower floor,
where the officers congregated daily.
Any displacement Of this trap would
have been quickly discovered. The
burglars knew this To get ia they
cut a circular plate ont of the tin roof.
This they did so nicely that the plate
could be set back. Afler re.setiing
il, after due observations, which were
nightly, the burglars would cover up
the crevicos, made by the knife in
cutting, with wax Tne opening
thus made led into portion OF the
loft rarely visited. This scheme was
a bold and thorough one. The sharp
ness of watchman's cars, however,
led to its defeat
II they had, undisturbed, worked
their way through the easement OF
brick, the burglars would have discov
cred tho hardest part OF the job still
before them. The interior of the fire
proof was lined with halfinch boiler
iron. 1t would not have been easy TO
cut through this Then, inside, there
stood a great burglar-proof safe, with
$3.50, 600 snugly slowed in its several
compartments. No further arrests
have been made.