Bismarck weekly tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1884-1943, 1886-10-29
A BOLD ROBBERY.
An Adams Express Car ON the St.
Louis & San Francisco Rail-
road Entered by
Stranger, Who 0yerpowers the Mes
senger and Gets Away With
>@ $4,000 in Cash.
A Daring Deed.

A Daring Deed.
ST. LOUIS, Oct. 26.-The Adams express
the st. Louis & San Francisco road, which
left this city at S:25 last night, was robbed
of $4,000 in cash, between here and Pacific,
Mo. Before the train left the city man,
giving the name of Cummings, presented
letters to Express Messenger Tothering-
ham, purporting to be signed by All officer
OF the company, stating that Cummings
was out to take run on the line and ask
ing TOtheringham to give him points.
When near Merrimac the stranger over
powered the messenger. gagged him and
bound him to the safe, after which he
coolly rit1ed the car. He then escaped
FULLER DETAILS.
Superintendent Damsel, of the express
company, gives the following as the result
of the long examination of the messenger
made at the office of the company this
morning: "Mr. rockingham says that as
he was about to 60 out on his run last
night, a man came to him with a letter,
purporting to be signed by myself and Mr..
Barrett, instructing him to take the bearer
Jim Cummings, on his run as far as Pierce
City for instructions. In accordance with
the supposed instructions, rockingham
took the stranger and set him to work
checking up. Then he began his own
work. rockingham was standing with
his back to the stranger, his coat off and
the handle of his revolver sticking out of
his pistol pocket. About ten or fifteen
miles out of the union depot he was at
tackled from the rear by the stranger, who
grasped his neck with one hand and his re-
volver with the other. Before rockingham
realized what was being done, he was
thrown to the floor. He struggled and
fought, but the stranger OVercame him and
bound him. Then he put gag in his
mouth and tied him to the safe.
HAVING SECURED THE MESSENGER,
he proceeded to go through the safe. Sev-
eral packages of silver he cut open, but left
them when he found what they contained.
At Mincke some men working in the lime
kiln tagged the train on account of an OBJ
struction on the track. While it was stand
ing still someone tried to get into the ex-
press car, but the robbar stood over FrOth-
ingham with revolver and prevented his
making any effort to cry out. At or about
Pacific station the robber took his plumber,
and opening the front door of the car, went
out on the platform and closed the door.
What he did after that rockingham does
not know. He lay on the floor of the car
| until the'train reached st. Clair. when he
was able to get the gag out of his mouth
and cry out for assistance. The train men.
hearing him, endeavored to get in the back
| the front door, which the robber had left
open. They released him. rockingham
says the robber was about six feet
high, "a years Of age, and weighed about
200 pounds. He had dark, straight hair,
cut close, thin dark mustache, low fore
head, wore dark clothes and dark gray over
coat. 1t is customary for new men out on
the road with messenger to receive in
structiOns and such orders as Frothing-
| ham says were presented to him by the
robber would be issued either by the route
| agent Barrett or himself" Damsel says he
cannot yet name the amount stolen, but as
the run was unusually heavy, he thinks it
here of Frothingham He has only been
on the Frisco run since June. He worked
for the company prior to that time in Kan
sas City. Mr.. Damsel and his advisors ac-
cept Frothingham's statement as true.
ST. LOUIS. Oct. 27.-Frothingham, in re-
! lating in detail his experience with the
robber, to-day said: AFTER binding me,
Cummings, as he called himself, took the
key to the safe from my pocket, unlocked
the safe and took out the pouches. He
| then took his grip sack and, opening it,
tried to force the pouches in without OPEN
! ing them, but could not do so. He then
took his knife from his pocket, cut the
pouches open and removed their contents.
He removed some articles of clothing from
his bag and threw them out of the Win
! down of the south side of the car. We
were then somewhere near Merrimac,
should, judge, for we had just passed
| through the tunnel. He transferred the
| money to his bag and was then ready to
! make his escape. Before he left, he said to
me: You would be surprised if l told you
would Well he continued, I am Jim
Cummings, the last of the Jesse James
gang. was in the Blue Cut job and only
| got 81 800 out of it. Since then l have
passed considerable of my time in Aus
| tralia and San Francisco He seemed IA
miliar with the names and doings of the
various members of the James gang. When
we began talking he removed the gag
from my mouth, but when the train reached
point near Pacific he replaced it so that l
could make no outcry. In the meantime
he threatened to blow my brains out if
| endeavored to attract any ones attention"
To test the messengers statement, search
was made for the clothes which he said the
| robber had thrown from the car, and on the
south side of the track, near Merrimac,
several articles of clothing and some old
papers and printed songs were found and
have been brought to this city. One of the
garments measured about thirty-eight
inches around the waist, bearing out the
statement of rockingham as to the size Of
the robber. A number sixteen collar was
also found. FrOthingham's statements have
thus far been remarkably clear and
straightforward and free from contradic-
tions. The opinion is gaining strength that
the robbery was bona fide affair and that
the messenger was In no way an acces
sorry,