The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1892-02-26
A DARING DEED.
Express Money Car On the New
York Central Robbed.
A Man Seizes an Engine and Is Pursued
on tho Rail For Miles-At
Last Caught In
Swamp.

ROCHESTER, n. Y, Feb. 22.-The
train No. 81 on the Central Hudson,
known as the American Express Co. IS
special, runs between New York and
Buffalo and carries only goods and prop
erty shipped by that company, on the
same time and with the same privileges
as the limited express The train left
Syracuse at o'clock Saturday morn
ing, Conductor Emil Lass, of this city,
drawn by engine 692 with Caleb Cherry,
engineer. The coach was in the rear
and the money car just ahead.
When the train was near Weedsport
the conductor, who was in the coach
with his two trainmen, thought no
heard the air whistle sound very family.
Going out on the platform OF the coach
he climbed into it and looking through
the hole where the bell cord comes
through he saw the upper part of a
man whose face below the eyes was
concealed by red flannel mask. The
messenger he could not see. He went
back, set the air brakes and called his
two trainmen to the platform.
Suddenly mans form appeared at
the side door of the express car. Re-
volver bullets whistIed past their ears
and a voice was heard commanding
them to signal the engineer to GO
ahead or take the consequences. The
trainmen were unarmed. The con-
ductor told OF of his men to jump off,
run back to Jordan. and telegraph to
Rochester that they had train robber
on beard. This was done and the con-
ductor signaled the engineer to go
ahead at full speed.
At Fort Byron the trainmen went to
cypress car. This showed signs of n
desperate struggle. Money packages
and jewelry were lying scattered about
Every thing in the ear was stained
with blood and Messenger McInerney
was lying bleeding from several
wounds and almost unconscious. The
robber was nowhere to DO seen.
At Lyons the station was alive with
people. Among others was a well
dressed man wearslg gold eye glasses
and carrying a satchel slung over his
shoulder. Now it happened that the
trainmen had noticed the young man
at the station at Syracuse before the
train started and they had not seen
him since and the question what he
was doing at Lyons at once suggested
itself An attempt to arrest him was
made, but he pulled two revolvers,
held the crowd back and backed across
the yard until he reached a coal train,
the engine of which had steam I'D
ready to pull for the west He pulled
the pin holding the tsuder to the first
car, climbed over the coal into the cab,
drove the engineer and fireman out
with his revOlvers, pulled open the
throttle and started the engine.
Conductor Lass and one of the switch
men procured shotguns, freed the en-
CINE of the express and with the fire.
man and engineer started in pursuit of
the fugitive. The road is u four tracked
road and the engines though they were
going west were not on the same track
The express engine soon overlook
the robbers engine, but he suddenly
reversed his engine and let his pursuers
pass him, pouring perfect rain of bul-
lets into the cab as his pursuers went
by. Then the others stopped and the
pursued went ahead. Another duel
ensued, the shotguns taking part this
time. No one was hurt ON either side |
About seven miles further on the
robber found his steam going out of |
the engine, dropped off at cross road |
and started across the country, going |
south. Here he forced farmer to let |
HIM have horse and rode on two miles |
further south. Here he procured a |
horse and compelled the owner, a !
farmer, to entrust him with it by firing |
on him.
The p>rty in the express engine had |
returned to Lyons where the sheriff of |
Wayne county had organized a posse,
which,, under command of Deputy |
Sheriff Collins started in pursuit. |
Meantime the farmers along the rob-
bers line of retreat had also turned |
out fully armed, in pursuit.
The runaway was sighted about five |
miles south of Newark. The roads /
were very bad and he had made very
poor speed He abandoned his horse
and ran across lots to Eenton's swamp.
But the swamp proved too full of water
to be penetrated, and the fugitive took /
up his position behind a stone wall and
faced his pursuers- After some parley |
he surrendered to Deputy Sheriff Col
Inns. He was taken back to Lyons and
lodged in Jail
The outlaw gave the name of William
Cross, said he was from New Mexico |
and had been boarding in Syracuse for |
some time. He admitted he was the |
man who attempted the train robbery |
to Chief of detectives Hayden, OF this
city. who had been wired for. He is
believed to be the much wanted Oliver |
Curtis Parry, who robbed Express |
Messenger Moore near Utica last fall |