St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-10-27

Desperate Fight at Close Quarters
Between One Of the Gang and
an Officer-Two of the Outlaws
Captured-Member of Repu-
table Families Said to Belong
to the Gang.
MARION, Ind, Oct. ga band of
men organized in a civilized community
for plumber and destruction; an at
tempted raid on a mercantile establish
ment. desperate battle between two
determined and armed men, facing each
other at distance of less than eighteen
feet. with three others contributing bull
lets every second, and the accompanying
details, has occupied the attention of
the citizens of Summitville since 2
O'Clock yesterday.
Summityille is town of l 200 inhabi-
tants on the Cincinnati, Wabash &
Michigan division of the Big Four, six
teen miles south of here. To that place
SIX weeks ago George Stroud went from
neighboring town and secured a
position as night Waterman. Ten days
ago he notified the merchants of that
place that an attempt was to be made at
Wholesale burglary by an organized
band of thieves, including a dozen or
more among its members. One date
had been fixed and abandoned. Last
night an attempt would surely be made
to plumber and then to burn
several establishments. The first was
to be the Wilkins dry goods store.
In this place Deputy Sheriff Coburn,
Pat Hannan and Drew Fennimore were
stationed. Coburn was armed with two
levolyers. and the others with similar
weapons. At o'clock Dick Goodman,
one Of the members of the gang. APP
peared at a side window near the rear
of the building. He raised the window
and went in. AT the order to throw up
his hands, he began to shoot. Coburn
responded, and Hannah and Fennimore
also Joined in the fusIIade. Tom May,
another member of the gang, appeared
at the window and took part in the af-
fray.
Goodman, directly facing Coburn, III
room eighteen feet wide. emptied his
revolver, and Coburn emptled both of
his. Goodman received a shot in the
abdomen, from which he cannot recover,
but succeeded in backing out of the
window and running several squares
from the building, when he fell, to be
captured and taken to Jail at Anderson.
Coburn received trifling wound in the
side. Ju st back of where he stood, in a
space of six feet, are nine bullet holes.
Over twenty shots were fired in the
room, most of them at distance of less
than the width of the room.
May, the companion of Goodman, was
captured by members of the Summit
Willie Horse Thief Detective association,
who had been prowling the streets. Be-
fore his capture, however, over seventy
shots were fired, all of which were
harmless. The other mem bers of the
gang escaped. The organization of
plunderers is supposed to include not
less than dozen men. But four of
them are known to have been connected
with the attempt last night. Officers
are in pursuit OF the two escaped, and
others will be arrested. The gang i'll
cludes members of reputable families
south OF Summitville, and is credited
with having recently burned a saloon
and dry goods store at Dundee, a village
a few miles from Summltville, after
having carried off quantity of goods.
A part of the dry goods were after
wards found in straw stack on the
Goodman farm. Innumerable other
depredationS within radius of twenty
miles from Summitville are attributed
to it. Stroud, the night Waterman, has
been admitted to the inner circle for
some time. There are different theories
as to why Stroud sought the position of
night Waterman and then divulged the
schemes of the gang. The latter is sup
posed to have been in existence for sew
eral years.