Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1895-05-01
Safe Blown by Thieves.

At an early hour at Port Royal,
last Thursday morning, thieves blew
the safe in Hertzler's store, and Sc
cured two hundred and fifty dollars
in silver coin, and twenty dollars in
pennies that had only a day or two
before been received from the mint,
and a lot of notes and firm papers;
$lOO o. 8. 4psr cent: bond, redeem
able in 1907; $4,000 worth of the
First National Bank of Miffiiptown,
and Pomeroy & Co.'S private bank Of
Port Royal stock, and $1,000 worth
of stock in the Keystone Land and
Lumber Company of Missouri, all the
property of Noah Hertzler, and $2,.
500 Of bonds and $25. 1000 worth of
stock in the Pennsylvania Traction
Company of Lancaster, the bonds be-
ing negotiable and numbered as fol-
lows: Nos. 2S2 and 2S3, each for
81. 900, and 1713 for $500, and about
$3.50 worth of notes belonging to
VIM. Hertzler, individually.
Those who saw the store loom and
the safe on the morning after the
thieves had done their work, say it
was . sight to behold. Tho doors
and windows of the room were all
connected with electric bells with
the sleeping apartment of VIM.
Hertzler across the way, which in all
probability was known by the thieves,
for they did not enter by door or
window. They made their way into
the cellar, and stood barrel on end,
mounted the barrel. and with brace
and bit, bored off two boards in the
floor; sawed off third board and had
a hole large enough through which
they lifted themselves into the mid
die Of the store room. Then they
drilled hole in the top of the safe;
inserted some kind Of explosive ma
terial and blew the safe, so complete
ly that the hugh door was blown op-
en-, and the contents were at the
hands of the robbers. The brace
WAS stolen from Joseph Roup's wag-
on maker shop. and the bits and saw
were stolen from James Groninger's
carpenter shop. When found, the
saw had blood on its blade, proving
that the thief who had used it, had
hurt hand. Sometime during Thurs
day forenoon, boys found the firm
papers on the Tuscarors Valley Rail.
road, and returned the papers to
MIR. John Hsrtzler, and received the
SO reward that had been offered for
their restoration. It is believed that
q gang not far away had to do with
the robbery. A hand car was heard
running on the railroad in that vicin-
ity that night, and it 10 believed it
carried the thieves to and from their
hiding place.
The account of the robbery WAS
despatched far and wide, and . re-
sponse OF two from different parts
had been received from officials on
the lookout, when information was
received from Huntingdon that on
Monday morning, three suspected 50
called tramps had been arrested.
Hon. VIM. Hertz'er and his lawyer
Frank Pennell, Esq, went to Hunt
ingdon, and there found three men
in the lock up. The prisoners gave
their names as Ed. Parker, La Crosse,
Wis: Frank Evans, Philsdelphia;
Joseph West, Chicago. The tramps
came to be arrested through tho pur-
chase of a newspaper, and the pur-
chase of several pounds Of beef from
q butcher. The newsboy who sold
the paper, and the butcher who sold
the beef had heard of the robbery of
Hertzler's store. and that the thieves
had gotten with their plundsr . lot
of new pennies and as the paper and
butcher. both had been paid in now
pennies. they hurried to notify the
police, and he summoned q posse,
and they followed the three trampa
to their camp, short distancs west
of Huntingdon near the river.
When the police put in IN appear.
ance, the tramps ran. but ss the riv-
or was on one side, high rocks on the
other side. and police and citizens On