Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1903-12-03

ldllcI INSTABILITY Sent u DulleI l1TuuSn
the brakeman's brain, laying him dead
in the snow. Springing past Sovea's
body, the bandits mounted the locomo-
tive with revolvers in hand, and or
dered the engineer to move out in a
hurry, which he did, going in the d.
rection of Liverpool, Ind. After two
miles had been covered, the men or
dered the engineer to slow up, and,
leaping to the ground, disappeared in
the woods.
Fifty Officers Armed with Rifles.
After the train had carried Van Dine
and Neidermeier away, Detective
Sheehan hurried to the nearest tele-
graph station and wired to Chief of
Police O'Neill asking that men be
sent out with rifles. The message met
with a prompt response, and in a short
time Assistant Chief of Police Schuet-
tier and so officers armed with rifles
were on the way to Millers. The Of
ncials of the Pennsylvania road rose
to the emergency. Capt. Briggs, of the
detective service of that road, was
given a special train as soon as the
news of the murder of Brakeman So
yea was known, and, with orders to
take no chances, spare no expenses
and get the three men, dead or alive,
he and his men were off toward Liver
pool. The entire system of the Penn
sylvania road was placed temporarily
under orders Of Capt. Briggs.
Van Dine wounded.
The news of the fight at the dug,
out had spread with great rapidity
throughout the country, and by the
time the two painting men rushed up
to the locomotive, a hundred farmers
and railroad laborers were after the
men. These were left behind with the
Chicago detectives, although one farm
er armed with a shotgun got in his
work as the train started away. Catch
ing sight of Van Dine as he poked his
face through the cab window, he
turned loose with both barrels. A
number of shots struck Van Dine in
the head and face, and one hit him
in the throat, causing him trouble.
When they left the train both men
were nearly dead and unabel to travel.
The country at that place is rough,
sandy and cut up by gravel pits. 1t
is ground over which to travel would
oon exhaust a vigorous man, and the
two desperadoes made slow progress.
Surrender or Death.
Tho forrnorc roi1rooI lohororc o,,I 1f
fcers of the Pennsylvania road were
coming up last, and soon were close
on the fugitives' heels. 1t was easy
to track them in the new-fallcn snow,
and the hunt was speedily closed. The
men were seen as they lodged about
in the sand dunes, and the farmers,
most of whom were armed with dou-
ble-barreled shotguns, opened fire on
them. Neidermeier received a charge
full in the head, and the blood stream
ed down mis- face and into his eyes,
binding him so that he could hardly
rise. A shot grazed Van Dimes head,
carrying off some of his hair, and his
wounded. leg was weakened. The
posse was closing in on all sides.
There was no escape, and 1t was evil
dent to both men that the time had
come either to surrender or to fight
to the death.
Bandits Give Up the Fight.
Both men were heavily armed and
able to take more lives before both
lost their own; but as Van Dine said
Friday night, in discussing his sur
render: "There would have been no
good in that, as we never shoot any
body unless we have to, and killing
any of these fellows would not have
let MI off. me jig was up for us, no
matter how many we killed. | said
to lin: We'll, what do you thlnk?' He
NODDED his head and dropped mis- guns,
and that's how they got US"
Van Dine, who has served in the
army in the Philippines, and shows
his military training in many ways,
was full of scorn for the men who
had taken him.
81 could have killed no end of Them"
he said. '"They came walking along
like a drove of quail, and | could have
covered the ground with them. I had
plenty of cartridges, and generally
hit what l shoot at. 1t would not have
| done me any good, though. and I don't