St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1895-04-12
ROAD ACENTSD DID IT
Cripple Creek Mail and EX-
press Stage Held Up and
Robbed.
THE DRIVER OVERPOWERED
And Compelled to Assist the
Outlaws in Ransacking
the Pouches.
THE DRIVER OVERP0WERED
MANY THOUSANDS IN GOLD
And Valuable Papers Sc
cured--Miners Pursuing
the Desperadoes.

CRIPPLE CREEK, Col, April Ii
The mail and express wagon con-
Meeting with the Midland Terminal
railroad at Grassy was boarded to-
day about two miles from this city
by two men who overpowered the
driver, Robert Smith, secured an
express package containing $4,000
and escaped on horseback.
The hold-up took place about $50
o'clock on the summit of Tenderfoot
hill, on the highway between Grip
pie Creek and Grassy, a station on
the Midland Terminal railroad. The
mail and express wagon, driven by
Messenger Robert Smith, was en-
route from Grassy to Cripple Creek
with the mails and express matter
received at Grassy on the morning
train from Denver and Colorado
Springs. Two men sitting beside
the road asked Smith for a ride.
He drew up his team, and one of the
men climbed up to the seat behind
him, while the other mounted the
baggage behind. AS soon as Smith
started to drive on, the man be-
hind struck him on the head sew
eral times with a revolver.
THE BLOW STAGGERED HIM,
but did not stun him. The man on
the seat with him also drew a re-
volver, and, leveling it at him, COM
manded him to get down, walk to the
heads of the horses and hold them.
He complied, and while covered with
their guns, they ripped open and
rif1ed the mail and express pouches
After securing $4,000, which was
being shipped to the Cripple Creek
national banks, and several other
valuable packages, they unhitched
the two leading horses, mounted
them and rode off rapidly into the
mountains. Smith,, who, was very
weak and bleeding profusely, drove
into the. city as quickly as possible.
When he drew up in front of the
Fargo express office he tainted and
fell from the seat. Smith was soon
revived, and related what had be-
fallen him. Within twenty minutes
from the time the robbery was COM
mitted, Deputy Sheriffs Sterling and
Jackson and 200 men started to
scour the hills in search of the rob-
berS, who have so small a start that
it is not believed they can escape. A
message has been sent to Canon City
for bloodhound, which will be put
on the trail of the robbers if they are
not captured before it arrives.
THE $4,000 PACKAGE
secured by the robbers was con-
signment from Denver by the Wells
Fargo express. 1t has not yet been
ascertained by whom it was shipped,
but it is believed to have been for
warded from the First National
Bank of Denver to the First National
bank of this city. Another package
of $3.50 is also missing. 1t is be-
ieVed the robbers came from Den
yer, and knew that the large money
package was on the wagon. The
two men who robbed the Wells
Fargo express were traced to the
Divide road north of the town, near
RhyOlite mountain. After robbing
the express they crossed over Cow
mountain, and near Gillette they
discarded the horses which they had
taken, and took a light buggy and
horse which they had secreted in the
timber, and drove away, after turn
ing the stolen horses loose and start
ing them on the road toward Grip
pie Creek. The men left the regu-
larly Cripple Creek and Divide road
about six miles north of town, and
headed toward Alhambra. AS soon
as their course was determined word
was sent to this place, and a posse
of fifty heavily armed men cut
across the country on horseback to-
ward High Park, where they hoped
to
INTERCEPT THE ROBBERS.
as it was believed here that thew
are heading for either AIhambra or
the Arkansas valley. Over 500 men
from this place were soon securing
the country, among the volunteers
being men who know every inch of
the ground for miles around. This
was pay day at the mines, and the
stolen $4,000 money package was a
consignment to the BimetaIlic bank
Of this city to be used in paving.
the miners. Driver Robert Smith
has three bad scalp wounds, and is
very weak from loss of blood. He
was not able to give a good descrip-
ton Of the robbers, but they were
seen alongside the road shortly be-
fore the robbery by Ed Hull. of the
Grand Transfer, who described
them as follows: One was about :
feet inches tall, weighed about liz
pounds, and wore a dark derby hat
and dark brown overcoat. He had
a dark moustache. The other was
about 3 feet 6 inches tall, weighed
about 145 pounds, with brown nous
tache; wore blue oyeralls and white
soft hat.
DENVER, Col, April 11-sunt
Stubbs, Of the Wells-Fargo Express
company, went to Cripple Creek TO-
night. He said he did not know how
much money there was in the treas
ure boxes, but thought the gum re-
ported to be stolen was exapger-
ated.