Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1878-11-18
ROAD AGENTS
An Indiana Man Leading a Gang In the
Black Hills - How Ne was
Captured.

Omaha bee.l
The robbery Of the Cheyenne and
Black Hills treasury coach of nearly
$4,000, at Canon Springs, September
30, is still fresh in the minds of the
public.
Several suspected parties were ar
rested by the stage company officers
and a government detective, and these
prisoners gave away the names of
the men engaged in the robbery, or at
least pretended to do so, but, as it has
since been proved, they gave the
wrong names. The capture of Dug
Goodale at Atlantic, Ia, who, by the
way, escaped from a Union Pacific
train as he was being taken West by
an officer, was an accident, as the Off
GERS were looking for another party,
but the arrest of Goodale, who was
one of the robbers, furnished a clue
to Leech, the young man who trailed
the gang who committed the Union
Pacific express robbery at Big Springs.
beech, it seems, had been employed
by the stage company to assist in
working up the case. He found that
among the chums of Goodale in the
Black Hills was a young man named
Albert Speers, who had formerly
worked in the bridge gang on the
| Union Pacific at Medicine Bow.
Speers left Medicine Bow two years
ago and went to the Black Hills.
Leech learned that Speers had pro-
posed to a certain man to come to the
railroad at Medicine Bow and rob the
pay car. This gave Leech a good in
sight into the true character of Speers,
and he at once started out to hunt him
up, and a few days afterward he OBJ
tanned possession of a letter from
|. Speers. dated Wood river, October "a
and directed to a friend at Medicine
Bow, asking him to have his (Speers)
trunk, which he had left at Laramie
when he went to the Black Hills, sent
to him at Wood river, saying that he
had returned from the hills one thou
sand dollars better off than when he
went there, and hat he was about to
be married. Two months previous to
this Speers was dead broke" as
learned by Leech, who, upon putting
all these things together, concluded to
arrest him.
Obtaining the assistance of a young
man named Howard Bleasdale, of
0gallala, he went to Wood river, ar
irving there October 81. Leech and
/, Bleasdale then passed themselves off
for tramps looking for a job to husk
corn. They succeeded in learning
that Speers was staying at the farm
house of Mr.. Joe Firman, and that
Firman and Speers had gone to Grand
t Island on business. Leech and Bleas-
dale remained secreted in the brush on
Wood river until they came home at
l730 pm. After they had entered the
house Leech and Bleasdale approached
d the dwelling, and Leech opened the
door and rushed in, pistol in hand, but
unfortunately his companion, who fol
lowed him, accidentally lethis revolver
c 20 off, which alarmed Speers, who rar
into a bedroom, where his two revolv.
d ers and a Sharp's rifle were. Leecf
IS sprang after him, jumping over anC
4, knocking down the children, furnitur,
Is and the eooking-stOve in his course
o He got into the bedroom Just a
Speers had grabbed one of his weap
!, ons, but before he could raise it Leecl
s. covered him with his revolver, an,
asked him three times to throw u
his hands. Speers, seeing hat LeecI
had him foul, finally surrendered
The house was searched, and fou
revolyers, one rife, a set of valuabl
s diamond jeBelry, $500 in greenback
and several thousand dollars i
gold dust were found, LeecA an
Bleasdale proceeded at once t
cheyenne with their prisoner and tn
Y, plumber. The diamonds were identi
fed by the owners as having bee
shipped in the treasure-coach an
one revolver was identified as tn
e. property of Gale Hill, the wounde
messenger. After seeing that tn
al proof against him was positive, ii
prisoner confessed, saying that he WI
the one who killed Campbell, the pa
K. senger on the Inflated coach. Spec
)r. admitted that he was a plrtner
Goodale, whom he had LET on ii
pal Loup river, and who had g)ac Ia:
ic- while he had come South to Woc
ne river.
res Speers is a determined charactC
m and parties who know him say tn
ms, they did not think he could be TAX.
Ter alive. He was the brains Of tho 70
Der gang-eunning, cool, despers
e. and temperate. Ha wal born in Gil
son county, Indiana, and came w
in the employ of the Americ
Bridge Company when they put
the new iron bridge at Dale cret
ge. He said that Leech was in luck,
he would have shot him had not Aee
cot the dron on him.