Sacramento daily record-union., 1881-09-29
The TRAIN WhECKERS.
Preliminary Examination Of the
Arrested Parties.
CONFESSION OF one CT THEM.
Full Particulars as to How the job
was Accomplished.

Full Particulars as to How the job
was Accomplished.
SPECIAL BY TELEGRAPH TO 7uE REcoED-USIoS.l
AuBgRY, September 2s5h.-The prelimi-
nary examination of the four men charged
with wrecking and attempting to rob the
Atlantic express train at Cape Horn Mills on
the night of August 31st was commenced
here yesterday.
THE CONFESSION OF JOHN MASON.
The following condensed report of the tes-
timony or confession Of John Mason, one of
the party, contains about all that has been
brought out, the testimony of the other wit
nesses merely su5stantiating his statements.
He stated that their intention was. when the
e xpress messenger opened his door, to pull
i'm out by the leg, or failisg in thai, they
would break window and throw in a
lighted fuse, and if that did not scare
him out, they would explode a cartridge of
! giant powder in the carr but, as Mason &
testimony shows, they became frightened and
| fed. Three week previous to the attack
was the first Information Mason had of this
business. His statement is as follows STEM
| egal was the first one that broached the SUBJ
| ject. He stated that he had Job in view
where we could make plenty Of money, and
| wanted to know if I would go in with him.
1 told him yea, providing knew what it was.
He told me he would not tell me at that
| time, but would the next time he saw me.
| The Sunday following he told me that me
| and himself and Frazier, Shinn and Rogers
were to take the train at Gold Run, get on
top of the bagga age and express cars, detach
| that portion of the train after it had gone a
| little ways, and rob it. He told me that they
| intended to 90 down 10 the river at cabin
en- Pickering Bar. We were to go down on
some mining ground that Rogers claimed.
| After I got there l found out that
THE JOB HAD BEEN CHANGED.
1 That was the Sunday night before the wreck
! ing of the train. From there we were to go
| and do the business. Oa Tuesday came
down from Damascus about 10 o'clock.
came down to the cabin about 2 p. NJ, and
when got there met Stenegal. He had a
gun on his shoulder and one in sack. He
told ne that he and Shinn had tools hid in
the bushes. We had provisions brought to
the cabin, enough to last three or four days
The tools which we had were taken from the
Aurora blacksmith shop, about mile and a
quarter from Iowa Hill. There were two
picks, two shovels, axes, wrench, hatchet,
sledge, two pair of gum boots. about seven
or eight pounds of nails; had also giant
powder and caps; did not see Rogers till
the night of the wreck; took no picks OF
shovels up to the railroad; took an
ak, sledge, wrench, and some giant
powder and caps. On the night OF
August 3lst we started up for the railroad
track. When we got up to where the spring
near the cut is we sat down and waited, l
think about five minutes, for Rogers to come.
He came. There was an understanding that
we should meet him there. He came about
or 0 o'clock. Rogers looked at his watch,
and said it was few minutes after or 9;
| don't remember which. He had gun, and
a sack which he said contained giant-powder
and two bottles of whisky, a lantern and a
six-shooter think he had twenty-four
cartridges of giant-powder. He said the
powder was to blow up the express safe. He
had also monkey wrench. When we came
to the spring we took drink of water and
whisky. Rogers forgot lis monkey-wrench
there. From there Rogers, Stenegal, Shinn
and myself-there was fogr of us-went
down to the railroad. While going down the
road we passed Frazier. sitting on the left
hand side coming down, and he said
"halloo " and wanted to know if that was
us. We said Yes" and asked him if he
had the bar made 1t had been understood
that he was to make bar, and if he had not
made it we were to postpone the attack. He
said it was ready. We went into the bushes
| and loaded up two guns. We went down to
the place where the rail was taken out, and
TOOK A RAIL UP.
| Wa had considerable trouble in getting the
rail up, and broke one prong of the bar in
doing it. Myself end Shinn started to pull
some spikes, and Stenegal went down and
| Rogers up the track to act as guards, to pre-
vent any one coming to interfere. The right
| hand rail going up was displaced, with the
lower end pressed in. Then we went to o
| little island of sand near the telegraph poles
| and put on our masks. Then we took three
or four drinks of whisky and broke the
| bottles, and then waited for the train to come
When the train came in sight got down the
embankment. When the train arrived we
had it arranged who was to go to different
places. Stenegal was to go to the first engine,
Rogers to the second, and Frazier, Shinn and
myself vera to 90 to the express car and keep
the passengers from coming out. AS soon a.
| we got to the car we found it was a fruit car
instead of the express or baggage car. /
| turned to where Frazier and Shinn were
standing, about opposite the mail car. They
were standing there both together doing
nothing. 1 asked them what they
were doing, and if they were going
to do anything why didn's they
do it? Just at that time 1 heard
S.enegal speak to the fireman. I turned
around and saw the mail messenger leaning
out of the window. L told him to get in, and
he did so Just than Stenegal came down,
and I asked him where Rogers was. He said
he hadn't seen him. Frazier then made the
remark that it was
TOO BIG LET'S CO."
We then started and ran into the bushes.
We both fell down. After we got into the
bushes We stopped, and Frazier wanted tc
know what we would d. now. Hs made the
remark that we had done enough now, and
we had better go home. 1 Ihallooed for Rogers,
| l called him Dick-that was the name he
was to go by-and so. no answer. Stenegal,
Shinn and myself then started up an
old road there was there, and went around
and came to the railroad above this cut. We
were all masked when the train arrived.
| Frazier and Rogers had their faces blackened.
| After We got upon the railroad track we met
| Rogers. When We met there was soma little
I dispute as to who got scared first, and as to
who ran and who didn't. The piece of paper
that was found on the ground was written by
Stenegal, and dictated by myself. It was left
I