The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1901-08-08
A BIG HAUL OF GOLD
Over Half a Ton of Bullion
Stolen From a Smelter.
THE PLUNDER VALUED AT S2SO,OOO.
Thieves Dug Tunnel From the
shore of San Francisco Bay and
Entered vaults From Beneath
the Floor-No CIew.

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. THE Sci.
by Smelling and Lead works at Vallejo
has been robbed of S2S0,000 in gold bul
lion. The thieves tunneled from the bay
and carried off the plumber in boats.
The facts of the robbery were discov-
cred by the finding of IL bar of bullion
dropped by the thieves on their way tc
the water. The whole route which they
took had been marked by red pepper
that had evidently been dropped with
the intention to prevent the tracing of
their course by dogs. The robbery had
evidently been long planned, and con-
siderable time had been occupied in its
execution.
The thieves obtained access to the
vault where the bullion was stored by
tunneling from railroad tunnel through
about $50 feet of clay. Arrived at their
destination, they proceeded with their
work without interruption, for, although
the works were in full blast and the
plant was lighted by electricity, the vault
lay in darkness and had been approached
from below and out of sight.
Many men must have been engaged
in the transportation of the plunder to
the boats. as the bullion stolen weighed
about half ton in the aggregate. All
was in gold bars and numbered. some of
it being OF incness requisite for ship
ment to the mint in this city. The loss
falls on the Selby Smelling works and is
the first of the kind in its long history.
The police at all the bay cities were i'm
mediately notified of the crime, but all
they could discover was a few of the
tools that the robbers had used.
The Selby Smelling and Lead company
is the largest concern of its kind on the
Pacific coast. Ores are sent from all over
the western country TO be smelted and
refined, and the gold is then turned over
to the mint, A steamer makes special
trips between the smelter and San Fran
CISCO carrying the ores one day and
bringing back the refined gold. Ncster-
day morning when the workmen entered
the vault to prepare the gold for loading
on the steamer the robbery was discover
ed. The thieves had taken the precau-
ton of fastening the door of the vault
from the inside so that it would be diff
cult to open from the outside in case they
were interrupted in their work.
Preparatory engineering extending oyei
several weeks probably was done before
the robbery could be accomplished. Close
to the wall of the building in which the
vault is located shaft was sunk below
the foundation. Then tunnel was run
to the vault and holes We're bored in the
iron floor until an aperture sufficiently
large to admit man was made. 1t was
then easy work to pass the treasure down
into the tunnel and load it into a boat.
There were four fine gold bricks in the
vault which the robbers looted. Each was
10 inches long, > inches wide and 1 inches
in height. They were all stamped with
number, weight and fneness. All the
bricks were .99S fine and worth $1,000
per ounce.
In addition to this there was stolen from
the bullion vault crude gold in all shapes
and sizes and some of it in bars of differ
ent lengths.