The Hazel Green herald. [volume] (Hazel Green, Wolfe County, Ky.) 1885-19??, 1894-09-27
THEY ARE GIVEN A RECEPTION.

The Colorado and Utah express
on the Santa Fee was held up by
robbers at 3 80 on the morning of
the 18th near CORN, Mo-
Owing to the fact that the rail-
road and express officials had a spy
on the trail of the bandits, when
trey stopped the train they met a
hail of buckshot and bullets, and
it is said at least two lie dead in
the surrounding woods, while as
many others rode for their rendez-
vous, twenty 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. When the train left Chicago
railroad and express detectives, all
walking arsenals, climbed on at
every station.
J. A. Mathews, who has been act
ing as spy, met the train at Gales
burg. He brought news that the
would-be robbers met early in the
day and decided to leave their
hiding place near Memphis at s 80
at night and make their third at
tempt to get rich at the expense of
the express company. They eX-
pected to make haul of at least
$4,000, the Monday run always
being much heavier than any other
day of the week.
When the train reached FIT. Mad
ison, Iowa, shortly after midnight,
Division Superintendent Stockton,
of the Wells-Fargo Express Com
pany, got into the treasure car.
He carried a sawed-off Winchester
that has a history. 1t belonged to
Bill Dalton, and it was to be poetic
Justice to turn it loose upon fol-
lowers in the footsteps of the Kan
sas desperate. With him were four
men. Their arms were in the car,
and had been for several days.
At o'clock, when Sheriff Sailing,
of Scotland county, climbed on
board, all the details of the surprise
party were arranged. There was
one man, however, who had to be
looked out for and protected. He
was the spy. According to the re-
port brought in by Mathews. the
spy would endeavor to be the one
who tagged the train. If so, one
torpedo would precede the swing
ing of the lantern. If another
there would be couple of the tiny
bombs. The orders were no matter
that if every one of the guilty ones
got away, there was to be no shoot
ing to endanger the life of the man
who had, in fact, taken his life into
his hands in order to Illustrate the
attempt at robbery. And so, as
the minutes sped on, an unwonted
silence settled down on the train.
ullIlldll Cur COlluuClOlS ulNt lJOl-
ters sought places of safety, and
even the trainmen did not expose
themselves unnecessarily. In the
little compartment filled with the
armed men the lights were out and
the windows were up. In each seat
were two men sitting sideways, the
muzzles of their guns protruding
Just little over the stills. Behind
them stood others, seemingly stat
ues, with Winchesters ut half cock
resting on their arms. They were
waiting for the torpedo.
Then came the crack of the looked
and longed for signal. There was
but one. A moment and shrill,
sharp whistle gave token that the
engineer had heard, and almost be-
fore his hand left the valvo, across
the track not fifty yards away,
swung a red light. A grinding of
the wheels along the rails told that
the brakes had been applied, and
within twenty seconds from the
explosion of the torpedo the train
wos at n standstill