The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-09-29
AR MEDIC THE TEETH.
Trainmen to be Prepared for Robbers
on the Michigan Central.
The Road Distributes Revolvers and
Winchester Rifles to be Used in Case
of Attack-Other Lines Will Equip

of Attack-Other Lines Will Equip
Employees.
From the Chicago Herald.
Armed men will accompany every train
hauling express or mail cars from Chicago
to any point east, west or south in future.
Two roads have already determined to
arm their men, and in few days orders
will be issued by other roads running
into Chicago to supply Winchesters to all
trainmen connected with trains hauling
express cars. This has been found
necessary provision owing to the repeat
ed robberieS and attacks on trains sup
posed to be carrying large amount of
money.
Orders were issued by the president of
the Michigan Central railroad yesterday
that every trainman should be supplied
with couple of revolvers and a Win
chester repeating rife. This only
refers to those who travel with
the trains hauling American Express cars
or mail cars. 1t is not the intention of
the Michigan Central officials TO kill rob
bers al sight. The revolvers are only to
be used in cases of emergency, and these
cases are considered to be so rare that the
trainmen have been warned not to draw
them until the last moment. The Win
chesters are to be used at any and all
times when a train is held up by bandits,
and a more merciful dose will be fred at
the robbers than the latter have used re-
Gently on defenseless trainmen. The
Michigan Central will not supply any
shell cartridges to their employees. The
Winchesters are to be loaded with buck
shot, and when robbers appear with rifles
or revolvers they will be treated with a
shower Of shot that will not necessarily
kill
SHOT WILL SCATTER THEM.
1t is expected that shot will prove dis
agreeable enough to induce the robbers to
drop all intention of robbing an express
car and viii effectually prevent the sue
cess of plot to rifle either express safes
or mail cars. Every trainman has been
given explicit instructions to use his Win
chester whenever train is held up, and
if the men follow directions, train robbers
will soon go out of the business If the
French satirist is right in his surmise,
the bandits will forsake the peoples high
way and become hotel keepers, where
they will run less risky chance in tieec-
ing the public.
On all Michigan Central trains running
with express cars Winchesters will lie
handy on the cab of the engine, where the
engineer and fireman will be ready to
ldQQle Un6Il DIS quickly d pOSSlDIG. Inc
conductor and brakemen will be supplied
with the same weapon, and additional
employees similarly armed will be sent
with the train. There will be at least
ten men armed to the teeth on each
train. and this force has been considered
sufficient to scare off any gang of train
robbers
1--WE have determined to put a stop to
'hold-ups, said O. W. Ruggles, the gen
eral passenger agent of the Michigan
Central, last night. This scheme of
tagging trains and then shooting at the
trainmen has become too frequent to be
pleasant Not only are we resolved to
protect our own men from injury but we
are fully determined to protect to the
best of our ability the money that is in
trusted to our care. We do not want to
kill the robbers We leave their punish
ment to the law. But when bandits use
revol vers and Winchesters and hold hui
man life as nothing, they have TO be met
on almost the same terms and disabled
before they can do any harm. That is
why we have ordered Winchester repeat
ing shotguns rather than rifles, because
we do not want to kill the men. These
drastic measures have been rendered nee
essary by the desperate deeds of the train
robbers recently"
GUNS FOR PENNSYLVANIA EMPLOYEES.
Every man on the Pennsylvania lines
will also be armed in a similar manner.
Weintend to supply every trainman with
a Winchester shotgun said e. B. Wall,
the assistant to the first vice-president Of
the Pennsylvania road, last night,
whenever the train carries an express
car or mail car. The recent robberies
have compelled us TO take this measure.
We want our men to be well protected, as
well as the money we carry The express
companies have also determined to arm
their men in a similar manner. OF course,
express messengers always have revolvers,
but buckshot from Winchesters is much
better. l think that this will finally put
a stop to train robberies. If the thieves
meet with such a determined resistance
as they did when they attacked the train
near St. Joseph, Mo, on Sunday night,
we snail hear less Of these outrages.
1t is understood that the Rock Island,
the Wabash, the Illinois Central and
other roads will take the same precautions
Immediately.