Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1901-01-12

Edward Cudahy and was then to dart
forward and have his brother bandit
In waiting show the signal, or that he
carried the lantern and dismounted
from his wheel at this point with the
lantern which he carried or had Sc
creted in advance, which he Immediate
" lighted and displayed
If this were SO, the robber of neces
sitv either followed Edward Cudahy
from the time nc left his home or was
intimate enough with the Cudahy We
hicles to be able TO recognize the buggy
as it passed him ii his hiding place,
somewhere along the read. The last
proposition is more likely, because at
that time the entire neighborhood
around the Cudahy residence was in a
state OF alarm. and a stranger found
waiting around there. as the robber
must have done If he were looking for
Mr.. Cudahy to start on his trip to the
woods. would have been arrested or
would have excited suspicion. Mr..
Cudahy noted that the lantern was ex-
tiuguished before he had proceeded 90
wards from the spot. This was anoth-
er indication of the boldness of the
robber and Of his utter Indifference to
danger or detection.
Here was where the detectives are
inclined TO think the Omaha police
erred in not making certain the cap
ture OF nj least one of the robbers.
They knew the route Mr.. Cudahy
would take 10 reach the locality de-
| scribed by the letter of the bandits
| The route was over natural bicycle
| course. 1t is a sand boulevard ana
stretches for seven miles west into the
| adjoining county. At intervals OF every
| quarter section along this boulevard
are intersecting dirt roads, which on
| that night were in perfect condition for
bicycling. The detectives of the Pinker-
| ton agency argue that 1t would have
| been the easiest thing imaginable 70
have placed couple of well armed
and nervy policemen in citizens
| clothes just beyond the city limits
| along this route to watch for the ap-
| proach Of the Cudahy buggy. They
! could have let the wagon get hair
| mile ahead of them, or at least far
| enough ahead that ii could just be dis
| cerned by the bicycle scouts. IL one
of the bandits had been following on
a wheel, he could not have been any
farther back than this behind the Gu
daily buggy.
Taking 1t for granted that one OF
the bandits on wheel was behind the
| Cudahy buggy. the detectives would
1 have probably located the thief before
/ he did them. If he took alarm and
| started on run for it, they could
have speeded right after him. Ger
tainly the presence Of a strange man
| In that section on wheel at that time
at night would have been sufficiently
suspicious for the detectives to have
| halted him. The city has number OF
very speedy bicycle men. Ii they had
| been forced to arrest the bandit scout
on his wheel before he had committed
an overt act. they would at least have
been in q position where they could
1 have made the man explain who be
/ was and what he was doing out there
at that hour Had he been 9 known
crook 1t would have been certain evil
dence of his guilt. Had II been an hon.
est man the police had stopped by mis-
take, one officer could have taken him
back to town for identification while
the other continued on after the Cuja-
by buggy
If the bicycle detectives had not been
interrupted. they would have contin-
| ,,al IN Mr. 1udabv,o raar until thnv
saw his vehicle stop and the driver
place the sack of gold near the lantern.
The scouts could have crept up near
enough to watch any one moving
around the light without exciting the
suspicion of robber lying in wait near
that point. The moment the detectives
saw a man around the lantern they
could have recourse to two steps. They
might have followed the retreating
form at a distance. which would have
been easy, since the robbers were car
| rying a hundred pounds of gold, or
they could have rushed In with pistols
ready and either killed or captured
their man. Ii he made a fight he
would have been killed. With his heavy
load he might have been possibly
bounced upon and taken without firing
shot. In that event he would have
been forced to tell where Eddie Gu
daily was or at least held as a hostage
for the boys safe delivery. Better
still, If the scouts remained undiscov-
cred. they could have leisurely follow
ed the retreating thief back to the
prison of the boy and there taken the
| whole outfit or from the darkness kill
| ed them with their pistols.
or course there was the chance Of
| the plan falling and the robbers then
numbering or crippling the boy and
| taking fight. 1t Is the consensus OF
1 opinion that the robbers. discovering
| that the ransom was not obtainable,
| would have fed without hurting the
boy. They could not have taken the
/ boy with them. neither could they have