Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1894-06-22

learned that there were about fifty
people in the building and they were
taken completely by surprise, but Sc
admirably pre-arranged was the plan
that they had no opportunity to give
alarm and were all shut up in one room
and guard placed over them. after
which the invaders had the building to
themselves. Everything was done with
the utmost expedition and the incest
pervision, and at two o'clock the regi-
ment was in possession of two million
dollars in coin. 1t was ten minutes
past two when the column was set IN
motion, and at that time there was the
most confused notion in official circles
as to what was going on. The idea
that an armed regiment had taken pos
session of the United States deposits
in the heart of the city in the middle Of
the day appeared to be too incredible
at first to be alarming. 1t was there
fore two-thirty o'clock before the first
attempt was made at police head
quarters to take summary action and
call upon the reserves. The rumors
spread like wildfire through Wall street
and Printing House square, and when
the regiment moved, Wall street, Mas
sau street and Broadway were choked
with people. But Gen. Waterson
handled his men with admirable skill
and the solid column was not likely to
suffer any serious interruption from
mcr-ly angry or suspicious crowds. BY
the time the newspaper bulletins got
the first wave of intelligence, the regi-
ment was at the foot of Courtland
street. 1t had marched through that
usually choked thoroughfare with a
tactical adaptation to circumstances
that was amazing. 1t marched in force
through the two ferry gates; took pos
session of two boats; put everybody off
but the pilots, and the vessels started
just as the first division of the reserves
marched into West street, three blocks
away.
At this point the state line, which
was no embarrassment to the soldiers,
interposed an invisible barrier to the
authorities.
New York stared across the river in
bewildered astonishment and then re-
sorted to the telegraph and the utterly
futile police boat.
Hendricks close calculation of time
was again shown here. His agents ar
rived in Jersey City with fifteen min
utes margin, and that was enough to
enable them to take possession of a
train of ten cars on the Pennsylvania
road and get in motion before the or
der had arrived to hold all trains
On the ferryboat Gen. Waterson and
his officers encountered a number of
passengers with large portmanteaus.
They were there by Encouragement
and brought the change of garments
with them. When the boat arrived at
the New Jersey dock the officers were
in different apparel and were protest
ing most bitterly against the inpu.
dence and insoience of the soldiers.
The general and two of his aides are
known to have got back to New York
on returning boat. At least one Eun-
dred men had gone out of their uni
forms while on the water. This was
easily enough accomplished, seeing that
they had but to take off shirt, trousers
and hat. These articles of clothing
were weighted with their arms, tied
to the empty and open knapsacl<s
and flung into the Hudson. On the ar
rival of the boat they followed the
troops with the crowd and were unob-
served Half an hour later when they
were looked for they had disappeared,
most of them returning to New York
by various routes
Gen. Waterson, we know by his own
account, put up at an obscure down
town hotel where he registered as
John Fielding, of Newark, and that
same night reached an uptown rem
devious where he freed himself from
the gold and then gave himself with
curious zest to watching the course of
events and of public opinion in the
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