The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-08-15
IN HOTEL CORRIDORS.

ton or King Humbert and the recent
trouble in Chicago" said a gentleman
at the Copeland, and it recalls to my
mind an association that was organized
in Trinidad, Colo, about six years ago
which was called the Iron Brotherhood.
If there ever was an anarchiStic broth
erhood formed that aggregation in
Trinidad certainly was one, and the
strange part of it is that many men
who live there now admit that they
We're members. The object of the
brotherhood was to capture the govern
ment and run it as it should be run
They claimed, or rather it was street
talk, that thew had lodges all over the
United states and that there was TO De
a general uprising on a certain day. No
one knew who the members were, but 1t
was understood that they numbered 300
in the Trinidad lodge and that they
were armed and trained in the manual
of arms. The plan of the brotherhood
was to capture the railroads running
through the town, take all the banks
and blow up the Santa Fe tunnel south
of Trinidad They carried over a
thousand pounds of powder and dyna-
mite to the mountains near the tunnel
and hid ii and it still remains there
These are facts that have come out
since the Iron Brotherhood disbanded.
At that time they were known only as
rumors, but were given a deal OF Gre
dence because some people had received
written notices from the order such as
warnings and the like. I was working
there in a hardware store at that time
and the number of guns we sold would
astoniSh you. / remember that an Ital-
ian named Jello, who was leader OF
the Italian colony, came into the store
and showed a notice he had received
from the brotherhood which instructed
him to inform all Italians that they
must leave the country within sixty
days He ordered several cases of
Remington rifles and a great quantity
of ammunition. Every man in town
had become excited over the rumoTs
were armed. Word was finally passed
around that the uprising was to occur
on a certain night and everyone pre-
pared for it, We had three men IN the
store besides the regular Waterman and
waited patiently for the attack which
never came. All night long men could
be seen on the streets carrying guns
but nothing happened and we were
mighty glad of it. We learned after
ward that they had been notified by the
grand master that the date was post
poned. After that the members began
to drop out and the society died. 1t was
never learned who started the order,
but there was an anarchist in Pueblo
who was supposed to be at the head or
ii, as he would visit the town and bring
orders from the higher lodge. doupt
if there was any higher lodge than the
anarchist himself, and I cannot under
stand how he so completely duped the
men who Joined the order in Trinidad
Now that it is all over they talk ana
laugh ABOUT II, Out D6ileNe lAC PCOpACs
of that town never had a narrower
escape from a terrible tragedy. suppose
that crazy anarchist had told them TO
go ahead with their work! L tremple
to think of the result. One young man
whom l knew quite we'll told me not
long ago that he had been q member
He said that he Joined just for run, puL
that after he got in he found most OF
the men were terribly in earnest and he
was afraid to give anything away. They
were under an iron-clad oath not 10
diVulge any of the secrets and VIOLA
ton of the oath was punlshapie py
DEATH Anarchistic literature was FUR
Dished the members and speeches OF the
same nature were made every night.
The members were so wrought up that
they were in condition TO 90 AlInose
any deed of violence and consider
that it was an interpositiOn of ProVl-
dence that trouble was not started.
Express messengers do not run the
risk that they did in the days OF the
pony express" said a former employe OF
an express company who was chatting
with some friends at the Fifth Avenue,
but their vocation is far from being
safe and pleasant one. Besides running
the risk that all railroad men do OF pc
ing killed by accidents such as wrecks
and the like they run the additional 11Sk
of being killed by robbers. During my
service with the company l was held up
several times, but was fortunate enough
to get out each time without being shot.
The most interesting robbery that L
went through was out in Arizona when
was running on the Southern Pacific
for the Wells Fargo company me run
was from Los Angeles, Cal, to FL Paso,
Tex, and return. The hold up occurred
about ten years ago. We were on train
Is which left Ell Paso west bound, at
about noon, and had on board a lot of
Mexican money which was shipped from
Mexico City and was to be delivered
down the GuaymaS branch Wherelt was
-, n lore
who We're stationed in Sonora and ST.
nola 1t was mostly in dobe dollars
which We're in sacks, but there was lot
of gold which we put in the safe. The
train pulled into StienS Pass, which is
on the line between Arizona and New
Mexico, on time and began the run down
grade on the other side We mad gone
only few miles when noticed that the
train was stacking speed and in short
time came to a stop. 1t soon started
again and after running few more
miles, again came to stop. l was con-
fdent we were in the hands or robbers so
did not go to the door but got every
thing in readiness for fight. The rob-
hers forced the engine crew to come to
my door and break it in and in short
time had them and myself corralled out
in the sage brush while an ugly greaser
stood guard. AT the first stop they had
cut the train, leaving the passenger cars
and all of the train crew, except the en-
CINE men with them. They did not care
for the silver dollars, what they were
after was the gold that was in the safe.
but they were unable to open that. Fin
ally they carried the safe out of the car,
put a lot of dynamite under it and piled
the sacks of dobe' dollars on top. I sup
pose they expected the silver to keep the
safe from being blow all over the coun-
try. When they touched the dynamite
off there was terrible explosion and the
air was filled with Mexican dollars, but
the safe was not injured The side of the
express car was bristling with silver dol
lars which had been shot into it by the
force of the explosion. The robbers made
another attempt, which exhausted all
their supply of dynamite, and then left
in disgust We at once backed the pas
senger cars, coupled them on and re-
turned to the scene of the robbery where
we picked up all the money We could
find, loaded the safe and went ahead. At