Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1894-10-13

| There were seven postal clerks III
the car ahead of the express car, and
the clerks were bndly frightened. They
had no arms. The postal car had
many sacks of registered mail, but 70
effort to touch Uncle Sans property
was made.
The train reached this city shortly
before l o'clock this morning and then
proceeded to Washington, two hours
and ten minutes behind schedule time.
Messenger Crutchfeld to the questions
put to him made only monosyllabic re-
plies. There were two safes standing
1 on the floor of the express car entirely
empty. The freight piled at each end
was untouched. The lower end of one
of the side doors of the car was blown
away and the thick iron door sill was
broken in two. Every pane of glass
was shatter ID. Crutchfeld said there
was quite gang of them and they
had pistols"
The company's transfer agent, Phil
lips, located at the Baltimore and Ohio
depot. said he had absolutely no infor-
nation as to the amount of money or
vuiuables in the safes. He had wired
the facts to Manager Herring, in Phila-
delphia, and he declared there was no
way of telling what the loss would be
until Herring wired the agents at Jack
sonville, Savannah, Charleston, Will
mington, Richmond and Fredericks-
burg for information as to what had
been consigned.
Supt. Moss eyinced very little con-
Germ when informed by reporter OF
the robbery. He said he had no idea
whatever of what was in the safes. He
knew of no large sum of money being
transferred, and could form no estimate
of what the robbers had captured until
he received advices from along the line.
One and all of the employees of the
express company refused to divulge
any information, if indeed they pos
sessed any. Transfer Agent Phillips
was emphatic in his statement that no
one could form any estimate of the val
ue of the property in the safes. 1t is
no secret, however, that large sums OF
money are frequently transferred by
express from the several important
southern cities along the line to New
York. 1t was rumored among the
trainmen that the loss would reach
S150,0OO.
Among the passengers on the train
were Mr.. G. G. Leef, of Baltimore, and
Mr.. Morton Samuels, of Richmond.
These gentlemen were seen at the de-
pot in Washington last night, and talk
ed freely about the robbery. "We were
all frightened" said Mr.. Leef, "and
everybody expected to be called upon
to deliver up his valuables. stuffed
my money down into my shoe and hid
my watch. Everybody else did the
same thing, guess. Conductor Bird
song was the nerviest man | ever saw
He was cool and collected throughout
and as brave as a lion. He passed
through the train asking each passen-
ger whether he had revolver, and fin
ally succeeded in finding small revolt
yer. Armed with this he stationed
himself at the head of the ladies's' car,
cautioned the passengers keep their
seats and remain quiet. He coolly as
serted that he would kill the first per-
son who set foot on the platform. Later
he avowed his intention of going out
of the car, but was forcibly restrained
by several passengers. Had he so much
as poked his head out of the Car door
] am satisfied he would have been killed"
An engine was started out from
Quautico as soon as possible after the
arrival of the "wildn one to look for
the train it had left behind, and in
about half an hour the waylaid coaches
were found just where the robbers had
left them. They pulled into Quantico,
and as soon as the officials in Rich
mond could be communicated with, were
sent on north. Major Meyers, general
superintendent of the road, and Major
Courtney, superintendent, Immediately
repaired TO the neutrality-suspicious. Of
flee in Richmond, and, as soon as pos
sible, placed themselves in communica-
ton with the trainmen who had arriv
ed at Quantico. The belief is that the
desperadoes boarded the train when
it stopped on the south side Aqua
creek drawbridge, and that they cross
ed the Potomac into Maryland.
Ten minutes after the train arrived
in Washington the rifled express car,
still in charge of Agent Crutchfield, was
switched on to the New York train, and
in ten minutes after its arrival was on
its way to New York.
The train reached the Pennsylvania
station at Jersey City at sos o'clock
this morning, bringing with it badly
shattered express car. The Adams Elk
press Company's messengers went at
once to headquarters in New York city.
They reported that all of their safes
were rifed by the robbers. 1t is sup
posed that the robbers obtained between
$4,000 and 100000. When the ex-
press car was sidetracked passengers,
pass er5by and trainmen gathered
around to examine it. It was found
that the heavy oak doors had been
splintered by the sticks of dynamite
forced into the car by the robbers. In
addition the marks left by the revolver
bullets were plainly visible. Every
pane of glass in the windows of the car
had been broken. The officials of the
express company in charge at the sta.
ton claimed that only the pouches and
safes had been ransacked, the other
packages in the car remaining intact.
The trainmen were reticent about dis
cussing the affair.