Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1896-04-22
RAILROADPIRATES
The Gentle Art of Holding Up
Trains Exemplifed.
SLICK job BIZ MISSOURI BANDITS.

Three Men Stop Train, Rob an Express
Car and Steal the Engine-On the Same
Night Five Indiana Outlaws Como to
Grief
Train robberies, like misfortunes and
kittens, seldom come singly.
There seems to DO some mysterious
psychic force that moves men to specific
forms OF crime at certain periods, and so
we have epidemics Of robbery, seasons of
suicide and waves of murder and larceny.
1t is some months now since we havo
had an epidemic of train robbery, and as
many Of the most eminent artists in that
limo are behind the bars trainmen have
been lulled 90 fancied security. That an
other outbreak of these modern Dick Tur-
pins Is at hand, however, is indicated by
the fact that two hold ups were reported in
one day early in this month. One Of these
exploits was performed in Missouri and
the other in Indiana. In one the bandits
were successful and in the other they
failed igrominiOusly.
The 81. Louis limited express on the
Frisco road was proceeding noisily on
its journey from Galveston TO the Missouri
metropolis and had just passed Lebanon.
clear In the crisp night air, and the old on
eine was pulling along at n tremendous
| rate. Conductor Meyers was passing
through the train to catch the passengers
who got on nj Lebanon. In the front seat
OF tho smoker Meyers noticed n boyish
looking chap. He handed over n ticket to
II. Louis. The conductor punched it and
then stepped out on to the forward plat
form.
As he did so he saw two men standing
on the blind baggage OF the express car.
They were masked with black cloths. In
i their hands they held revolvcrs, and as
| they drew them down ON the conductor
one of them cried out:
Throw up your hands?'
Meyers did so.
Then, with volley from their guns,
/! ono Of the men pulled tho bell cord. The
engine began TO slow up. Get back in
your car and stay there" commanded the
robbers TO Meyers.
He obcyctl. AS he passed the young
| man who had been sitting on the front
| seat Of tho smoker stood up and put his
| hand in his pocket. He then stepped out
on the platform, and Meyers then could
sec that he had drawn gun and was COW
erins his face with white handkerchief.
by this time tho train had come to n
standstill, and tho two robbers who had
pulled the bell cord sprang down to the
ground. The third man jumped of on
tho other side, and. running forward,
clambcrcd up on 10 the tender Of the en-
| ginc. Neither Engineer Price nor his fire.
man knew what was the matter, but in a
minute they understood full well when
they saw the masked face and cleaning
gun of tho robber appearing over the ten
der. lie had them both covered, and they
were helpless.
While this robber had the engineer and
fireman covered tho other two had run
hastily up on to the ombankment on the
side of the train.
The stop had been made in n deep cut,
| from the sides of which one could see into
| tho cars. From this point Of vantage they
could sec Messenger Mccoy in his express
| car. When he heard tho shooting. he had
been standing i'm the rear end. He knew
instantly what the matter was, and he
| reached for the lights above him to extin-
guish them.
Having put these out. he ran forward to
| cxtinguish the other lights but the perfect
plans Of tho bandits foilcd him. As he
passed tho window he heard the harsh
commands of the men outside to halt or
| die, and he halted. They had him then
] covered from the embankment.
Everything was now ut the mercy of the
/! robbers. The engineer and fireman wcrc
| forced from the cab by their captor, and
|! they sat on the bank under guard.
l We'll show you how to rob n train!"
he remarked.
Mccoy, under pain Of death, was forced
to unlock the door of the express car for
his captors, and the rest was easy. The
messenger was marched out to where the
| engineer and fireman were and put in
| charge of that bandit. Then the other
| two fellows went after the booty.
Thcy'werc well supplied with dynamite
| and knew how to use it. Twice they placed
cartridges on top OF the iron safe and
| touched them off with fuses. The terrific