The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1903-02-02


their luck The two OF them were for
throwing up the lo1, but the leader de-
nounce1 them as towards and cutters
ana IL was unally decided to continue
OK 4hey mad brought in with them
some bottled beer and sandwiches. ana
they fell TO and had q. bite and sent IN
the next cali
Ihey did not use the drill again on
the door, but on a closer examinati
l@NAleQ TO blow il open At T. 40 all was
ready While the leader placed the fuse
the other two picked up my chair to
carry me into the presidents room. Al
were 20 remain there until the explosion
was over Just what hapDened 10 bring
about the premature explosion could
never be learned but the proba bilities
are that in his haste the man cut the
Euse too short He was s1iu kneaiiug
Al the door, and the three of Us had cur
backs to it and about eight feet away
p Aen the mine was sprung. The Jar OF
kns Xplosi0l was felt two blocks away.
cannot remember that heard the ex-
Hl9sl9u simply remember Of being
tlIte1 up and hurled forward. The nexr
thing knew 1 was sitting I'D with a
nand over either ear. and the room was
IA q midnight darkness L felt so stupid
and dazed that II was many minutes
before / could place myself The sag
was out of my mouth and the ropes
with which I had been bound To the
cnaiF were hanging loosely on my arms
and legs. When I began to feel around
4 i
was close to the wire gate by which all
employees entered the bank enclosure.
ne door or the vault was almost on
z line with this gate. but sixty feet
away. Between the gate and the vault
were the Compartments of bOOkkeepers
paying teller. receiving teller and dis
count clerk each rallied OF with wood
or wire
You can judge of the strength OF that
9i~SL Fnen tell you THAT everything
ia thar sixty feet was IeveIed. the small
safe blown over and the counters twist
ed Ike a rail fence As soon as I re-
allied the situation I stopped for a
match and lighted a sas Jet though
that II was some time before could
see foot from my nose When the
smoke lifted SO that I could get about
I lighted more gas and then looked for
the burglars
One OF them lay in a heap against
the front door. second under the
counter near where I had picked myself
up and the third I could not find.
though I knew he must be under the
vault door which had been blown of
and lay on the floor. The man at the
front door was stone dead The doc
tors said that his body must have
swept down al the ratings and par
tIEiOnS as he was hurled forward The
man under the counter BEGAN to show
signs OF life as I ovarhanled him. and.
thinking he might prove troublesome
i tied him hand ana foot. You will
wonder that I was not severely hurt
but that was the chances of accident
The chair was completely wrecked but
goS of with three or four painful
bruises
TIE man under the counter had his
nose broken two ribs fractured. and
received a bad scalp wound. but he
rad no sooner recovered consciousness
than he began to struggle and curse
When I told him that both his partners
were dead he was aWed to silence for
Z while Then he began cursiug again.
and 7 stepped over to the police wire
and sent in the signal Help wanted
AZ once' Tt had never been sent in be-
fore. nor lave the words gone over that
wire since In five minutes there were
four bluecoats knocking at the door.
and when I let them in my prisoner
greeted them with jears and curses and
szvare ne would ger even with me if it
f took one hundred years.
The leader. as I told you. was kneeI-
ing at the door when the explosion. oc-
CURED. We found him under it. crush
I'd and burned and bearing little sem
blance to q human being The one who
escaped with his life was sent 10 for
twelve years. and thus the trio were
wiped out
I have an old scrapbook in which IS
pasted various newspaper articles in
s NY praise. but it's not much cousola-
( son TO read them. The bank officials
knew that I must have heen asleep on
duty. and instead Of patting me on the
back and raising my wages they wait
f ed about month ard then gave me tire
grand bounce.-tC Copyright. 1903. by C.
f 3. LHwis.)