Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1881-07-20
GENERAL ITEMS.

On last Friday night a passenger
train of cars was entered by seven
robbers at Winston station on the
Rock Island Railroad 4 dispatch
saws: Seven men boarded the tram
at Cameron station. At Winston
when the train stopped they stood up
in the aisle of a car with drawn reyoi-
vers. One of the bandits advanced
with a revolver in each hand toward
William Westfall, the conductor, and
ordered him to hold up his hands
The conductor was slow In comply
ing with his demands and was shot
through the heart by the desperate.
One of the other men shot through
the head John Mccullough, a stone
cutter, of Wilton Junction, who turn
ed outward from his seat. The men
then went through the train to the
express car and overpowered the
United States Express Messenger,
Charles Murray, who was intimidated
into opening the safe, from which
$4,000 was taken. The desperadoes
then went to the engine and told the
engineer to start his train. This he
could not do on account of the auto
matte brake, and be was at once fired
upon by the robbers. The engineer
put out the light in the cab and
crawled along the footboard to the
pilot, and after extinguishing the
headlight laid down in the pilot. The
robbers made no search for him, but
departed No attempt was made to
rob the passengers. The populace
about Winston rose en- rsaSSe and
armed men are now seeking the des-
peradoes.
Additional particulars are that two
of the robbers got on the front end
OF the baggage-car next to the en-
gine, three more on tins sInokng-car
and two on the platform between the
baggage:car and the smoker. There
were seven men in all. Conductor
Westfall had passed nearly through
the smoking car when be was shot,
one ball passing clear through his
body. He staggered out on the plat
form of the car and fell of into a
ditch. John Mccullough, the stone
cutter, who was shot through the
head, also fell off the car and was
found by the side of the dead con-
ductor When the robbers entered
the express car Charles Murray, the
messenger, was looking over some of
his papers, and Frank Stamper, bag
gageman, was sitting in chair near
the open door Both men were i'm
mediately covered with focr revol-
vers, and when Murray objected to
handing over the keys of the safe he
was Knocked down. 1t is thought
that about fifteen thousand dollars
was in tie safe, but the exact amount
is not known. The United States
Express Company handle all the ex-
press matter on the Rock Island Rail
road and train went out last night
with what came in from the Atchison
short run and also from Kansas CITY
and points east as far as Harlem.
After ritling the safe tie robbers
jumped from the train and escaped
The train went on to the next side
track, where it waited for the passen-
ger train. which took Westfall' s body
to Cameron. The Sheriff vas mott
fed of the robbery as soon as posi-
bic and he immediately started in
pursuit with about sixty men, but at
the present writing no tidings have
been received that he has overtaken
the robbers. Great excitement pre-
walls IN the neighborhood and the
who community is much agitated
over the event j. r. Great, the ex-
press agent at Kansas City, said this
that not much money went
from Kansas City, but the impression
seems to be that the robbers secured
several thousand dollars. The gen
orally accepted theory out on the
road is that the robbers were pro-
fessionals. One of them, the .allest
one. was seen IN Cameron all day yes
terday, and could be identified by
several persons. The p,en who have
been searching for the robbers to-day
found where they had their horses
tied in the woods, and say that in
their hurry to get away they did not
unite them, but cut the halters and
left them hanging to the trees.