The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1876-07-21


low, standing out on the bank, only a
few feet from the train, shouted out,
:. Shoot the u -" and with
that The same fellow blazed away and
came near popping me in the head.
The bail struck
WITHIN A COUPLE or INCHES
of MY head, which had up against the
side Of the door frame. jumped back
inside Of the car and went TO the end Of
the car next the smoking car. There |
met brakeman by the name Of Long,
who said 70 me. sI've got a revolver,
do you want ftp" | replied that did,
and then he gave it 10 me. gave Long
the kew 10 the safe and told him to 20
back to the rear end of the train with
il, and he did so; / didn't want TO give
the key up 10 the robbers unless forced
to- when | gave Long the key | was
standing in the smoking car; turned
10 90 back to the express car and had
20. as far as the platform, when they
commenced shooting at me, and yelled,
- Get back there, you - Of --, or
I'll shoot you" | stepped back inside
of the smoking car, and as | did so
FIVE MIN
sprang on to the platform and rushed
into the express ear. The express car
and baggage car are all one, one end
Of the car being set apart for baggage,
and the other for express matter, and
there is no partition between them.
The robbers mistook Pete Conkling,
the baggageman, for me, and ordered
him to deliver up his keys or be shot
Pete answered that he was not the ex-
press messenger, and did rot have the
keys. They searched him, and not
finding any safe keys, demanded to
know where the expressman was. Pete
told them was at the other end of the
train. They gave him TO understand
that if he didn't find me they'd shoot
him, and as they
SHOWED A COUPLE or REyOLvERs
into his face, he concluded it policy to
obey, and he brought them back into
the smoking car and pointed me OUT 10
them. One Of the five was q fellow
with a striped linen coat, dark-colored
pants, black SLOUGH hat, and with a
white handkerchief tied across his face,
just under his eyes, the folds of the
handkerchief dropping down over his
nose and mouth He was rather large,
tall man and had light-colored hair.
This fellow stepped up TO me and said
a. You're the man | want You want
to march back in there id quick and
unlock that safe. We've lost too much
time already.r ! told him | didn't
have .ae kew. "You want 10 find il
a "a quick, then, or III blow hole
clear through you," he said. or words
20 that effect. He and two other men
then marched me back through five
cars to the rear sleeping-car, where
found Long, the brakeman. | told
Long 10 give me the key, and he did
80, pulling it out from
HIS BOOTLEG,
where lie had hidit. The three robbers
then marched me back through the
train TO the express and baggage car
and made me open the way-safe Of
the United States Express Company.
They soon emptied the safe Of its con.
tents and then wanted me TO open the
through-safe, which belonged to the
Adams Express Company and which |
had received from the Missouri, Kansas
and Texas Road at Sedalia; / told them
that the safe was sealed and that hadn't
the KEY They took look at the safe
and found the seal before they would
believe me, and then one of them went
10 the locomotive and got a pick-ax.
They picked and hammered away at
the safe door for over half On hour,
when one Of the sheet-iron panels gave
way and big hole was then soon bat
tered through. One fellow ran his
hand through the hole and cut the four
bags that were inside, two leather and
two cloth bags, and then
DREW OUT THE PACKAGES,
one by one. All this time the rest were
standing over me with revolvers and
also watching the operations of the man
at the safe. When the fellow had
emptied the safe, they wanted to know
If that was all had, but without taking
my word for il, they examined the pack
ing trunk, in which we carry large and
more cumbersome vaiuables consigned
10 oar care. They found nothing in
this, and after swearing around awhile,
they left, one Of them yelling back, ''if
YOU see any thing of Allan Pinkerton's
men tell 'em to come out and find us. !"
OF the five men who were in the ex-
press car, all wore handkerchiefs over
the lower parts Of their faces except
one, who had on full mask. None Of
them had side whiskers, and all seemed
to be young men between twenty-five
and thirty-tive years of age. All wore
black SLOUGH hats, and all, except one,
were rather large, above the average
size.
This i the account which the express
messenger gives Of the robbery, and il
was told in a frank, open way, that
leaves no doubt Of its truthfulness and
..rnnt.n..as all ahrur.rh NJ Rnshnnll l.