Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1908-07-01
THE NATIONS STRONG BOX.
Never a Dollar Has Been Taken from
u BY Force.

| III tne great pullulhBs tell stViies -
attempted hold-ups OF the nations
wealth by robbers and bandits. Why
| these attempts were never carried
| successfully through Is claimed TO be
| due to the fact that the men lost
| their nerve.
Perhaps the nearest approach to loot
| ing the vaults OF the treasury was the
time Martin Broadfoot had his plans
| about perfected. This was back IN the
| eighties and the plan was to get into
| the building by means of the great
sewer which runs under and near the
| treasury, and ls known as the Fifteenth
street sewer. and which grows
larger as II enters the Potomac about
three-quartcrs of mile from the
| White House.
Broadfoot's plan, as developed after
his arrest, was 10 get into the building,
crack the safes, and place the money
In large rubber bags and float them
down the sewer to the Potomac, where
his pals would be In waiting. These
bags were found In his room when he
was arrested, and secret-servlce men
| had often seen him walking along the
shores of the Potomac near where the
| big sewer empties. This sewer is about
| nine feet In diameter where 1t passes
| the treasury. A man could easily make
his way up the sewer through stream
| of water. which under normal condi-
| tons is only about twelve inches deep.
| BY entering the tunnel or sewer, at the
| river, the journey to the treasury could
| be made by keeping a sharp lookout.
When the man or men in the sewer
| reached the Fifteenth street sewer Moth
| ing would separate them from the gold
| coin and bullion except about eighteen
| feet of earth and not too secure stone
| wall 1t was Broadfoot's scheme to dig
| his way through this obstruction ana
| to let the earth float or wash down the
. 4 I,eN
| man more than two weeks, working
only at night, to have made an opening
| large enough for II man to crawl
| through. OF course Broadfoot knew
| the exact location of the vaults, and
| when he once reached them he would
| have had no trouble In getting the goia
| coin and bullion. 1t was evidently MS
| purpose to fill the rubber bags with
| the precious stuff and float them down
| the sewer to the river, where they
would be looked after by his conteder-
ates. This was the only really weil-lald
| plot ever made to loot the treasury,
| and lust why BToadfoot was never
given a trial has never been known TO
| the public. He was an intelligent man,
and suspicion was first aroused against
him by his frequent visits TO the
homogeneous and vaults and by the
| questions he asked watchmen anu
messengers as to the hours of duty,
time they opened, and all such dues
| tons. That he could have successfully
| carried out his plans 50 far as geltihs
| into the building and the Naults NJ
concerned there is no question, Loi
men have been in the sewer ana cor
duits who say that Is would haNe uee 80
easy work The most difficult part OF
the lob would have been in gettihs
away with the money and bullion, LOT
Il would have required hard WORK "
secure 1t and get away ABOUT w
only chance would have been 10 bury ~
somewhere in Virginia, for II II ns,n
been placed on boats IL "ouiu i''
been easy to recover 1t. Ia.
A. old treasury Waterman said
1--WE are constantly on the loohout,
and suspicious persons are Watcheu;
have no right, perhaps, TO say So W,
| / believe It Is wrong 10 ADMIT any anu
| everybody to the vaults and alloW
| them to handle the packages and sachs
| of money 1t gives some people pau
| IDEAS TO be permitted to handle sucn
| niles of money and they begin 10
| study how they can get possession Oh
some of it. II the treasury Is ever
| robbed, II will be on big scale
1t is the opinion of the secret-servlce
| men that many celebrated eracksnlel,
| have from time to time contemplated
the conversion of few million treas
ury notes to their own use; but AFTER
carfui study they have decided that
the undertaking was too colossal III
character. Secretary Folger, when ne
assumed his duties, was not slow IN
deciding that the treasury was not
properly and safely guarded. there
| was not an electric alarm in the build
ing; the watchmen we're Isolated ana
| had no facilities for calling help; and
the safes were OF the old-time-lock-
and key sort scattered almost all over
the big building. The secretary went
to work to bring about a proper
condition of affairs. He had the watch
system completed changed and reor"
ganized, putting men under the strict
est discipline; elaborate and extensive
alarm systems were installed; the old
safes were replaced by modern steel
affairs with time locks and Intricate
combinations; the gold and silver
vaults were fitted with steel castings
and time locks different parts OF the
combinations being distributed among
various officials so that the vaults
could be opened only with the con-
certed action of all of them, and then
only at the stroke OF the hour for
which the time locks had been set.
But without a perfect system of watch
men to guard the safes the treasury
could be easily robbed, for the most
perfect safe ever made Is not proof
against the professionals. II has not
been n great while since a safe expert
was summoned from New York to open
safe In the treasury, and he occom-
plished his work in two minutes. He
then went through the building and
opened one safe after the other, eX
planning to the officials that the expert
cracksmen did not care about time
locks but his main fear was the
police.
The watch force of the treasury IL
perfectly organized, and the least in
fraction OF rules means u lay-off or
discharge. The men seem to realize
the heavy responsibilities resting up
ON them, and they are careful almost
10 Il fault. The watch Is divided into
three reiefs, the tour of duty lasts
for eight hours. The midnight watch
Is considered the most important of the
| three on account of the well-known
| nocturnal preferences OF burglars.
However, the captain Of the watch Is
OF the opinoin that the day watch needs
be on the lookout for surprises. II 81
his belief that should ever an attempt
be made TO loot the treasury II will be
made in the day time. He bases this
belief on the fact that to gain an en-
trance 10 the building after dark would
necossltate tho battering down OF doors
or the use OF dynamite, for all the on
| frances are locked and guarded after
| 4 o'clock. While this work OF forcing
an entrance was going on the district
police, the national guard. the soldiers
| from Fort Meyer and Washington Bar