The herald., 1896-06-29
WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN
A Possibility if the Bank Robbers Had
Been Caught
The Bank Building Hight Have Been Blown
Up With Giant Powder-A Theory
Of One Of the Officers

OF One OF tne OUiCcT9
Ibid you ever stop minute to think
what might have been the result of that
attempt to rob the First National bank"
asked a veteran officer of Herald re-
porter yesterday.
The reported intimated there might
have been a great many results, among
others the capture of the robbers.
"Yes, that's right; poke fun at the
officers" continued the old man. "The
robbers were not caught. it is true, and
while every precaution was taken, and
the men would have certainly been cap
tured, if they had tried to carry
out the scheme to a successful conclu-
sion, after the tunnel was discovered.
/ sometimes think that it was just aS
we'll that it turned out as 1t did. Sounds
funny, don't it, from the way you laugh,
but if you will stop a minute to reflect
l think that 1 can convince you of the
truth of my remark.
How can 1 do that? Why easy
enough. You are aware of course that
those robbers meant business. They
were not amateurs, but all the indica-
experienced cracksmen. men who would
take any chances to carry out their
plans, and if they had been caught at
their work somebody would have been
hurt. Yes, 1 know that an officer must
take those chances as IA matter of course.
But there are some things which ap-
pear to have been overlooked. l see by
the papers that the robbers had some
thirty odd sticks of giant powder of the
highest explosive power. That is enough
of the stuff to have wrecked the entire
block Now, we will suppose that every
thing went along straight for the gang,
as they supposed, and that while they
were at work on the bottom of the vault,
or even after they had got inside, and
they had been surprised by the officers
WE'LL don't even like to think of what
might have been. Men who dig tunnels
and break into bank vaults are gener-
ally prepared to resist arrest to the
death, if necessary. These men were
we'll armed, for a number of forty-five
calibre cartridges were found in the eel
lar, and there would have been fight.
Suppose that the robbers, seeing that
they had no chance of escape, had ex-
ploded the giant powder. OF course they
would have been killed, as we'll as the
officers who were in the cellar, but this
would not have been al. The building
would have been wrecked, and the people
occupying the rooms in it would have
probably also lost their lives, to say moth
ing of the destruction of property, which
would have been very heavy. You say
that they would not have dared explode
the giant powder, knowing that it meant
instant death. May be they would, and
may be they wouldn't But on the other
hand there would have been fight, and
suppose a stray bullet had struck the
stuff, the result would have been just the
same, and that's no joke, either. AS
said before, am sorry that the robbers
were not captured but l repeat that 1t
may be just as we'll that the whole thing
turned out as it did. And believe most
thinking people will agree with me.
Have got a theory? Well, yes, and
I think it is a reasonable one. I have
read everything on the subject that has
been published. and have been doing
some investigating on my own hook, and
I believe I know what am taking about
To begin with, I believe the robbers
were disappointed in the construction OF
the vault. They evidently expected to
tunnel directly into the vault founda-
tion, but when they got there they found
themselves in an open archway. From
what I can hear believe the robbers
were under the vault for the last time, AT
least, Saturday night two weeks ago
At that time they made an investigation
and removed the bricks from the arch
way. They had a torch, for the ceiling
from which the bricks were removed Is
smoked, and besides man who sleep:
in the bank heard an unusual sound or
that night, and went down into the eel.
lar to investigate. He looked all around
the foundation. but did not go into the
archway. At that time he thought h,
smelled peculiar smoke. This
now believe to have been The
smoke Of the torch This Is thu
last time the men were at the vault
in my opinion. 1 think that as result
of their investigation they decided mo-
to go any further at that time, as it wa!
too hazardous, for the reason that any
explosion would be heard. think tina
they got everything in readiness
stopped up the mouth of the tunnel, ant
concluded to wait until the Fourth o
July, when people would be exploding
bombs and firecrackers, and then maxi
the attempt, when the explosion woult
not be noticed. If necessary, one or tw'
of the confederates could have stoot
outside and exploded bombs in tn
street while the work was going on. Yo
say that sounds like fairy story. Well
may be it does to a newspaper detec
| tive, but it seems reasonable to me, an
1 believe that the theory Is the righ
| one. Yes, Jones left the Sunday follow
| ing, but he took the keys to the front doc
| of the saloon and also to the closet wher
| the mouth of the tunnel is located. an
| there would have been no trouble in af
| fecting an entrance, especially as 1t
| hardly probable that the place woul
| have been rented in the meantime. YO
| say it makes a good story. Yes, and
believe that is the true one of the al
tempted robbery. So long"
The most efiicacious stimulant to excit
the appetite is Angostura Bittsrs. the gent