The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1883-10-11

trated-The WOuld-be Robbers XIII rhS
Engineer and Dangerously Wound the
Fireman.
KANSAS Cry, Mo-, Sept. %.
An attempt was made to rob the ''Thun-
derbolt' Santa Fe express train at Cool
idge, Kas., a small station on the Kansas
and Colorado line, 450 miles west of here,
last night, news of which caused excite
ment here such rs has not been known since
the Glendale, Winston and Blue Cut train
robberies. The train was the regular east
bound passenger train, which left Denver
last night and was due here tonight. Cool
idge is a small cattle station and beside the
telegraph operator is almost uninhabited.
As the train was about to pull out from
Coolidge three men appeared and ordered
the engineer to stop. He refused and was
shot dead. The fireman was also shot
through the neck and badly hurt though
not fatally. The men assailed the express
car, but Samuel Peterson, the Express
messenger, made such vigorous fight that
the robbers were driven off. Finding the
train aroused and themselves likely to be
worsted, the robbers then beat a retreat,
having failed to secure the treasure which
they were after.
Information was at once telegraphed sta
tions along the line and a special train
started for Coolidge from Emporia with a
posse Oh armed men IN p0ESulNs 1n6 0cdn
engineer, whose name was John Hilton,
lived at Emporia, his run being between
that point and Dodge City. Route Agent
J. c. WalBenshaw and Clerk G. A. James
were in the mail car next to the engine,
and witnessed the whole affair. James re-
lates the details in substance as follows:
Our train was due at Coolidge at two
O'Clock a. M, and arrived on time. We
changed engineers and engines there, and
usually stop about fifteen minutes. While
the engines were being changed / noticed
two men who, in the darkness, appeared to
have their heads and faces tied up, walk
ing up and down the platform at the side of
the car several times. [ was busy at the
time and paid no special attention to them.
Just as the train was ready to pull out and
Conductor Greelv sang out "AlI aboard, )" l
looked out at the door and saw one of the
men cross to the opposite side of the track
and the other walk up toward the engine.
A minute afterward l heard several shots
upon the engine and an instant later two or
three more in the express car. l looked out
again and the fireman, Geo. Paddle,
lump from the engine and run across the
platform. just as he reached the other edge
another shot was fired, and he fell back up
on the platform. By this time every thing
was confusion, and all of the train men, as
well as every one else who knew what was
going on, seemed perfectly paralyzed and
incapable of action. l knew the train was
being TODDed ana MI W dlkenSuaW anu
myself began to think about preparing to
protect our car. In the meantime the man
| we saw cross the track was making an at
| tack upon the express car and managed 10
| get inside of it. He acted as though he was
drunk and fairly fell into the side door,
| shooting his revolver as he did so. The
| Express messenger, S. s. Peterson, armed
| with a revolver, succeeded in driving the
| robber from the car.
After this the man on the engine jumped
| down on the platform and the robbers skip
! ped out together, going across the prairie IN
| q southerly direction. Everybody was so
| paralYzed with the audacity of the attempt
| that no movement was made to pursue the
| robbers do anything else for fully ten
/ minutes aft sr they lad disappeared. A
| rush was made for the engine and we found
| John Hilton, the engineer, lying dead in the
| cab with a shot through the heart and an
| other through the head.
| Fireman Paddle was lying on the platform
! opposite the engineer entirely unconscious
| with bullet wound in his neck. He re-
| covered consciousness 8 few minutes
| later, long enough to state that just as they
| were getting ready to start the train a
| masked man jumped on the engine with a
| pistol in his hand and ordered the engineer,
| Hilton, to pull out. Hilton refused 10
| start the engine, but tried to reach for the
| whistle line to give the danger signal. The
| fObber this movement and Immediate
| ly commenced to shoot. The engineer fell
| from his seat and Paddle jumped off on the
platform. The robber shot at him as he
ran, but missed him. Just as he was step
ping off the platform, the man who attacked
the express car came running up and fired
at Paddle, the shot taking effect in his neck.
| This was all the fireman knew about it. He
was very dangerously hurt. We left him
| at Coolidge to be taken care of. de was
| about thirtY-fiVe years old, and had been
on the road for a long time running from
| Coolidge to Dodge City. l don't know
| where he lived, but / think at Coolidge.
| Engineer Hilton about forty years of
age and had family at Dodge City. We
brought his body to that place on our train
where inquest was held.
The town was all asleep and there were
only six or seven people besides our train
crew around the depot at the time the at
tempt was made. There is an eating-hOuse
in the depot, and the men We're lounging
around inside and on the platform, watch
ing for the train to pull out. The popula-
tion of Coolidge is not over 2J0 souls, and
there was no show to organize a pursuing
posse before we left We only stopped
long enough to take care of the fireman and
the dead engineer, and get new men to take
| their places, and we pulled out of Coolidge
about forty-five minutes late. Before we
left Conductor Greedy telegraphed to Dodge
| City, and the officers of the road there al
once organized a pursuing posse and started
them via a special train for the scene of the
tragedy. There were about fifty armed
men in the posse, and we passed them a.
| CimarrOn.
There were only two robbers, but I thinl
that originally there was a gang organized
TO rob the train, and that these two fellow,
came to town to get the lay of things anc
make arrangements, and got drunk anc
spoiled the scheme by attempting to do th'
| Job themselves
| The story of Express Messenger Peterson
is very similar to that of James. he says
while the engines were being exchanged hf
was living in the car, and was in dozt
| when the conductor yelled "all aboard
An instant later a masked man attempted
to get into the car, firing a revolver as b'
did so. Peterson awoke to the situation
| and as the man entered the car be drew ].
revolver and returned the intruder,s shot
and advancing upon him forced the maj
back out of the car. At that moment tn
fireman ran across the platform and tn
robber fired at him, the shot taking ehec
in the fireman's neck. Peterson was great,
excited but was determined to defend hl
safe as long as possible. He thought D
saw another man outside, but il afterward
proved to have been the conductor. ID
also thinks the men were drunk, and tina
? the original plan was to rob the traln cas-
of Coolidge.
Deputy Sheriff Mather, in charge OF tn
Dodge City posse, was met at Coolldge q
Sheriff Parsons of Bent County, COLORADO
and they arrested two men and took theE
to Dodge City on a special this evening an
lodged them in jail. The feeling there wa
intensely bitter, but the men not being Q
vet fully identified no steps viii be take
to avenge H1ton's death On an unce1
Another man has this evening been az
rested at Garden City and VIII be taken {
Dodge City in the morning. It Is though
A N