American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1872-11-09
The Dangers of DepOsitOrs.

A national bark in the village of Water
| ford, in this State, was lately relieved
of the custody of some half million dollars
worth of stocks and bonds which had
been deposited therein for safe keeping by
| their owners. Whether the bank pos
seSsed any stocks and bonds of its own, or
whether with distrust, which can hardly
now be pronounced ill-fOunded, of the Sc
curity afforded by its vaults and safes the
| officers of the bank had deposited else
where such stocks and bonds as the bank
possessed, does not clearly appear: but
we are informed in the most explicit man
ner that all the stocks and bonds taken by
| the robbers belonged not to the bank but
to private parties, and that, as these pri-
vate parties had deposited their stocks
and bonds with the bank at their own risk,
no part IF the loss caused by the robbery
will fall upon the bank, with the excep-
ton of the comparatively trifiing sum of
$4,000 in currency. This is a very COM
Portable and consolatory fact so far as the
bank, its officers and its stockholders. if it
has. any stockholders, are concerned.
But it is not exactly calculated to
strengthen the confidence of the general
public in the organization and manage
ment of the class of institutions to which
this truly unfortunate bank belongs. This
robbery is not by any means the first Of
its kind. During the past few years we
have had in different parts of the country
quite number of cases more or less SINH
lar in character. In most of these instan-
ces the cashiers of the pillaged. banks
have been aroused from their slumbers
by secret, black, and midnight despera-
does, pistol in hand, who compelled their
captlveS either to hand over to them the
keys of the bank and of its safes, or to go
with them, gagged and bound, through the
streets to the scene of action, and there,
on pain of death, to give up the cabalistie
''open sesame" of the vaults in which the
treasure after which they lusted was laid
away. In the case of the Waterford bank
favoring circumstances made the process
much simpler and more expeditions. This
bank, it seems, was kept, economically
for the bankers but rather extensively
for the depositors, in house which
served also as a residence for the cashier
and his family, the latter consisting of
wife. of two grown daughters, and of a
small boy. 1t would appear that the CASH
Ter kept no servants, which is, perhaps,
not surprising, when we consider how
small is the salary usually allotted ininsti-
tutions of this kind to the officer who is
charged with the surveillance and the Sc
curly of the considerable sums deposited
in them by private parties sat their own
risk" 1t would also appear that the bank
did not esteem it to be necessary to pro-
vide the institution with watch, either
two-legged or four-legged. There was no
porter, no policeman, not even small
glars, on the premises to warn the inmates
of coming peril or to rouse the village to
their rescue. To this house, thus remote
and unfriended, entered, so the story of
our correspondent runs, gang OF bur-
glars in the dead waste and middle of the
night, sin some mysterious manner yet
unexplained" The agent of the Associa-
ted Press, describes this gang of burglars
as s'desperadOes disguised in Ku-KluX
uniforms and gives them the exact num-
Der of the ''nine men in buckram" that
Falstaff told the Prince of, after the thieves
had bound the true men on Gadshill.
Whatever their dress and whatever their
number, this 'sgang of desperadOes" new
ertheless succeeded, we are told. in gain
ing complete control of the Waterford
Bank. of its cashier, and of its cashiers
family, without inflicting any injury upon
any of their captives. They bound the
daughter and the little boy and carried
the Cashier down to the vault, where, after
a curiOusly prOtracted parley of ''an
hour they succeeded, by the combined
use of reason and of revolvers in induc-
ing him to open the vault. This they
then Quilted, conveyed the cashier up
stairs again, bound him securely, and de-
p.Sted. After Il little one of the daugh-
ters having liberated herself liberated her
sire, who promptly proceeded to the street
door and fired five pistOl-shots in the air
as IA signal of distress. 1t is pleasant to
learn that early the next morning the
bank officers generously offered a reward
for the recovery of the bonds and stocks
deposited with them at the risk of the
owners. 1t is not very likely, perhaps,
that the bank officers will be called upon
to disburse this sum. But should they
be so called upon, it may occur to the more
rejecting among their number to consider
how much less costly it would have been
for them to eXpend 1.-THE of the amount
in keeping the stable-door secured before
the steed was stOlen.-N. y World.