The Savannah morning news., 1903-11-25
INTO MUzZLE OF GUN
WATCHMAN OF BRUNSON BANK
LOOKED WHILE ROBBERS
WORKED.
NITRo.GLYCERINE WAS USED.
FIVE ROBBERS GOT AWAY WITH
$500 OF BANKS SILVER.


Notified of south Carolina Bank
Robbery and at Request of Au-
thorities Arrested Two Linemen
Who Left Garnett for This City on
Freight Train-Vice President OF
Bank Gave Details of Robbery to
PoIice-Men Under Arrest Not
Thought To BE Implicated.
After binding Richard Yeomans, a
negro employed as a Waterman, five
men robbed the bank of Brunson, s.
c., early yesterday morning, and Sc
cured $500 in silver. Within a remark
ably short time after the robbery was
committed the Savannah police We're
notified and asked to look out for the
robbers.
Details of the robbery were furnished
the police by DR.. T. H. Tuten, vice
president of the bank, who came to
Savannah to see two suspects who had
been arrested at the request Of the
authorities at Brunson. Mr.. J. T.
Rivers, who came with DR.. Tuten had
seen only two of the supposed robbers
and declared that the men under ar
rest are not the ones that he saw. An
other man who saw all five of the rob
bers will arrive this morning to take
q look at the prisoners.
The men who are under arrest here
are not believed by the police to have
played any part in the robbery, and
deny that they were any where in the
vicinity They are linemen and MEM
bers Of the electrical union. in good
standing. One left Washington Thurs
day, and the other Friday and together
they came to Savannah from Columbia,
by way of Garnett. The men frank
ly admit that they beat their way
down from Washington, and say that
they came South to work during the
winter.
Were Beating Their Way.
They were put off a passenger train
at Garnett and took a freight for Sa
vannah. The men We're not put off the
freight train because they We're under
Savannah, asking that they be arrest
ed upon the arrival of the train.
Mounted Patrolmen Harper and
Behrman We're hurried to the Four
Mile Hill to meet the train, and the
suspects We're pointed out by the con-
ductor. They made no resistance and
were taken to the police station house
without trouble During the night
they were visited by quite a number of
the members of the local Electrical
Union. and were declared by the Sa-
vannah men to be all that they claimed.
Had the robbers not gone about their
work hurriedly they would have been
able to secure a much larger sum than
500 The bulk of the banks money
was kept in a new safe purchased only
about a week ago. This safe was not
kept in the banks vault, and escaped
the notice of the men. They blew open
the vault and then blew the doors off
the SAFE on the inside. 1t was from
this safe that the silver was taken.
The robbers used nitro-glycerne in do
ing their work. but the explosion did
not disturb the slumbers of the citi-
zens.
Waterman Was Guarded.
Richard Yeornans, colored, was en-
plOyed to watch the bank, the railroad
station and several other places in the
neighbour rood. He was found at the
station with his hands and feet tightly
bound, and a wire around his neck,
several hours after the safe was crack
ed. YeOmans said that he had been
held up by two white men and that
his hands were tied together, and a
wire placed around his neck, at the
point of a pistol.
The helpless Waterman was marched
to a neighboring blacksmith shop and
this place was burglarized. The rob-
bers secured several sledgehammers
and chisels, and YeOmanS was march,
ed back to the railroad station. He
was pushed into a corner and one of
the robbers stood guard with drawn
revolver. The Waterman stated that
two of the men remained outside the
bank while the other two broke down
the doors and went inside. The actual
work Of cracking the safe was done
by these two men.
ESCAPED on Hand Car.
After the men had secured the cash
they went to the railroad station
where the fifth was guarding Yeomans
A hand car on the siding was pressed
into service and the robbers made the
trip to Fairfax, four miles away, in
this manner.
What became of them after they
reached Fairfax cannot be determined,
although it is believed that they part
ed company. Two suspects We're ar
rested at Fairfax. but they have not
yet been identified.