The Andrew County Republican. [volume] (Savannah, Mo.) 1871-1876, 1873-08-01
BANDITS.

TRAIN ON THE CHICAGO, koCK ISLAND
AND PACIFIC RAILRoAD-FULL PAR
TICuLARs OF THE DAsTARDLY OUT
RAGE
There has not been a holder or o
dastardly outrage committed in a North
ern State for many years than the rail-
road robbery on the Chicago, Rock
Island and Pacific road on the night OF
the 21st of July. While travelling at the
rate of twenty-six miles an hour
through the, u~npeopled prairies of Iowa,
between Anita and Adair, sixty miles
from Des Moines. the night express,
carrying the through mail and express
matter from California, was thrown
from the track and boarded by eight
armed rufians in white flannel masks.
The railroad employees were at once over
powered and a guard set over them and
the one hundred passengers, who were
threatened with instant death if they
even moved from their seats. As there
was but one pistol among them all, re-
sistance WA hopeless. The express
messenger was forced, at the peril of
his life, to give up the keys of his safe,
which the robbers then plundered of all
the valuables they could find, fortunate
ly o~verlookinga large amount of bullion.
Usually the train carries 500, 600 or
more, and this the robbers expected to
secure, but it had luckily been sent on
by another train the night before. They
obtained only 81, 700, and some other
trifing booty. The atrocity of the affair
consists in the murderous way these
highwaymen chose to intercept the
train. This they did by removing a rail
but an instant before the train reached
the spot. Nothing but the presence of
mind and devotion to duty of the engi-
neer, who died in saving the lives I'M
der his charge, prevented a sickening
slaughter. This outrage recalls the
somewhat similar occurrence several
years ago in Indiana, when a number of
trains on the Ohio and Mississippi road
were plundered by highwaymen at Sey-
mour. They were finally caught and
placed in Jail to await their trial, but
the indignant people took them out and
hanged them.
THE CONDUCTORS ACCOUNT.
William r. Smith, the conductor of
the Inflated train, testified at the
Coroner's inquest on the body of John
Rafferty,, the engineer who was killed,
that the train was wrecked two and q
half or three miles west of Adair sta
ton, and 600 or 700 feet east of Turkey
creek bridge. 1 was in the smoking
car, near the front end, and from the
noise thought the enginge was in the
ditch with or two cars piled upon it.
/ was thrown under the seat in front Of
me /; don't remember which side Of the
car I got ont on, but know that l reached
the engine on the north side. l went
1DTWdIu VI stt WIN NuS huIt. lut UNIV
first person l met was n Of the masked
men lei the baggage car door, who
pointed a revolver in each hand toward
me and told me to get back, firing ut
me at the same time. l backed down
as far as the sleeping coach before l
felt 1 was out of his way. There / met
Dennis Foley, the fireman, he says
"Billy I! Jack is dead"
Passengers we're in a hubbub, and
the women and children we're crying.
1 told the passengers l thought the
masked men were trying to rob the bag
gage-car, and tried TO borrow n revolver,
but failed. I could still see q man from
where l was I; saw another passing up
and down on the opposite side Of the
train think he was firing at me and
also at some of the passengers. They
asked me to get into the train, as these
men were firing at me, and l would be
the u of some of them being killed.
l then went into the sleeping car at the
rear, still trying to get a revolver and
urging the passengers to keep quiet, as
these men were robbing the baggage
car. l went out Of the ladies' car up to
the bank, and thence to the engine.
Two balls passed through my clothing
while l was on the bank, and these
shots came from the south side of the
train. l did not see a man on the north
side then, and did not see or hear any
thing more of the masked men. AT er
the passengers had got quiet, / went
forward to investigate the cause of the
wreck. At the hind end truck of the
smoking car 1 found the fish-plate had
been removed from the rail on the north
side, disconnecting a rail on both ends.
A rope and strap were tied in the bolt
holes of the disconnected rail at the
west end, and the rope passed under
the south rail and across the ditch
and up on to the bank. Apiece of rope
was also found on the bank which
seemed to have been broken from the
other. 1t was a new rope, the size Of
common bed cord. The west end was
loose of the rail when l saw it, and was
only q few inches from the south rail.
The hind trucks. of the smoking cur
we're still on the track. We had been
running eighteen or twenty miles IN
hour.
AMONG THE PASSENGERS.
Passengers on the train report that