The Manitowoc tribune. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1866-1878, 1871-02-16

1HeTe tDey leIC MIN mute ana HelpIeSS,
| and started for the front door. Hardly
had they reached it when Mr. Murphy.
| the second Waterman, entered from his
investigation in the street. In a trice
he was treated like HE companion. Both
lay now upon the ground, gagged and
powerless for alarm or resistance. The
way being clear the robbers again pre-
ceeded to the front door of the bank and
| signalled third person, who issued from
some nook in the vicinity and entered the
| bank. With his aid the handcufed
watchmen were carried from the hall
back Of the counting desks and into the
Presidents room, where they were kept
guarded by the third man. who stood
over them with loaded pistol.
Upon the safes the robbers now turn
ed their attention. With little delay,
wedges, and bits, and steel saws, and
keys, were produced, and to these were
added sledge- hammers and jimmies.
First they must go into the fire proof
This was built about in the centre of the
lower floor. Its walls ran from floor to
ceiling. Its length was 10 feet, its width
s, and the thickness 20 inches. The
only means of gaining an entrance was
either to cut through the walls or break
off the iron doors. To the expert bur-
glar the latter is far preferable. The
| outer door to the proof was made out of
single plate of heavy iron. Between
it and the jamb of the door five steel
wedges were inserted, and these were
forced in by repeated blows with sledges
muff1ed in cloth, to deaden the sound.
Soon an aperture appeared large enough
to admit the point of a jimmy, and then
the door was wrenched off in few mo-
ments. This off, the robbers discovered
a second obstacle Of like nature. This
was the inner door of the proof. But
this was demolished as the first had been,
and then the proof stood at their mercy
On either side of this proof, in its inter-
Tor, were ranged shelves, and packed
| denseiy on all these shelves were boxes
and packages of valuables of every de-
scription, placed here for safe keeping
by depositors. The shelves were striped
In twinkling. The amount lost must
be very great. but there is no ready
means of estimating it accurately, as the
owners alone knew of the contents of
the packages. The private watchmen
are of the opinion that there we're more
than three persons engaged in the re-
moVal of these vaiuables, as they heard
many strange voices outside. In their
selections the marauders displayed good
dlscernment, as they broke open the
packages, carried off all the papers that
could be turned to an account, and left
the rest. The coupon bonds of the
United States were taken, the regirtered
left. But in the fre-proof was another
thing of supreme concern to the bur-
glars. This was a medium sized Lille
burglar and fire. proof SAFE This as we'll
known to them, contained the funds OF
the bank. The aggregate of these was
| probably unknown to them, but our Sc
porter learned that, at the time the as
sault was made upon the safe, it con-
tanned, in valuables of all descriptions, one
million dollars.
Although this safe vas sadly worried,
as its present appearance indicates, it
withstood the strain, and the robbers had
to give it up as "bad job In doing
all that we have said they were engaged
| from 7:30 O. clock in the evening until 8
o'clock in the morning, and at this lat
ter hour, according to the judgment of
the watchmen, who all the while lay gag
ed on the floor, they left. After their
departure the watchmen set themselves
to the task of freeing themselves from
their bonds, and, after two hours labor,
working mainly with their teeth succeed
ed in removing the shackles from their
legs and the gags from their mouths,
their hands still remaining secured in
steel manacles.