Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1899-09-13
MADE A LARGE HAUL
Four Masked Men Hold Up an Ex.
press Train.
SAID TO HAVE SECURED $4,000.

One Of the Boldest of All the Famous
Train Robberies In the Western Coun-
try-Wells, Fargo s. Co.'s Strong Box
Blown Open with Dynamite and tho
Contents Taken Away--How the job
Was Accomplished.
Benson, Ariz.. Sept. 1.-FOur
masked men held up Southern Pacific
train No. 10, west bound, at Cachise
station, shortly before midnight, blew
open Wells, Fargo & Co.'s through
money safe with dynamite, took the
treasure it contained and escaped to
the mountains. The robbery was the
boldest of all the famous train rob-
berries Of the west. Not a shot was
fired and no one received the slightest
injury. Cachise station is a lonely
place on the alkali fiat, ten miles west
Of Wilcox, and thirty-two miles east
Of Benson. The station, freight house
and section house form the only relief
to the monotOny Of vast rolling
plain.
Covered the Engineer.
Just as the train stopped at the sta
ton the four masked men appeared.
One mounted the engine cab and COW
cred Engineer Richardson with a re-
volver, while two stood guard at the
side door of the express car. The
fourth guarded the coaches and sleep
ers from a point at the rear of the ex-
press car. When Conductor Parker
approached to within half n cars
length Of the last man he was ordered
to get aboard the train and not to
get off. A big siX-shOoter pointed
straight in his direction admitted OF
no argument. One of the two men
that stood at the door Of the express
car jumped aboard and ordered
.'Hands up" He then told Express
Messenger Adair to leave the car. AS
Adair jumped to the ground the other
hip pocket he found $25.
''That is my private property" said
Adair.
"You may save 1t; we don't want
your money" said the bandit.
Train Is Cut in Two.
The baggageman was also compelled
to get out of his end Of the express
car and James Harrison, agent at
Lordsburg, N. NJ, who lay asleep on a
cot, was given similar orders. The
man at the rear of the car uncoupled
it, and at signal the engineer was
ordered to pull out. While this prelim-
mary work was in progress the opera
tor was also told to stay in the sta
ton. He did so, but improved his
time by wiring a statement to the
train dispatcher at Tucson. The ex-
press car was taken westward a mile
or more, then the through express safe
was thrown out to the ground and
blown open by dynamite. All bills
and gold were taken. Messenger
Adair refused to say how much the
safe contained, but 1t is intimated that
the sum was exceedingly large. One
railroad man expressed the opinion
that the strong box might have con-
tanned close to $4,000.
Leave Silver in the Car.
Several thousand silver dollars in
the car were untouched by the rob-
bers. None of the passengers was
molested. After the contents Of the
safe had been taken care of the I'M
known quartet allowed Engineer Rich
ardson to run back to the train. Then
they disappeared on foot to point
where their horses were tethered and
rode away. The train was detained
more than an hour, and during this
time the Tucson Office had wired Will
cox for assistance. A posse was
hastily secured and left Wilcox on q
special fifteen minutes after the out
laws had released the train. Arriv-
ing upon the scene the trail was i'm
mediately taken up and followed to a
point within a few miles Of Wilcox,
where 1t was lost.