The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1876-02-14
That Singular Bank Robbery
A MYSTERIOUS BURGLARY.

NORWICH, CON-. February 10-DiscoVery
was made on Wednesday evening that the
National Bank of Commerce, of New Lon.
don, had been fobbcd on Tuesday night Of
S2l $40 under circumstances of startling
character. Wednesday morning the bank
officers were unable to gain entrance
to their vault, and tnlegraphed for
experts. Not until these had arrived and
opened the outer door was the Robbery dis.
covered. BY that time the burglars had bad
nearly tWenty-feur hours start. There was
nearly 81 100000 of cash and securities of the
bank and special deposits in the vaults, but
nothing was taken but greenbacks. to the
amount already stated. The disorder of the
papers and boxes within, and the fact that
the inner locks were not refasteRed, leads to
the belief that the burglars were frightened
away before completing the work, though it
is thought they may have purposely avoided
taking securities which could be identified.
The bank kept no gas.light burning at night.
and bad no special watcbmau. The whole
police force of the city numbers six, and
but four are on duty at night. The bank
is located under the new hotel, in
the centre of the city. Entrance was
effected by window at the side, which
was reached by dark alley from an adjacent
street. A high counter and screen within
conceals the safe from the front windows.
The burglars forced the combination lock to
the outer vault and the two combination
locks to the inner door. The locks were
found filled with gritty substance. The
safe of the Mariners Bank, which occupies
the same premises, was untouched. The
combination of the outer lock was known
only to one person. Each of the inner COM
binations was known only to one of the tell
ers and to the cashier, Mr.. Charles Butler,
q man of high character. No suspicious char
acters were noticed in tor n lately, and no one
is missing. The complete mystery surround
ing the affair and the highly artistic manner In
which the work vas executed have awaken
ed great alarm among the banking men Of
both Norwich and New London. The neat
ness of the bank floor, absence of tools, and
the failure of any one In the vicinity 10 hear
any sound, makes the affair exceedingly
enigmatical. Nothing unusual was heard in
the hotel overhead A lady living in house
adjoining the alley leading up from the
neighboring street to the side Of the bank
was awake Tuesday night on account of ill
ness, and thought she heard suspicious
noises; but there is nothing really
tangible in her story. "A brighs moon
was shining all that n,ghf, anu the
bank window was eight feet from
the ground, yet the spot was quite secluded.
AS It is not known at what hour the bur-
gary was committed, it ia impossible to say
Just where the night police were at the time,
though it is possible that the theft was eft.
fected after the officers went off duty, as
was the case at Northampton. Another SIM
gular circumstance connected with the affair
is that the lock ofthe outer vault was reset by
the original combination, but the gritty sub
stance infused prevented the bolts from fall.
ing, showing That the thieves were thorough.
~ familiar with the mechanism and setting OF
this lock-. A new lock had been procured,
aud was to have replaced that on the vault
door Wednesd day. The operation appears to
have been peculiarly Weil-timed. The vaults
themselves are, considered almost impregna.
BILE, having been very recently constructed
on the occasion OF the bank removing thither
from its former site in the Union Bank build.