St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1895-11-20
BOLD, BUT GREEN.
GREAT NORTHERN BANDITS
APPARENTLY AMATEURS AT
HOLDING UP.
CUNNING AT PASSENGERS.
WHENEVER A HEAD APPEARED
THERE WAS A CRACK OF A
RIFLE.
BREsNEN TRIED ONE SHOT.
Some Arrests of Suspects. but Nc
Proof That They Were Im-
plicated.

Special to the Globe.
ST. CLOUD, Mimi, Nov. 19.-Tht
Great Northern trainmen who were
in last nights hold-up told the story
Of the attempted robbery to the
G o b e correspondent. Among these
was William Carley the first man to
encounter the robbers:
I'VE had got away from Clear Lake
but short distance" he said, when,
upon going back to get a shovelful
of coal l found myself looking down
the barrel of gun. Right in the
pit crOuched a masked man, and he
called out, Stop here, stop here, two
or three times. You needn't stop to
talk, I've got her loaded with double
slug of buckshot.' We didn't argue
the question; the engineer shut her
off, and we came to a stop
Il looked out of the cab window"
said Engineer Maloney, taking up the
narrative at this point, 'and fellow
was pointing a rife at my head. They
commanded US to get off and un-
couple the first express and baggage
car This was the express and bag
gage for Winnipeg; the other goes
through. We did so, and in the mean
time they kept firing on the sides Of
the train, and every time some one
would stick their head out of the
train they would shoot. The fireman
uncoupled the first car, and they
made us get on again and run up the
track aways. Then they told US to
command the eXpreSsman to open up.
He did so, and they covered him with
a gun, and one got inside"
Il knew there was no use resisting,
said Expressman William Wood.
You see 1 had heard all this talking
when they stopped and uncoupled
the car, and 1 knew that the train
was being held up. threw away the
key to the safe and hid my money
and watch The big safe was locked
now, and this held all the money
They wanted to know where the
money was kept. / told them that it
was all in the big safe, and that
didn't have the combination; that 1T
was opened at Fargo. One of them
pulled the small local safe into the
middle of the floor. told them could
open that, but there wasn't any mon
ey in it. One of them said: Never
mind; get out of the car ! think
there must have been four robbers;
the engineer says there were five;
but when this was going on there was
one outside the open door, and L
could distinctly hear two talking on
the other side of the car.
SCARED BY THE FREIGHT.
'Then they tore up some packages,
but they didn't seem to find what they
wanted In the meantime 1 was get
ting cold standing there in my shirt
sleeves, and I asked the man inside
the car if he would let me have my
coat. He was very oblging, and
threw it out About this time
Northern Pacific freight rushed past.
This seemed to trouble them little,
for they held a consultation, and then
told me to get into the car, and the
engineer was told to run as fast as
he could until he got halfway be-
tween the reformatory and East st.
Cloud. There he was to stop. He ala
so. The robbers jumped from the
car, disappeared in the darkness, and
we came on to st. Cloud to notify the
office here of what had happened.
All the passengers are unanimous
in their praise of the GOODNESS ana
bravery exhibited by the nervy little
conductor, c. H. Graceson.
MY first impression when the
train was stopped said Conductor
Graceson, was that a freight tram
had broke in two ahead of us. L
ran ahead and got out of the car,
when 1 heard somebody sing out:
Get back there, you - - - or IL
fill you full of holes About that
time there was shot on the other
side of the train and l knew the
train was being held up. l ran back
through the car and told the pas
sengers and tried to get revolver.
Finally, way back in one of the
sleepers. l found a man who would
let me have one. 1 knew Detective
w. S. Bresnen was on board, and L
got him, and we started up towards
the head end. Bresnen went out TO
one side and 1 sneaked along the
coaches
NO MATCH FOR THREE.
when 1 got up alongside the mail
car 1 could see three men standing
ahead of me. l concluded l was no
match for three, and went back.
Then 1 heard Bresnen fire, and one
of the robbers said: If that's what
you want I'll give you plenty and
he fired several times in the direction
of BreSnen. Just about this time
the express car and the engine lett
us. We then made a circle around
the rear end of the train and start
ed back to Clear Lake, but we had
not gone far when we met an n. Z.
freight. 1 tagged it and the en-
gineer stopped. Bresnen and got
onto the freight. We thought the
robbers might be holding up the
rear end of our train as we'll as the
head end. and 1 told the engineer
to pay no attention if they fiagged
him, but run right ahead, that the
track was clear 1t was some time
before | could make him understand,
but when he did he opened her up
and we flew past our train. sure
enough we got signal to stop, but
it was not the robbers, as 1t turned
out afterwards, but one of the brake
men of No. 8. However, the engineer
did as 1 suggested, and ran ahead
q short distance. Ahead 1 saw the