The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1894-02-03
THEY BEAT THE GAME
A Gunny Sack and a Gun Prove
Winners at Roulette.
The DEALER CRIED "oouBLe o."
At Least He Might Have Done Sc, but
He Was Struck Dumb-Lone High
wayman's Bold Deed.

The eonfidenee in the honesty of their
victims which gamblers display by allow
ing their winnings 10 lie exposed on the
tables was cruelty abused by solitary
highwayman az Ballard on Thursday
night. Shrouding his head in a gunnv-
sack and carrying a revolver. he entered
the gambling rooms in the rear of the VII
lard house abou: 10 o'clock and. in the
presence of twenty astonished players,
gathered up the cash from the roulette ia
bic and vanished as silently as be had en-
tered.
The Willard house is saloon managed
by 4. Paulson, and in back room III. H.
oimnis, formerly drayman. runs a crap
game, and occasionally poker game, a
roulette table and other gambling contriv~
ances- The back room is divided by q
partition into two apartments. which are
used for gambling. In the rear of the
saloon back door, or ladies' entrance.
opens into one of these rooms. IL was
through this that the robber, with . gunny
sack perforated with eye-holeS placed
over his head and tied with 8 string
around his neck. aud pistol in his right
hand, coolly and quietly made his en-
trance among the astonished occupants of
the three rooms. The room he entered
commanded view of the others through
the open doorways, and if any resistance
had been made the advantage was all on
the side of the robber, who was a man OF
few words. for all he said was addressed TO
man named J ohnson.
Johnson was standing close to the door
when the man entered, poked pistol in
his face and told him to stand aside
Johnson at first thought it was some one
playing practical JOKE, until he looked
down the barrel of the pistol. when he at
once slid into the poker room. The rob-
Der then stepped TO the roulette table,
picked mp nearly all the loose change,
amounting to sos. and put it in his pocket
Some Seattle men in the front room cried
out:
Hello. there Is a hold up" Some one
else yelled, "Give me q pistol, when the
robber quickly stepped TO the back door
and disappeared before all in the room had
fully realized that a daring robbery had
been committed by one man in thu pres
ence OF twenty.
He might have made haul of five times
as much il he had taken time to visit The
poker room, for there was not pistol in
the house. The gamblers think he must
have been q 'greenhorn - because he did
not use the customary oaths of the high
wayman or order any one to hold up his
hands, or even take all the money on the
roulette table. The new night Waterman.
Thomas Fowles, had just left the saloon,
and was standing on the sidewalk in front
OF il when the robbery occurred. No one
seems able TO give any description that
would serve TO identify the man, and the
only trace he left behind was the gunny
sack, which was found a short distance in
the rear OF the saloon.
Many think he was professional cracks
man, for he displayed TOO much nerve for
an amateur thief Some think il was some
resident OF Ballard. who took this means
to get even with the game. Others sup
pose il might be conspiracy of the gam
blers themselves to do up Simms for
small amount.
The proprietors of the place evidently
gave up al hope of catching the man. for
they made no special effort to notify the
police, aud Ii was not generally known un-
I'll yesterday morning that a hold-up had
oeen successfully accomplished the night
previous IN one OF the most public places
IN town.