Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1881-08-06
THE TRAIN. ROBBERS.
LEXINGTON, Mo-, July 81, 1881.

LEXINGTON, Mo-, July ~, 1851.
EDITOR REPUBLICAN-:-The news
papers of this and other states have |
very severely criticised both the Of
fcers and people of the western coun-
ties of Missouri on account of their |
so.called apathy in the matter of cap
turing the s.train robbers" Permit
one W no has in small way chewed |
the bitter cud of experience i'll such
endeavor to speak few words i'll ex-
cuse Of these wrongfully blamed Of
ficers and people. venture the asser-
ton that there is not a sheriff in all
these counties who is not eager to
take all these risks and perform every
act that can be required of them i'll
the matter, by the strictest construc-
tion of duty. And there is not COM
munity in any of these counties i'll
which al efficient and vigilant posse
cannot be raised ready to go anywhere
and perform any service without any
pay or reward, in the single hope of
wipiug out the disgrace the crime of
these men has fixed upon the state.
But neither the officers. or those who
compose the posse can afford to pay
the expenses of pursuit, nor is there
any provision iu the law by which
they are entitled to have such ex-
penses repaid. The Office of sheriff
pays but very little-scarcely re-
spectacle living. Train robbers CAN
not be pursued by the ordinary posse
of deputies. The expenses of all eff
ficient pursuit are great. The rob-
bers think nothing of travelling one
hundred miles in q single night. The
jurisdiction of sheriff hardly ex-
tends for thirty miles in any one di-
rection. The robbers travel faster
than the news of the crime i'll the i'm
mediate vicinity, and are, consequent
ily, miles away in some hiding place,
or scattered over the country and at
some unsuspiclous employment. be-
fore any pursuit eau be organized;
and they are always i'll such force as
to make it foolhardy in any two or
three men to follow or attack them.
Neither the officers nor the people
know who the robbers are, and 1T is
days before anything like an accurate
description of them can be obtained,
and this is always too late for pur-
suit. Contradictory and sensational
rumors are all the officers hear of the
crime, until the opportunity is past.
An officer raises posse, searches as
best he may, for he knows not aom,.
until, disheartened, he dismlsses. his
men and fOots the bill of expenses,
amounting to q. months profit of his
Office. s.o. s.s.5 -al''J
| One or two such experiences satis-
fy him-not altogether on. account OF
his money loss, but because ne knows
all such spasmodic efforts will be vain,
/ ha N
Systematic pursuit out OF the small
pay OF his Office.
The fault is with the law. 1t should
require every sheriffsin whose county
any such crime ia committed, or into
or through whose county he has good
reason to believe the robbers have
passed, to raise posse and pursue
the criminals any where through the
state, aud should make provisions.fo for
paying the expense OF the pursuit.
1 know that under the present. law
any person can follow .telon under
hue and cry through any part OF the
state, but the law does not provide
for paying the expenses of an organi-
zed and persistent search for the
criminals. Ii such q law is made
predict that such thing as bank OF
train robbery in the rural districts OF
the state will soon be thing of the
past, and everyone now guilty OF
such crimes will be captured or driv-
en- out of the state and kept out. Ii
may be said that there have been ap'
preparations made by our legislature
and left to be expended by the gov
ernor in this business at its discretion
Whether there is any Of this fund now
Oh hand l do not know, but | know
from experience that the plan i;
faulty. The governor caunot know
as well as the sheriff, or other officers
on the ground, what is best to be
done, and putting the advisability Of
any expenditure at his dis retion is
but another hindrance and another
cause Of delay. The sheriffs should
be entitled as matter Of right to be
reimbursed for their expenses, hon.
estly incurred in an attempt TO cap.
ture these public enemies. No sheriff
can afford TO take all the risks and
expend his living in such dangerous
service aud then depend on some.
body's discretion for repayment. The
lextinc' ion of this class of criminals
will be costly job in money and life,
too, perhaps. 1t will not do for the
state to be niggardly in this matter
She surely can pay the money when
her officers and citizens 80 freely risk
their lives. 1t Is very we'll for gen.
tlemen to sit safely at home and burn
with Indignation over the fact that
robbers are not caught, but let them
put themselves in the place of all
officer or one of his guard on the war
path after these men and they will
see the injustice Of their criticism
under the circumstances have
named. The catching of the "James
boys" is no parlor matter. The
officers and citizens of western Mis-.
souri can and will catch, kill or for.
ever drive out every bank or train
robber in the state whenever the
state furnishes the means. But they
cannot pay the necessarily large ex-
penses attendant upon the effort in
addition to giving their time aud risk
ing their lives. The bitter experienc ce
of others warns them against spend.
ing their own money and trusting to
the generosity or discretion of the
state or her higher officers to see them
repaid.
In 1873, soon after the robbery OF
the train aud express company on the
Rock Island railroad in the state OF
Iowa, it was reported that certain
men who were charged with the rob-
berry were hiding in this section of
the state, and sometimes passing
through this (Lafayette) county. l
was then sheriff of this county and
Immediately began to organize a
posse for the purpose of their cap
ture. soon found that l. could not
afford the expense and do justice to
my bOndsmen, as had no means out
side of my office, and so | was COM
tpelled to stop just as l had begun to
understand the nature of the under
taking. Being at jefferson City on
official business shortly afterward, l
was sent Tor by Gov. Woodsou, who
insisted that should continue my cf-
forts aud after some dattering re-
marks as to my previous action, said
that the honor and credit of the state
required that the robbers should be
caught or driven out at least, Sc,
sc. replied.by expressing my WILL
ingness to give my time and take all
personal risks, land stated that | could
get plenty of the best of men fer a
/ posse, but showed him how impOssi-
BILE it was for me to bear the expenses
He at once saw the difficulty, aud
while he was poweriess under the
law to bind the state, he said he had
no doubt the Legislature would repay