Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1892-02-26


which Makes Dime Novel Exploits
Seem Tame.
The most audacious and picturesque at
tempt at train wrecling which has ever oc-
cured in this country took place on the
New York Central II Hudson River rail
road early last Sunday morning. The sto-
ry as told in detail puts the deeds of Jesse
James in the shade, and rivals the exploits
of Claude Duval or any other of the he
roes of dime novel fame.
The train on which the robbery was at
tempted was the American express cOmpa-
nyS special which runs every day between
New York city and Buffalo, carrying moth
ing but the goods and property shipped by
that company. 1t leaves New York each
evening at o'clock, arriving in Buffalo
the next forenoon. One car is known as
the money car and i'm it is sent the spe-
Gle for the Western banks, as well as the
money i'm process of exchange between the
banks of New York and the West. The
valuabes carried out on Saturday evening
are usually more than on any other day,
and often amount to over 81 100000.
The train of last Saturday night was
made up of eight express cars and one
coach for the accommodation of the regu-
lar train crew. The work of the money
car happened to be light, and only one
messenger was sent with it, This was
Daniel r McInerney, well-known emplOye
of the company. Each of the other cars
had two messengers. The train passed
Syracuse at o'clock Sunday morning.
When near Weedsport, a few miles beyond.
while it was yet pitch dark, the suspicious
of the conductor of the train. Emil Lass,
were aroused by a slight whistle of the air
brakes. The money car was directly in
front of the passenger coach, and he went
out on the platform on the rail, and look
ing through the hole where the bell cord
comes through, he saw the upper part If
a man whose face below the eyes was con-
cealed bv a red flannel mask. The mes
senger he could not see. He went back,
set the air brakes and called his two train
men. The three stood leaning out from
the platform, looking forward along the
sides of the express car. Suddenly man
form appeared at the side door of the eN-
press car, revolver bullets whistled past
their ears and voice was heard command
ing them to signal the engineer to 90 ahead
or take the consequences. The trainmen
were unarmed The conductor told one of
his men to Jump off, run back to Jordan
and telegraph along the line to Rochester
that they had a tran-rObber on board.
This was done, and the conductor signalled
the engineer to 90 ahead full speed, think
ing that the robber would not dare to
Jump. and would be captured at the next
stop The train went to Port Byron.
Here the brakes were set again, and the
conductor and trainmen Went to the express
car.
The ear showed signs OF desperate
struggle. Money packages and lewelry
were lying scattered about, everything in
the car seemed stained with blood, and
Messenger McInerncy was lying bleeding
from several wounds and almost uncon-
scious. The robber was nowhere to be
seen and was supposed to have jumped and
made good his escape. Mclnerney wanted
to be carried on to Rochester telegram
for an ambulance was sent on to Rochester,
and the train went on to Lyons, the next
stop. The news had spread all along the
line by this time and the station at Lyons
was alive with people. In the crowd on
| the platform the tranmen saw well-dress-
| ed young man wearing gold Eyeglasses and
! carrying a satchel slung by a strap over his
/ shoulder. 1t happened that they had no
ticed him at the station at Syracuse, and
| the natural question arose how he had got
| to Lyons and what he had been doing
meantime. An attempt was made to seize
him. but he pulled out two revolvers, held
the crowd back and backed across the yard
until he reached a coal train, the engine
with steam up ready to pull ont for the
west He pulled the pin holding the tend
er to the first car, climbed over the coal in
to the cab, drove the engineer and fireman
out with his revolvers and started the en-
CINE. Conductor Laass and switchman
got a shotgun, took the engine of the eX
press train, and, with the engine and fire
man, started in pursuit The Hudson
River road is four tracked, and the two en-
gines, though going in the same direction
were on different tracks. As the express
engine overlook the robber he reversed hi
own engine and allowed the other to pass
firing at the men In the cab as they wen
by. Then the pursuers stopped and til
robber went ahead firing again as he pass
ed. Two miles beyond his steam began Il
give out and he jumped off and starte'
across country, Selling a farmers horse a
the point of his pistol, and two mile
further on taking another farmers hOrs
and sleigh in the same way. BY this tim
the farmers along the line were all out il
pursuit, the roads were bad, and after
flight of another five miles the robber tool
to the fields, and brought up in swami
behind a stone wall where he was tinall
captured. He gave the name of William
Cross and said he came from New Mexico
1t proves, however that he is Oliver {
Perry, a well-known young desperate, on
IN 20 years old, who robbed the money ca
of this same train land the very same cal
of $1,000 in currency, near Utica, \. \.
last September. At that time he save
through a panel of the front door of tn
express car covered the messenger with hi
revOvers, seized the package of currency
stopped the train by cutting the air-brak
hose, jumped off in the darkness, and e'
capped.
On this last occasion he climbed on tn
roof of the train at Syracuse armed with
rope ladder with two strong steel hooks q
one end. When the train was well undo
way in the open country, and runnin!
doubtless, at 80 miles an hour, he clampe
his steel hooks to the small cornce whic
runs along the car roof Then he carrie
the ladder over the car roof until it dangle
down upon the other side and opposite I'll
sliding glass door in the car side. BY tn
he let himself down until his toes rested o
the sill of the door and then he manage
to steady himself on the swaying, ioltin
car while he smashed in the two sma
lights of glass in the window, covered ii
messenger with his revolver, and told hi
to throw up his hands. Instead of thi
however Mclneney reached for the sign
cord with one hand and for his revolv,
with the other. A bullet smashed the han
on the cord, but it had given the sign