National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1886-11-13
EMPRESS MESSENGERS.
Their Great Responsibilities and Small
Pay In proportlOn.

anu
Pay In Proportion.
~ don't think they will ever catch the
81. Louis express robber," said an express
messenger on the Baltimore and Ohio rail
road to reporter of the NATIONAL REpUB.
LICAN. "Weeks have already elapsed and
AL clues so far have led to nothing. Unless
pluuderers OF this class are caught at once
or the detectives get ON their trail from the
beginning they nearly always escape. |
pity poor FOtheringham, though, for II the
criminal Ia not captured he will always live
under cloud of suspicion. Nor will he
be the first express messenger who has had
his prospects for life ruined through no
fault Of his own. Whenever an express car
Is robbed suspicion ut once points to the
messenger, even If he Is bound aud gagged
aud beaten half to death. The only way he
can redeem himself is to be thoroughly
dead when found. Perhaps you think
messengers job Ia sinecure, but can tell
you 1t is II terribly responsible aud risky pO-
sitUn, with nothing like fair com
peusation attached to 1t. In the first
place, he must furnish as heavy bonds
| AS bank cashier. Then he Is constantly
watched by the company's detectives; ali
| his gOiugs and cOmings while not OH duty
| are watched; his habits are carefully noted;
the expenditures OF his family are reckoned
| up, aud II he ever enters Il DarrOOm or any
| place where there Is any chance for gam
| bling, his every action Is recorded. He must
| lead the life of saint II he wishes to retain
| his place. Then the petty eXactions ON duty
are extremely onerous. Nearly all the eX-
| press companies now require him to carry
his pistol at all times By his waist while In
| the car, and he must 90 about his work with q
weapon dangling intentionally at his side
| He undergoes the risk Of receiving bullet
any hour In the day by striking the trigger
| against some object In the car. | have
| known more than one who have met with
| Just such accidents. AS to sleepiug-a
messeuger's downy couch is generally the
| top of the iron safe, which Is SO uncom-
Portable that he is not likely to sleep too
soundly. When he lies down he has the
uncomfortable feeling, too, that he may
awake with Il revolver pressed TO his head
and voice demanding the keys of the
safe. lie must be constantly on his guard.
All kinds of tricks are resorted to
by express robbers 10 gain entrance
to the car. He must look
out for innocent.looking men rushing up to
him with notes from the superintendent
telling him to take the bearer aboard for in-
| strugtiUn. This is the way Fotheringham
was deceived. He must also watch for bo-
gus kilograms written with similar pur-
| pose. BY means OF such telegram Jack
| McCalla Il few years ago prevailed on a
messenger Of the Pacific railroad to return
to st. Louis while he took his place aud
robbed the car OF course, he has also TO
fear attempts at forcible entrance, especially
II he is running on western road. 1t ID
not so risky in the east, where stations are
passed at brief intervals. So you can see
tnat an expressman's life is by no means
passed on bed Of roses And what is his
compensatiOnY A pitiful hundred dollars a
month, more or less"