Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1897-06-18

the Plans Not Mscarried, Fright
full Loss OF Life Would Probably
Have Resulted.
st. Louis, Mo-, June he. P. Gar
ner. car accountant of the Wabash rail-
way, with offices in East st. Louis,
brought to this city to-day details of the
attempt to wreck and rob Baltimore
and Ohio Southwestern passenger train
on culvert between Odin and Salem,
Ills, about sixty-fve mics east of st.
Louis.
Mr.. Garner is brother of A. c. Gar
ner. ex-city marshal of Salem, who was
Sheriff Barnes lieutenant in thwarting
the wreckers' plans.
Mr.. Garner said there were three men
involved in the attempted wrecking and
that two of them were caught, one be-
ing fatally shot. The would-be robbers
are residents of Salem and were known
about the village as hard characters.
Abe Tweed, the robber who was shot,
was out on parole from Chester, Ills.
Thomas Schumacher, the other man
captured, is an ex-convict from the In
diana penitentiary on his own confes-
sion.
These two men, the one who escaped
and a fourth banded together not long
ago TO do a general business in the
'riminal line. After they had planned
to hold up the New York express on
the Baltimore e Ohio Southwestern
the men had a difference and the plans
were broken up in a row. One of them
told Sheriff Barnes upon the Sheriff's
promise to protect him and not divulge
his name, of the plan to wreck and loot
the train, but he said he did not know
the date and place selected. He prom
ised to find out and report these par
ticulars and he kept his word. Re-
turning to his former pals he said he
was sorry he had left them and begged
to be let In on the fat thing they were
about TO pull off. The rogues relented,
took back the deserter and then pro-
ceeded to lay bare the plot. The night
New York express, they said, was the
train likely to yield the best haul, and
the Shennafelt culvert, midway be-
tween Odin and Salem, was picked out
as the best and safest spot All day
Wednesday the three men hauled rail-
way ties to the trestle. About 4
O'Clock in the afternoon the man who
"peached" and who by some preteXt
was excused from the days work, re-
ported the situation to Sheriff Barnes.
The Sheriff collected a posse of six
men and started from Salem along the
track. About 1920 when they came
near Shennafelt culvert the three rob-
bers could be seen and almost in the
middle of the trestle was a high pile
Of ties. thrown across the express
trains track. The wreckers were
gathered together on a side of the en-
Jump aboard the cars as soon as the
bankment in convenient position TO
train came to standstill
Sheriff Barnes and his posse got with
in thirty yards of the wreckers before
they were discovered. When they saw
they were caught the wreckers ran
down the side of the embankment.
The express train was due in about
twenty minutes. Sending back two of
his men to flag the train, the sheriff,
Mr.. Garner and two others went after
the fugitives.
Halt" called out Mr.. Barnes. and
one of the wreckers, who turned out
to be Crumbacker, surrendered. The
other two continued to run, and Gar
ner fired. A man who proved to be
Tweed fell. and Garner sent two more
bullets after his fleeing partner.
Neither shot took effect, and the man
escaped.
The prisoners were taken to the Sa-
lem Jail and locked up. Tweed can
not live. Both robbers admitted that
thev intended to rob the train, but de-
MED that they wished to derail the en-
gine or to touch any of the money in
the express car. They said they had
designs only on the occupants of the
six or seven sleeping cars and placed
the ties on the tracks only to force
the engineer ia come to stop. Then
thev were to board the sleepers, lock the
conductors and porters in the toilet
rooms and hold up the passengers. 1t
is said that the train which left st.
Louis Wednesday evening carried
more than 100000 in the express car.
HARRY WRIGHT'S MONUMENT.
Philadelphia Pa, June 1.-THE mon
rment erected in West Laurel Hill Gem