Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1874-05-21
Bound by Bank Burglars,
Story of an Attempted Bank Rob.
berry as Told by an Unwilling
Witness-A Cool Proceeding.


Witness-A Cool Proceeding.
Letter to New York Sun.
SUsQUEHANNA DEPOT, April
30.-A few nights ago James
Aitken, jeweler, entered his
shop in New Milford, in this
county, about IL o'clock. His
store is next door to the Savings
Bank, divided from it by thin
partition. Filling his pipe he
sat down by the stove and soon
fell asleep. He was awakened
by "a side door Of his shop being
forced open with a crash, and
two masked men stood before
him.
"Have you anything to do
with the Savings Bank?" asked
one Of the men.
"No!'' replied the astonished
jeweler.
"WelI, we've come to rob
this bank, and We'll give you
500 to assist us, if you won't
give us away"
Mr.. Aitken began to recover
his composure. 81 won't have
anything to do with it. Pm an
honest man, and if [ wasn't I
wouldn't come here to rob a
bank"
"WelI," said the. masked man,
drawing a revolver, "I'm thief,
and if you open your head I'll
blow it off"
The burglars then handcuffed
Mr.. Aitken, gagged him, and
fastened him in his chair. Co
ing ont of the front door of the
shop, they broke down the
door Of the bank. They car
ried Aitken into the bank, and
sat him in a little room back of
the safe, where be could see all
their operations.
Half the room occupie d by
the jeweler shop is used by Rob-
ert Minturn as a tailor shop
The burglars brought into the
bank from the tailor's twenty
rolls Of cloth, which they spread
around the safe. Then they
bored a hole in the outer door
of the safe and blew it open
with powder. The inside door
was served in the same way
Each time the fuse was fired the
two burglars hastened out doors
to await the result Of the eX-
plosion, while the terrified Ait
KIN sat within four feet Of the
safe, unable to move.
When the door had been O.
pened sufficiently to disclose to
the burglars a pile Of green
backs, but not wide enough to-
permit of their being taken, and
as they were preparing another
charge, a third robber, whom
Aitken had not seen before,
hurried into the bank and excit-
edIy told his companions that
they must hurry away. The
had seen a man emerge
from a house opposite and go
to his barn, and smoke was as
cending from his chimney
The oaths Of the burglars were
fearful to hear, Aitken says, as
hey in vain tried to thrust their
hands through the crack in the .
loor to grasp the treasure, and
,ugged and pulled at the door !
o wrench it off. Tearing some
strips from roll Of cloth they
pound Aitken more firmly and
hurried away.
Aitken succeeded in loosing
lis feet from the chair, and
the back Of it off,
His feet were bound so he could
.ot step but two inches at a time,
)ut he shufied out of the bank /
nto the middle of the road,
where he in some way got the
gag out OF his mouth and a
armed Russell, the blacksmith. :;
The burglars were traced to !.
lear Montrose. .
Aitken says that they were .
-ery bold in their operations.- {
They broke in the bank door y
With a sledge hammer, and the
Of their blasts in the
afe were loud enough to be
heard half a block away. A >
,iece Of iron weighing three q
was forced off the safe =
~ one of the blasts. 1t went q
close by Aitken's Il
read up through the chimney,
breaking a three-inch studding i,
md looseningthe outside boards. :,
Clocks in the jewelry store
to the floor from their !,
helvesat every report. Through Il
he aperture in the safe-door a
10Y easily put his hand through J