Fisherman & farmer. [volume] (Edenton, N.C.) 1887-19??, 1892-08-19
TRAIN ROBBERS RICH HAUL.
Dynamite Used to Splinter the
Express Car.
Two Masked Men With Shot
guns Do the Work Quickly.

The fifth train robbery in the San joaquin
Valley in three years occurred early few
mornings ago near the small station OF Col
lis, fifteen miles from Fresno, Cal. There
were two robbers, and their methods or pro-
cedure were precisely the same as In pre-
vious cases, except that they were not
molested by any passenger.
After rapidly splintering the express car
with dynamite they cleaned up about 80
0O0 jumped into wagon au1 struck on
across the plains. They selected one or the
loneliest spots on the line. AMI showed such
knowledge Of the country that there Is no
doubt they belong near Fresno.
As the train was pulling out or Coils just
after midnight the engineer and fireman
were startled by thu appearance OF two men
on the tender. The strangers were armed
with shotguns, and quickly covered the
trainmen, at the same time telling them to
obey orders.
When the train passed Rolendo station
the engineer was ordered to stop and the
fireman was ordered to touch off with
lighted cigar the fuse of a dynamite cart
ridge which the robbers placed on the piston
of the driving wheel on the left side
of the locomotive. The fireman hesitated,
but under the persuasion OF shotgun
touched the fuse. The explosion was terrific,
breaking the piston rod and disabling the
en- zine.
The engineer was ordered to get off and
walk up the track while they proceeded to
lombard the door of the express car with
dynamite cartridges. About eight car
tridges were used and the door was torn to
splinters. Big holes were knocked in the
sides of the car and the floor smashed into
kindling wood. Then the pair, masked and
completely disguised, entered the express car
covering Louis Roberts, the messenger, with
shot guns and ordered him to open the Wells
Fargo safe.
Roberts set about doing tnis, but he was
SO excited and nervous that he forgot the
combination He so informed his captors,
and one of them struck him a heavy blow
on the head with gun aud threatened to kill
him if he did not Immediately open the safe.
This action strengthened the messengers
memory, and with trembling hands he
opened the strong box and they took out all
the sacks OF coin.
When the desperadoes exploded the first
cartridge on the engine the passengers
poked their heads out OF the windows to see
what was up. Their curiosity was amply
satisfied when one of the robbers fired
pistol twice along the row of win lows
There was a panic, and the passengers made
a wild scramble under the seats.
The explosions of the bombs against the
express car rocked and shook the train with
the violence of an earthquake. A window
in front of the passenger coach Immediately
behind the express car was shattered TO
pieces For twenty-five minutes the train
was held, but only one passenger attempted
to interfere with the robbers, and as he was
armed only with small revolver he soon
retired.
The safe contained three bags of coin, each
holding $5OOO These the robbers compelled
wagon which they had hitched by the side
of the track. When the coin was thrown
under the seat the masked men jumped in
and rode off.