Los Angeles herald., 1892-08-08
N THE HANDS Of THE ROBBERS.
George Roberts Tells of His
Exciting Experience.
An Uncomfortable Twenty Minutes
Which Seemed Year.
A Complete Description of the sensa
tional Eysnt-How the Messenger
Was Abused-Ths Robbers
Profanity.


Pacific train at Coils on Wednesday
night, was somewhat improved yester-
day. He told his story of the fight to
HERALD reporter as follows:
s'Twenty-one minutes comprise only
1860 seconds. 1t is not a very long
period of time, but l recently had an
experience that covered twenty-one
minutes, and it seemed to me as though
I lived twenty-one years during that
brief space OF time. 1t is not pleasant
thing to be imprisoned in an express
car, at which the friendly and festive
robber is hurling dynamite bombs.
knowing that if you should perchance
show your face, there is most prom
Using prospect for you to have an un-
friendly bullet deposited in your carcass,
In most undesirable location. This
kind of an experience is the one that |
went through few minutes before mid
night on Wednesday last. l do not
care to have it repeated. One turn of
that kind is about all that care for. The
sensation that passes over you as the
little dynamite toys are exploding about
you, gently blowing things hither and
yon aud creating a general disturbance,
is not one of peaceful satisfaction. You
wish that you were elsewhere,
and your mind is occupied in
oontriving schemes and estimating
the possibilities of getting elsewhere,
and at the same time maintain voting
residence on this earth. L have read of
people whose hair was turned gray in
the course of one night from various
causes, but | have never believed that
such human existed. believe now that
--1uch has been the case. OF course my
hair Is not gray, anu it will not be for
many wears yet. But if the strain OF my
nervous system had been as great for six
hours as it was during the twenty-one
minutes that the Coils express robbers
were throwing their dynamite tokens at
my car the other night, my hair would
be liable to turn to most of the colors OF
the rainbow white, or any known tint.
''You see at the time that all the ex-
plosions were going on, and while the
robbers we're helping themselves to the
contents of my car, scarcely knew
what was going on, and did not know
what to expect next. But now that |
look back upon it all, gaze, as it were,
upon the wonderful and dizzy whirl of
events that transpired during those
twenty-one minutes, l feel as though
] was certainly born under lucky
star. Just how I escaped from being
sent upwards in disconnected punches
while tht dynamite had full swing in
the car, surpasses my understanding.
Everything about me was remembered
by the explosive-around me, in front OF
me and behind me-but by DISPENSE
tion of kind providenceI was overlooked,
at least to the extent of permitting me
to retain my body in it's natural COM
pact form. For this special considera-
tion manifested feel most grateful.
''The life of Wells Fargo messenger,
at best, is not constant round OF roll
licking pleasure. But when it is inter-
spersed with encounters with robbers so
rude as to use the deadly dynamite
car and daily with the treasure box,
then it is that the messengers life be-
comes oppressive. He longs for another
vocation and visions of soft snaps, if
you will allow me the slang phrase, held
by others, and as he thinks, less worthy
people rise up before him to taunt him.
He wishes he had stayed on the farm with
the old folks. All hope of becoming,
some day, the president OF the company
dies out. i1Fp
s.But to be serious. AS rule the
messengers in the employ OF Wells
Fargo are brave, courageous, faithful,
honorable men. They are true in every
respect to the company and loyal to its
interests. No reason exists why they
should be otherwise. The corporation
in its dealings with them, is liberal and
considerate. The boys as a rule are
young men. The duties of the position
and its responsibilities call for an active,
clear brain, strength, agility and en-
ergy. Men who grow gray in the COM
pany's service are always provided for
when they become too old to longer bear
the arduous responsibilities of having a
car under their charge. OF course, mes
sengers who have long runs over coun-
try in which the profession of holding
up stages and robbing trains and ex-
press cars has reached a state of devel-
Opment, always figure on the possi-
biIity of meeting with the
robber or robbers some day.
He turns over in his own mind what be
would do If ever any one attempted to
get into his car and force him to turn
over the company's treasure box. He
doubts, in the first place, if a gang of
robbers could ever effect an entrance
into his car, and he figures on how
many he could kill if the attempt was
ever made he doubts if it would be pos
sible for the robbers to force him to do
this or do that, even after they had
pverpowered him.
s'Now, when the messenger afterward
goes through the encounter with the
robbers, if he lives to consider the mat
ter when it is passed, he finds out that
all of his calculations on what his
course of conduct would be when it did
occur, has been entirely knocked out.
He knows then that his prearranged
plan for the defense of his life and his
trust, which he had set up in his own
mind, could not be carried out. He
AaE learned that he is governed entirely
by the course of events, after the rob-
bers attack his car. in what few move
ments he may feel called on to take.
He is not certain whether he will ever be
able to write out the varied sensations
and feelings that permeate him while
he is parleying with the ruffians or not.
This uncertainty casts gloom over him,
and he thinks of home and mother. or
perhaps OF wife and baby. But his
thoughts come thick and fast--a thou
sand things are reviewed in a minute.
SIN these days of advancement, genius
and progress the skilled train robber
takes either the fireman or the engineer
and nakes a hreastWork ont of him