Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1905-02-23
"fNDlAN JOE" MENARD, AFTER
EIGHT YEARS, MUST FACE
BURGLARY CHARGE.
MAY YET BE SET FREE

IeStiry Against tne FTiSonSr tHo
Chances Are That He Will Never
Serve Time for the Robbery Story
Of the Burglary.
From Wednesdays Daily.
Chicago, Feb. 22.-Joseph Menard,
alias Joe Smith, alias Indian Joe"
was arrested today at the instigation
Of the Pinkertons in this city, for al
legged completely in the robbery Of the
Eldon, (Iowa), bank on February i,
1897 Menard has long criminal rec
ord and has long been known as one
of the smoothest bank breakers in the
country The police here say he Sc
cured about $4,000 in the Eldon rob-
berry. Menard was here with his wife
when arrested.
More than eight years after the,
Wapello county. after evading Pinker-
apparently thinking himself entirely
y been arrested for the robbery OF the
ably be brought back from Chicago to
stand trial on the indictment now
standing against him on the books of
the district court of Wapello county.
Menard Is the last to be arrested Of
the seven men who were indicted on
May 10, 1897, for the burglary of the
Bradley bank at Eldon. Though man
though to be him was arrested soon
after the robbery he gave "straw
bond for his appearance, made his es-
cape and until today no trace has ever
been secured Of him. Nevertheless, the
Pinkertons. into whose hands was
given the task Of finding the robbers,
Z worked night and day, hunted the
country from border to border, gath
cred In all the other men accused Of
taking part in the robbery, and now
have finally succeeded in tracking
down the seventh and last member of
the gang of bank robbers brought to
Ottumwa years ago by Dick Dood to
rob the Eldon bank
May Vet Go Free.
The man who stands between Joe
Menard and liberty is Dick Dodd. 1t
was this willy gambler and trickster,
formerly well known in Ottumwa, who
planned the robbery of the Bradley
bank, who brought the burglars to
this city twice to rob the bank but was
twice unable to carry out his plans,
who finally won over all obstacles, di-
yided the money with the burglars in
his, own house, in South Ottumwa, kept
the criminals under his roof until they
could escape from Ottumwa, and fl
nally turned states evidence to avoid
Imprisonment. 1t was he who sent
Bob Durkin and BUCK" Murray to the
penitentiary 1t was he who testified
against Jesse Hamilton and c. j. Stew.
ems, and it was he who finally, when
Samuel Ritchie was arrested and
brought back to Ottumwa for trial, sat
upon the witness stand and swore that
he had never before seen the prisoner
that he had nothing to do with the
robbery. It was he who, a few minutes
after Ritchie walked out of the court
house free man. became suddenly
very chummy with him. drank with
him, ate with him and talked over old
times with him. But both Ritchie and
Dodd are free.
Whether Dodd will return from
sunny Texas to testify against Menard
is the question Ottumwa and Eldor
people are asking today. Whether he
will have spark of honor left. a de
sire to see justice done. whether he
will disregard the threats of death
which, 1t is said. made his memory
fail him so fortunately for Ritchie, is
question Wapello county officials
and the Pinkertons would like to have
answered now.
Story Of the Crime.
The scheme for the robbery origin
ated in the brain of Clarence j. Stew
ems, night marshal at Eldon. Thi!
man, working for small salary ant
having in his care the lives and for
tunes of the people of Eldon, worked
for years honestly and in a trustworth.
manner. He was relied upon by tn,
people. He was looked upon as al
honest man. But he betrayed hi
trust. Late in the fall Of 1896 Stevens
conceived the idea of robbing tn,
Bradley bank. owned by the Bradle,
family of Centerville and located ii
the Eldon building on the principa
corner of the little town.
Enlisted Dick Dodd.
Knowing that he could not carry ou
the plot alone and being unacquaintet
with any one who could, Stevens cam,
I to Ottumwa and made known his evi
plans to Dick Dodd. then gamble
employed in houses in this city. Dodt
was acquainted with several Chicag,
crooks and he undertook the task o
getting some of them to come to Ell
don. rob the bank, divide the spoil
with himself and the marshal, and ge