The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1901-04-26
EXPRESS TRAIN ROBBED.
HELD Up AND THE SAFES LOOTED BY
SIX MASKED MEN.
THROUGH SAFE BLOWN OPEN
Express Messenger Required to Open
h local Safe-The Men Take Their
Contents and Escape-Three Thou
sand Dollars Secured-The Train
stopped, Cut In Two and the Engf-
neer Forced to 90 Forward with the
verely Beaten-Train Porter Shot.

Little Rock, Ark, April 23.-It is
stated that over SO, 900 was secured in
the hold up of the Choctaw, Oklahoma
and Gulf passenger train last night at.
II o'clock near Iron Mountain crossing.
four and a half miles west of Memphis.
The train reached little Rock half an
hour late at 6 o'clock this morning.
Sidney Drew, the negro porter who.
was shot by the bandits, was taken TO
st. Vincent's hospital, where his wound
was dressed. His condition is serious.
ger. was badly beaten over the head
and shoulders with a pistol, but was
able to continue his run. The passen-
gers were not molested.
Six masked men boarded the train
(Which left Memphis at 11:40 o'clock
last night when it made the usual stop
at Bridge Junction. Ark, after crossing
the Mississippi river bridge. They es-
capped observation.
When a point half a mile west of
Iron crossing had been reach
ed, Messenger Meader started to pass
from the first car to the second where
the express safes were, a. he had fin
ished arranging the baggage. AS he
opened the door he was confronted by
four men in whose hands were two re-
volvers and w o guns. One of the
gang grappled with Meader and secur-
ed the pistol he carried in his belt
around his waist.
About this time the train began to
slow up and soon came to a full stop.
Then the shooting began. The two
men who had boarded the rear of the
second car captured Sidney Drew, the
train porter and made him uncouple the
cars. Under orders from two of the
men who a mounted the cab, Engi-
neer johnson pulled the two baggage
and express cars about half a mile
away from the balance of the train to
a point in the midst of a dense cane
brake nj ten or fifteen miles from any
h~abitation.
When the engine stopped, George
Ward, a boy who had been riding on
the blind baggage car, sprang off and
started into the woods. A shot from
one of the robbers brought him back
to the train.
open the local safe or we will kill
you," shouted the leader of the gang
to the messenger. The messenger
obeyed and one of the men placed the
contents of the local safe in a sack.
Now you and the kid get into the
car ahead" was the mex order. Mead
er did not seem to move fast enough
to suit the bandit who had him in
charge and he fell upon Meader with
the butt of a revolver with which the
express messenger was severely beat
en- over the head and back. The boy,
frightened almost out of his senses,
covered in a corne of the car and was
not attacked.
Meanwhile. four of the gang were at
work on through safe, in the second
car. About a pint of nitro glycerine
was poured into the edges of the safe.
When everything was ready a fuse was
lighted and all left the car
A terrible explosion followed. The
door Of the safe was blown off and
hurled through the side of the car,
striking a tree twenty yards away.
The robbers then re-entered the car
and it was the work of a few moments
to transfer the contents of the safe to
the sack. Everything was taken. The
robbers then jumped off and with a few
parting shots disappeared into the
cane brake.
Engineer Johnson ran back to the
rest of the train and as soon as the
coupling was made, pulled away for
Edmonson, the nearest telegraph sta
ton, twelve miles distant. Here the
affair was reported to Superintendent
Harris, who Immediately secured a
pack of ~bloodhounds and hurried to
the scene.
Messenger Meader says: Il was
made to open the local safe with my
keys. I was then ordered into the car
ahead and heard them blow open the
safe. They beat me with their pis-I
tolls just for meanness, for 1 did all
th6Y told me to do without protest.
They had the drop and I did not care
to get shot. I saw six of the men and
all were masked. They appeared to be
young men. All were excited, but the
one who seemed to be the leader"