The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1901-08-08
SECuRE$340,000
THIEVES ROB THE STRoNGROoM
OF THE SELBY SHELTER At
VALLEJO, CAL.
DUG A 400.F00T TUNNEL


Access to the Room Where the Bullion
Was Stored Gained by Excavating
From the Edge Of San Francisco
Bay to the BuiIding-Unusual Pre-
cautions Taken by the Robbers to
Cover Up Their Tracks.
Vallejo, CAL, Aug: 7.-Gold bricks
valued at $4,000 were stolen during
the night from the .Selby smelter
works. The robbers: evidently had
been working on the Job: for two or
three months. They had dug tun-
mel from outside theshYuse, beginning
with a shaft about '1three feet deep.
Thence, they worked underneath the
vault and, striking upwards, bored a
hole IA the stroneroom aoor.4,e The
hole was shaped like the manhole of a
boiler Part of the holes were bored
two months ago. 1t Is thought, and the
last one was completed during the
night. Through that hole they took
the gold bricks and carried them to a
bank, near the mouth of the tunnel.
east of the works. where they were
evidently placed in a boat. In their
hurry they left two Of the bricks on
the bank.
The Selby smelter is the largest on
the Pacific coast. Ores are sent there
from all parts of the Western slope for
reduction. The works are located
near the bay shore, about 30 miles
from San Francisco, and through the
clever device Of tunneling the loose
sand the robbers secured the princely
sum. the loss Of which was not dis
covered until after the works resumed
operation in the morning.
A. ]. Ralston, president of the COM
pany, stated to the Associated Press
that the thieves had excavated tun-
mel between 900 and 400 feet long from
a point near the railway tunnel, under
the strongroom connected with the
works. and had secured bars of bull
ion aggregating in value about $780,
900. and had transported the gold to a
boat in waiting near the company's
wharf. |
4 In their hurry to get away the rob.
bers left one bar on the beach. The
robbers
Took the Unusual Precaution
Of strewing their tracks with red pep
per. presumably to prevent blood.
hounds from taking the trail.
Each bar Of bullion was numbered
and description is now In the hands
Of ;the detectives. II
President Ralston stated that the
robbers cannot dispose OF the bullion
without having it remelted and mixed
with other metals. He Is of the opin-
ion that they buried. the gold or sunk
it in the bay, awaiting a convenient
time for its removal. s
There are but few smelters on this
coast where the gold can be remelted.
President Ralston stated that. he had
absolutely no clue as to the identity OF
the robbers.
At the Selby works the gold is kept
IN steel lined strongroom. The rob
bers tunneled until they got directly
under the room and then cut through
the floor. The tunnel was skillfully
constructed and must have been the
work Of many days. 53. y
Once In the strongroom the thieves
had only to help themselves to all In
sight.
Bullion is sent each day from Sci.
sby's San francisco ONCE to the smelt-
er BY special boat. The boat arrived
at the works as usual during the day
with q consignment Of bullion. and
the strong groom was opened. SO that 1t
could be stored. Then II was that the
smelter ofhcials discovered their loss.
9yi
Karl Becker of Bottineau county fell
in front of . mower and his femoral
artery yvasy severed, resulting Ia death
atter 3ew minutes