The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-09-28

Although up to a late hour yesterday
no definite news had been received in
st. Paul regarding the men who held
up the Northern Pacific train, the of
ficials of that road have little doubt
that the miscreants will turn up sooner
or later when they will be dealt with
with the severity which goes with cases
of tampering with Uncle Sans mail car
Claim Agent John Newton went to the
scene of the hold-up Sunday afternoon,
and Detective ". J. McFetridge, who
was out on the line, Immediately re-
paired to Moorhead to join his super
Tor. 1t was announced at the general
offices of the company yesterday after
noon that a reward of $500 had been
offered for the capture and evidence
which would convict the men who held
up the train. Inquiry brought out the
fact that even allowing that the rob
bers had been able to blow open the
safe in the express car, the sum of
money they would have secured would
have been comparatively small, for
the reason that it was Saturday, and
on that day nothing but the usual
amount of commercial money was BE-
ing shipped and not the large sums
which have been going out at other
times for the shipments of wheat
which are coming to market 1t WAS
learned that a number of suspects had
been taken into custody by the gov
eminent. officials, and that it would
probably not be long before the bot
tom of the affair would be ferrete;f
out.
Patrick Corcoran, the conductor on
the train at the time of the attack by
robbers, lives at 80 South Franklin
street, st. Paul He returned to the
city last evening. According to his
Story the robbers made blunder
which prevented their securing much
booty Said he:
They only got $50. This was taken from
the four train men and the three mail clerks.
The engineer saved $40 by taking it out of
his pocket and dropping it in the grass be-
fore he was searched, and l saved my watch
by letting it drop down my trousers leg.
The robbers cut OFF the baggage and mail
cars, but left the express car attached to the
train. They evidently thought they were
leaving the baggage car in place of the eX-
press car. We were about two miles west of
Glyndon when the train began to slow down
In minute CT two the train stopped sud
denly. Brakeman Hall and jumped off and
mail car had been cut off and were standing
half a car length ahead of the train. Cutting
off the mail car, of course turned the air
brakes On the rest of the train.
Il didn't know how it had happened but
l told Hall to get upon the end of the train
and pull the brake lever into place and turn
then two men showed four revolvers in front
of us. One about five feet eight
ard the other somewhat shorter: l guessed
that-the taller man WIS about thirty and the I
older of the two. Get up on that engine,
he said, rather grufhy. We got up. The en-
gineer was there-T Hooker-and the fire.
man.
1.-TWO men covered US with revoivers. An
other masked man went back and got the
mail car. The engineer asked of the
robbers who was the tender where he
@ A mile west of Dillworth, was the reply.
We started up, but we had hardly gone
worth when 1 heard a shot. 1t may have been
fired by a robber on the mail car, but l
think it was from some one stationed along
the track
1.-THE robber on the tender ordered the en-
gneer to stop and we stopped. The mail clerks
evidently did not know what was going on
I'D to this time. One of them opened the
door of the car and asked what was the mat
ter One of the robbers covered the mail
clerks with a revolver and at his command
they got out Of their car. The engineer, the
fireman the brakeman, the three mail clerks
and myself were told to go about fifteen feet
from the track in the grass and sit down
This did.
lone of the desperadoes walked back to
the mail car. heard him yell out: Where
in h is the express carp You see, they had
intended to cut off the express car. To do that
they should have taken two cars more. These
trains are made up-engine, mail car, baggage
car, express car.
Zone of the robbers got into the mail car
and we heard him running through the mail.
He was there about twenty minutes. Did
you get anything Jack?' we heard the chief
ask No not thing the assistant answered,
and jumped down. The mail clerks said after
wards that the registered letters were In
pouches and were not touched.
after that the chief of the gang made
us stand up and went through our pockets. /
He got about $24 from me. He got a few
dollars from the others. A mail clerk had
SIS in his coat in the car that was not found.
After going through our pockets, the
chief ordered US all to get into the mail
ear, saying he would give US a free ride.
began to feel a little nervous, as l thought
they would turn the engine loose wild. But
perhaps the robbers never tried to start the
engine. Perhaps they merely said that to
keep US housed until they could get away.
At any rate, the engineer had stopped the
engine 'on the CENTER so that turning the