Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1877-10-03
THE TRAIN ROBBERS.
An IRclaent Of tho Train Robbery On
che U. r. R0aa.

An IRcident Of the Train Robbery On
she U. r. Roaa.
The first man robbed was a drum
mer from q New York house. He
was ordered to "stand up, hold up
his hands, keep his id mouth shut, "
and the search commenced. They
took from him $3.50 and q gold watch
valued at $500. The next man had
only one arm. The gentlemanly viii
lain that was searching him happened
to notice the empty sleeve. "H-ll,"
said he, shave you only got one
arm ?"
"Only one, sir" replied the man.
"Well, d-n you, take back your
stuf-we don't want your money.
Sit down and keep STILL"
One of the wretches yelled out as
they came in the car. "Hold up your
hands, every, and keep still !;
we want your money, but will give
each man $40 back, and we won't
hurt q man unless he makes a break.
We've killed one man, and don't want
to kill any more, but your money we
will have; so, d-n you, keep still,
and give it up-all of it-quietly"-
and much more talk of like character.
1t was q rich scene about forty
men of us sitting there to let four
masked scalawags go through rs that
way but what could we do2 Not q
revolver in the car except one, and
that at the bottom of valise. There
was no use for any one to make
start, there were several ladies in the
cars. The two men ct the end of the
cars covered everybody nearly with
two cooked revolvers, liable to 60 of
at any moment, for their hands trem-
bled violently, showing that they were
themselves excited. So we obeyed
orders to q certain extent, but not
fully. / didn't. had my hands up
most Of the time, except when l
wanted to see them down, because it
was q sort of relief to my arms to
change them from their usual posi-
ton, but l found time to put my
pocketbook with $500 in il down be-
hind lady's work-basket, who occu-
pied the next seat, after doing which
/ walked back about four seats and
managed to get my watch and chain
off and down behind my valise on the
car floor, after which little perform
ance my hands were up, and up good
and steady. ! then had nothing on
my person that thought the thieves
would take except about $l0in coin
in one pocket, and finally worked
up a scheme to beat them out of that.
The man who was robbing the seat
opposite to me was much more ex-
pert than the other, and got away
ahead of him. After he had passed
me about four seats, and the other
was at least four seats from me the
other way got up leisurely and
crossed the aisle, and took seat with
a man who had been robbed, and the
villain whose plain duty it was to rob
me, overlooked me entirely so was
not touched, and was the only man in
the car who was not "gone through"
I think it took them about fifteen
minutes to work that car, during
which they kept talking, ordering
what to do, and calling
them such nice, familiar names, as
though we all belonged to one family
names that don't look nice in print.
But they finally got through and left,
giving us q final order not to stir out
Of the car, or we would get shot, and
l had fully retained my
presence of mind and did everything
to protect my own and succeeded and
the danger was all over, something
like q streak of lightning or an earth
qurke struck me just then, and liked
to have shook myself to pieces. In
fact, have hardly got done shaking
yet.