Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1901-06-03
BURGLARlZE BANK AT MINERAL
POINT AND GET $4,000.
LEAVE NO cLEWs BEHIND
Marauders Get in Through Roof and
Clean the Institution of All Gold
and Currency but Touch No
Securities -. Reward of $1,000
Offered

or more, $4,000 in gold and the rest
in currency The loss is fully covered
by insurance in the Fidelity and Casu-
atty company of New York.
Entrance was effected through the
shingled roof of the building, which is
one story in height, thence from the
attic to the vault by digging away the
arched brick. From the inside the
vault door was forced open and the
safe therein was blown open with
nitro-glycerine. The roof was reached
by rude ladder, consisting Of an oak
sapling of proper length to reach the
caves This was probably prepared in
the adjacent woods.
Everything indicates that the height
and character of the building and the
location of the vault had been accu-
rately ascertained in advance.
Footprints around the building in
dictate that at least three men were
! implicated in the robbery. Two
strangers were met a number of miles
out of the city, but nothing vouches
for their identity.
The thieves got safely away with
their booty and the robbery was not
/ discovered until Saturday morning
about o'clock, when persons going
inside the bank Since when officers
have been securing the immediate
country and telephone and telegraph
wires are kept busy, but without the
| least clue to the robbers.
Saturday was the monthly pay day
o fthe zinc and acid works companies
here. A large amount of cash is al
ways carried in the bank to be used
in paying off the miners and laborers.
] The robbers probably timed their visit
to a day when they knew the funds
would be large.
/ The building, which was built for
bank many years ago, is a one-story
/ structure, standing near the business
center of the town, with no residences
near it, whose occupants would be dis
! turbed by the robbers or the noise of
the explosion. The thieves got into
the building by cutting hole through
the roof, then dug through the brick
vault in which the safe is located, and
then with charge of dynamite blew
off the safe door. With the door re-
moved the cash was within easy reach.
| A reward of $1,000 has been offered
by the bank for the apprehension of
the robbers, and this will probably be
added to by the insurance company.
No one has been seen about the
town, within the past few days, to
whom suspicion attaches, but about a
month ago two hard-looking strangers
were noticed standing across the
street from the bank, looking the
building over, and it is believed that
they laid their plans for the robbery
then.
There are no night trains out of
Mineral Point and the men evidently
drove across the country from some
adjoining town and then returned to
catch an early train there, possibly for
Milwaukee on the Prairie du Chen di-
| vision of the St. Paul road. They may
have gone to some of the Mississippi
river towns, where they are now in
hiding
John FL. Vivian is president of the
bank and Phillip Allen, Jr, is cashier.
Ex-State Senator G. F. Spensley is a
director. The bank has capital stock
of 100000.
Mineral Point, Wis, May 28.-Henrv
G.. Winter, who is believed by the off
GERS to be the leader of the gang who
robbed the Mineral Point bank of
$4,000 last Friday night, was rested
last night IN the woods about 21h
miles east of this city.
Winter would say nothing of the al
fair further than to declare his inno-
cence. He has been in the city only
two or three months and has had no
means of support. Suspicion was first
directed toward him through the Stats
or rings of the crude ladder used by
the burglars to get to the roof of the
bank building. The rings were strips
of pine which had been used as bind
ers for bundles of shingles, and be-
cause OF some peculiar markings on
them MI. Millard. with whom Winter
boarded, was able to Identify them as
coming from his home where he had
taken some to repair the roof Of his
house. A circumstance which added
much to the suspicious cast upon Win
ter was that he told the Willard family
the day before the robbery that he was
going to be out of town few days.
Winter was arrested last night just |
as he was coming out of a dense wood |
about 27a miles east Of the city. When |
he saw Marshal A. c. Ovitz and his /
posse coming he tried to escape. 1t is
believed that the money is hidden in
this piece Of woods. and a thorough
search will be made for it today. II |
nothing is found an attempt will be
made to wiring confession out of
Winter.
Adverse to DoWie's Bank
Chicago, May 26.-The Commercial