The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1900-03-21


tied by yell. or, rather, whoop, from
Berth about the center Of the car, and
the occupant. wealthy Montana cat
tieInan. sprang out, shouting:
Thieves! Murder! Conductor, I've
been robbed! Where's my gun? Stop
the train!
"Of cOurse the car was In an uproar
In a minute. and ran forward to have
the train conductor help me sublue the
excitement and search for the thief.
con my way to the front OF the train
rorsed the porter, who was doing In
the toilet room, and ordered him to
io>-k the rear car door and then etand
guard ut the forward end. allowing no
one to enter or leave the car until
had returned with the train conductor.
when we CAME back, the lights had
been turned on. and all the passengers
were up dressing--no women were in
the car that trip-each one looking
carefully through his belongings to see
whether anything was missing. Be-
yond the loss reported to me by tho
passenger for Butte and that of the
cattleman. which, he said, was q little
more than S3.70O. oil in paper money,
uOLnlnE was missing.
Although the loss Of the prospective
hotel buyer wag seven times more than
that OF the cattleman, the latter was
the most excited. He declared the
money had been in an envelope which
he had pinned to his undershirt, and
long slit cut In the side Of the outer
shirt showed how the thief had secur-
ed his booty.
1.-The same passengers were in the
car as were there when we left Mime
apolis, and was positive no one had
got on at any Of the stations that night,
as had locked the rear door ut each
stop. and either the porter or myself
bad stood at the front door until the
train had started, when IT, too, was
locked. This precaution I had taken
every night since assuming my posi-
ton as conductor. Every nook and
Granny Of the car was searched for the
missing valuables. but to no purpose.
"After much talk 1t was finally
agreed that the two men who had
been robbed should search the rest of
us so that no suspicion might be fas-
tened On any occupant OF the car.
When The man from Butte had diyest-
ed himself of his clothes, It was no.
ticed that his chest presented curl
GUS appearance. Across the breast was
long. livid scar, resembling a heavy
welt, and the cuticle below it hung in
thick folds to the waist, with here and
there queer, knotty protuberances.
This condition, the man said. had been
caused by an accident, he having been
hot >~1k n(<
revolving shaft in factory where he
worked in his earlier life.
''It is hardly necessary for me to say
that this search was as fruitless in re-
suits as wac the search Of the car. but
it had the effect of easing each ones
mind. No one now looked upon the
other with distrust, except that the
cattle dealer. I noticed, frowned rather
Indignantly upon the porter, which
class Of individuals, rs you well know.
are usually suspected Of being the per-
petrators Of :" sleeping car robberies.
81 took IL names and addresses Of
both men who had suffered losses and
made n full report to the sleeping car
company and the detective agency, aiso
sending messages to the foremen Of all
repair gangs as far east as Minneapolis
to hunt along the track for any wallets
that might have been thrown from the
train by the thief.
despite all efforts to clear up the
robbery. it remained as deep q mys-
terry as had the preceding ones. The
Last hesr., OF the incident vas that
the stockman had entered suit against
both the railroad and sleeping car COM
panies, while N. o. Curlin,- the name
given by the man, who, when I came
to think Of 1t, rather complacently lost
small fortune, had dropped out OF
sight.
'tThe more / thought Of him and Of
his actions the more 1t grew upon me
that the man was crooked and must
have been In some way connected with
: the theft Of the stockman's money and
had really never been robbed himself.
But then, again. ii he was the guilty
party, what could he have done with
the money! Ah, that was the mysteryl
And then and there resolved to go on
the track of Curlin, IL possible, and
have him shadowed.
1.-TWO weeks after this experience ]
received n telegram from the agency
to report at the head Office In Chicago
without delay. Upon my arrival there
was told OF robbery which had oc-
Cured in a sleeper on one of the south
western ronds and was ordered to the
Office Of General Manager Sterling Of
the line at st. Louis.
"In looking over the report made to
that officer relative to the case and
from the description given by one Of
the passengers who had been robbed.
Of another passenger whom the victim
claimed he had seen by the dim lamp
light pecring through the slightly part
ed curtains into his berth, recognized
Curlin.
"The man had been searched; but, us
IN the case when he was my passenger,
there was nothing found on him, and
he was allowed to go, loudly protesting
against the treatment he had received
and vowing he. would secure repnra.
ton through the courts.
81 wrote up as good description OF