The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-11-07

Albuquerque. n. NJ. Nov. 6.-The
boldest and apparently the most sue
cessful hold-up in the history of the
Santa Fe Pacific railroad occurred to-
night at about o'clock near Grants
Station. The regular passenger train
reached Grants about 80 minutes late
and consisted of a mail car, a dead
head baggage car, the regular baggage
car, an express car, q day coach,
chair car and two sleepers. On going
to the water tank at a siding two
miles east of Grants. known as Saints.
the train was taken possession of by
desperadOes, the party being supposed
to consist of four men, as no more
than that were seen. After securing
possession one of the men took pos
session Of the engine and another MEM
Der of the party cut the train in two
just ahead of the day coach, and the
engine and the attached cars We're
taken half a mile further east. At the
point where the express car was cut
off, the messenger was ordered out of
the car and none but the robbers went
on ahead. As soon as the train was cut
Conductor Aldrich walked 10 Grants
Station and sent d message to Sheriff
Hubbell of this county, saying:
Train No , held up at Grants. Rob-
ber5 have taken possession of train and
run out east about a mile and a half.
They were blowing up the safe in the
express car just after I started to walk
back to the station. They had no
horses, but it is likely they had horses
near where they stopped the train"
About the same time a message was
received from Division superintendent
Hubbard, of the Santa Fe Pacific. at
Gallup, saying: our No. held up at
Grants. Can't say result Of the rob-
berry. but express has been blown up
and operator at Grants thinks it is
being burned, as he sees fire in the di-
1ection of the train. Please send posse
to pursue robbers"
In response to these messages train
No. 1, from the east, was taken by
Sheriff Hubbell and Deputy Sheriff
Fred FOrnOff, who are now on their
way to the scene. A later message says
that after the robbers had blown up
the safe in the express car and looted it,
the engine and cars were abandoned
and ran back into the cars left stand
ing on the track. 1t is presumed that
| they only reversed the engine and sent
| it back to complete the wreck and block
/ the track. If such were their inten-
! lions. they We're entirely successful, for
/ the express car, the day coach and
/ chair car were teIescOped. afterwards
| taking fire and being totally destroyed.
! The baggage in the car was all taken
out before the fire reached it. There
| has as yet been no word received that
would indicate any loss of life or
bodily injury, but the question
will be in doubt until some
one arrives from the scene. 1t
viii be several hours before the track
at the point where the fire occurred
/ will be pasSable, but it is thought that
the engine, mail car and two baggage
cars ahead OF the express car and
not reported as injured will come
on to Albuquerque without waiting for
the wreck to be cleared up. No de-
scription of the robbers nor cIew to
their identity has yet been received
here. The Santa Fe Pacific has re-
Gently been sending out hundreds of
laborers, among them being many very
tough characters. A large number of
them were located near Grants, and
one theory advanced is that some of
these men did the work. It is not
known how much the robbers secured,
except they took whatever the Wells
Fargo safe contained. No mention is
mace of any molestation of the pas
sengers 1t is known that none of the
employees of the express company were
injured.
Later a report reaches here that
when Engineer Harry McCarI was or
dered from his engine. Fireman Henry
Abel was taken on ahead by the rob
bers and was killed by the explosion
when they blew UP the safe. No train
will reach here before 3 o'clock