The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1894-09-20
BUT THE BANDITS WERE THE
PARTIES SURPRISED.
A Crowd of Detectives Poured Buckshot
Into Gang Who Attempted to Rot
an Atchison, Topeka and Santa
Fe Train.

bandits, when they stopped the train
they met hail of buckshot and bull
let's and IL is said tLat at least two lie
dead in the surrounding woods, while
as many others rode for their rende-
vouz, 81 miles away, filled with leaden
pellets. They were novices in the art
of train robbery and brutal ones at
that, for they shot dad" Prescott,
the engineer, before they even gave
him a chance to hold up his hands.
His wound, it is believed, will not
prove fatal.
The raid was planned three
weeks ago, but was not put into exc
cution until this morning. When the
train left Chicago at ) O'Clock last
evening railroad and express detec
tives, all walking arsenals, climbed
on at every station. Chief Detective
j. j. Kinney of the Santa Fe, with 9
G. Montgomery, his right hand mau,
boarded it at Joliet. At StreateT they
we joined by two more men who
have been patrolling the line for 70
| days.
James Thomas, who has been acting
spy for the last TWO weeks and getting
| the news Of their plans, put in an ap-
pearanCe at Gorin He brought news
that the wouldHbe robbers met early
in the day ard decided to leave their
hiding place, near Memphis, Mo, at
$3.50 o'clock last night and make their
attempt 10 get rich at the expense
of the express company. They
expected to make q haul of
at least $50, 900, the Monday run be.
ing always much heavier than any
other day of the week. When the
train reached Fort Madison, Ia,
shortly after midnight, Division
Superintendent stockton of Wells
Fargo Express company got into the
treasure car. lie carried a sawed off
winchester with a history. 1t be.
longed to Bill Dalton and it was 20 be
poetic justice to turn it loose upon the
followers in the footsteps of the KanS
sas desperate. With him were four
men. Their arms were in the Car and
had been for several days.
Then council of war was held. 1t
was first proposed TO ambuscade the
force behind a barricade of trunks and
boxes in the express Car and allow
robbers to enter. The messenger was
to throw up his hands and kneel
down to open the safe. Then
he was TO fall on the floor OF the
car and then the winchesters
would commence together. Two men
were to pe stationed on the engine to
protect the train men and another was
to guard the rear. This scheme was
finally abandoned.
The plan adopted was this: Detec.
tives Kinney and Montgomery board.
ed the engine. superintendent Stock
ton and two If his good shots tarried
in the express car, but it was in the
forward end of the smoking car that
his forces were massed. A partition
and door encloses half dozen seats
and shuts off the rest of the Car from
it. there the men, a dozen of them,
were placed. Each one of them had
one of the Sawed offs,' every car
fridge loaded especially for the event
with "a buckshot. There was only
one passenger in that compartment,
and he was requested by the brake
man to take seat in the chair car, as
"they were going to sweep"
AT 2 o'clock Sheriff Sailing of Scot
land county climbed on board and de-
tails OF the surprise party were ar
ranged. There was one man, hOw-
ever, who had to be looked out for
and protected, He was the spy. Ac-
cOrGing to the report brought by
Thomas the spy would endeavor to
be the one who tagged the train IT
swinging OF The lantern. Ii another,
there would be couple of bombs.
The orders were that no matter if
every one OF the guilty ones got away,
there must be nU shooting TO endanger
the life of the man y ho had taken his
life in his hands in order to Illustrate
the attempt at robbery, aud so, as the
mir utes sped on, an uDwonted silence
settled down on The train.
Pullman car conductors and porters
sought places of safety and even the
trainmeh did not expose themselves
unnecessarily. In the little compart-
ment filled with armed men the lights
were turned out, the windows were
LII OoOh FCpV WCiO t"' CIV
ting sideways, the muzzles of their
guns protrudiDg just trfle over the
stills. Behind them stood others with
at half cock resting on
their arms.
Out from between wo high en- bank
'nente, just one mile from CORN, sped
the train, One minute more and the
anxious watchers would know whether
they again had their labor ia vain.
Then Came the crack Of the looked and
IOuged o. signal. rhsfe gas hQ' one.
A moment, and a sbtill, sharp whistle
gave token the engineer had heard,
and almost before his hand lett the
valve, across the track not fifty yards
away swung a read light. Within
20 seconds from the explosion of the
torpedo the train was at standstill. |
Out from the dense underground |
north of the track came four forms.
The face of each was iddeD by black
mask. One, more agile than the rest,
'ushed TO the train almost before the |
could reach the express |
,ar. He carried a rifle, and when |
within 10 feet of the tender brought it |
o his shoulder, pointed at dad"
Pre-: colt, the white bearded engineer,
md as he shouted "Hold up your |
lands!p pulled the trigger, his act |
vas through, and dad" fell to the !