Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-04-20
MINNESOTA Towns
NAN1 SAFE BLOWERS
Sheriff Nicholson, of Austin, and
Sheriff Subby, of Albert Lea,
Identify Prisoners
FOUR OF GANG WANTED THERE
Wagner, corcoran and Burns, and
Either Leonard or Lawson, Are
Wanted at Both Austin and Albert
Lea for Safe Cracking Wagner,
Lawson and corcoran Bound Over.

Lawson and Corcoran Bound Over.
Sheriff N Nicholson, of Mower
county, Minnesota, and Sheriff Oscar
Subby, of Freeborn county, arrived in
the city Thursday night to see the six
prisoners under arrest here for blowing
the safe of the Marshall Vinegar Com
pany. AS result of the visit both
sheriffs identified four of the six men
as participants in four safe blowing
jobs accomplished in Austin and Albert
Lea on the 18th and 18th insts. The
four prisoners whom the Minnesota
sheriffs would like to lay their hands
on are Wagner Corcoran and Burns,
and either Leonard or Lawson. In the
case of the two latter a more positive
description is; wanted.
At Austin, early on the morning of
the 18th, two safes in wholesale liquor
establishments We're blown to atoms.
w
and from the other house, no money
was found but the burglars stole a
quantity of beer.
On the night of the 18th the crooks
operated at Albert Lea, where Sheriff
Subby says that from the Thompson
Seed Company the burglars secured
$40. Another safe in the same estab-
lishment was destroyed, but the thieves
did not get into the money compart-
ment. Trainmen on the Milwaukee at
Austin, where the burglars were put
off of freight west bound, had a good
opportunity to see the men on the
morning of the 18th. AT that time
the pockets of the men were bullying
with bottles of beers, the necks of
which protruded and were in plain
sight
their homes this morning, learned of
the burglary here thru press dispatch.
They came to the city as soon as they
could leave home. Both want the men
badly, but the local officers, of course,
have the first hold on them.
Other Three Bound Over.
Wagner, Lawson and Corcoran, three
others of the gang under arrest, were
bound over to the grand jury under
O'Clock Thursday afternoon. The hear
ing occupied more than an hours time,
and several witnesses were examined
by the state. The defense offered no
testimony, but made motion that each
of the defendants be discharged be-
cause of insufficiency of evidence and
state of facts, and on the ground that
the state had utterly failed to convict
either of the defendants of the offense
charged. Mayor Ingledue denied the
motion.
The Testimony.
The testimony at the preliminary
was sufficiently strong to bind the
men over altho, of course, the evidence
is largely circumstantial. Officer Haas,
who made the sensational arrest OF
four of the men, was the first witness,
and testified that he believed Wagner
and Larson We're two of the men with
Rogers when he was found, wounded
east of where the shooting occurred.
Larson is one who escaped and was
ter arrested, and in his argument de-
fendants' counsel showed that Larson
would never have remained in the VI
cinitv so long after the crime had been
committed had he been guilty.
Chief Nicholson, told of finding the
revolver. skeleton keys and two lash
lights near where Larson was found ~
ing i'm the weeds, and of his arrest Win
dynamite caps and bottle OF nltro-
plycerine on his person. He also toio
Of wagner's arrest with sl3.45 on ms
person. and the prisoners declaratloh
that that was all the money he mad IN
The world: also that later $1.5b IN
small change was found in his outside
,vercoat pocket. Wagner's clothes were
t,,et thru. but his shoes were dry
w. w Doolittle, owner of the Vine
gar works, testified to the money that
was in the safe, 1928 in all, $S.oS IN
currency and silver and $4.25 IN smail
change. including some pennies.
Howard Burt, an Iowa Central en-
pineer testified to the discharge of the
blow-cock of his engine in the wards in
The afternoon preceding the burglary.
md thought he recognized Wagner as
tbe man who was covered from head to
foot with dirty water and mud. He
could not positively identify the prls-
oner.
Master Mechanic Feeley, of the Iowa
central positively identified Wagner
nc the man, and told of the circum-
stance. and of talking to the man after
no had been given the soaking. Wit
ness asked the court to instruct Wag-
ner to put on his hat, that he might
better identify him. Wagner then adj
,,itted that he was the man and that
no had talked with Mr.. iFeeley. This
was in direct contradiction to Wagner's
on the afternoon OF his ar
alignment. that he did not reach the
,ity until o'clock of the morning fol-
owing the burglary. This also ac-
counts for his wet clothes.
r. IT Beebe, L. w. Wilson, Ed. Black
ourn and Deputy Marshal Clark We're
also used as witnesses by the state, to
,orrcborate other evidence. The mon
" taken from Wagner was offered in
exhibit, and the state claims that some
IF the silver will show marks of nitro
ylycerine. Counsel for the defense ia
,etiously expressed the opinion that the
state should show that it smelied of
vinegar.