Willmar tribune., 1908-07-22
Thief George
II. Proctor. a
&if, skilled ;nu.
sician.' foreman
In boiler Stops
and of6lete.suc.
cumbs to great
defecfiUe'Smor..~
velous poUers
Of reasoning.
E8k85E8H

rived in Susquehanna at three O'Clock
In the morning. In so minutes the
pouch had been put in the safe by
the agent and taken out by the con.
spfrators. The bogus bag and seal
had already been prepared and as
soon as the genuine pouch was taken
out the other was put in it's place.
The substitution took place while the
agent was busily engaged in the way.
bill department of the station at four
o'clock in the morning. The agent
was out of ear-shOt at the time Martin
opened the safe with the key that
Proctor had made and took the bag
containing the money. The substitute
was put in its place and the safe
locked, and in ten minutes time Col
Inns and Martin, carrying vallse with
the $4,000, took train for Corning, N.
Y; from thence they went to Sche.
nectady, and then to Suspension
bridge, where Proctor was waiting for
them. The object of this circuitous
journey was to throw anyone of the
trail in case they we're followed. At
Suspension bridge the three conspira-
tors met and divided their loot. Proc.
tor received $4,000 as his share
of the booty, and calmly returned to
Susquehanna, and, putting on his over.
alls and working. clothes, resumed his
employment in the boiler shops.
Everybody in Susquehanna was
talking about the robbery, and Proc
tor talked as loudly and as excitedly
as any of the citizens. In the mean
time his $4,000 was buried in tho
fruit jar in the little garden back of
his home. With infinite care, he
buried it with the mouth of the jar
down so that the water could not get
into the receptacle and spoil the
money. Neither his wife nor his
children knew of this buried treasure.
1t was when he took the money up
and went to Buffalo and began spec
ulating in oil that he dug the pit
which was to be his ruin.
Robert Pinkerton was much chagrined
to think that Proctor had been able
to hoodwink him in the early part OF
the affair. Instead Of being an inno-
cent accomplice, he was profession.
al burglar with checkered career.
Proctor, when he began the serious
part of his life, was f1rst-class me-
chanic and at an early age became the
foreman of the Portland boiler works.
The passion for gambling caused him
to lose his position, and in a few
years he had joined group of east
ern burglars, acting for them as a
filter" in opening safes. In the Cen.
tennial year, after he was convicted
of a safe robbery in Lowell, he was
sent to the Massachusetts state prison
at Charleston for four years. He be-
came organist of the prison and had
unusual privileges. AS a result he
became acquainted with Charles Bull
lard, fellow convict, who was serv.
ing a 20-year term for breaking into
the Boylston bank, Boston, and together
they conceived a plan of escape. Proc.
tor made impressions of the cell door
keys and made keys out of old knives.
From time to time he gathered
enough clothes to be used by himself
and Bullard when their plans of es.
cape had fully ripened. The clothes
in the meantime were deftly hid in
the top of the organ. One eventful
night Proctor, Bullard and seven other
long-term convicts escaped. Proctor
and Bullard went to Canada by way
Of New York. In Toronto they robbed
the ticket office of the Grand Trunk
Railway company at Brockville Of
$4,000. A few days later they robbed
another ticket Office near Quebec OF
$4,000. Aftetr that Proctor got work
in the Toronto safe works, and after
awhile was promoted to travelling
salesmanship. When he sold a safe
he arranged the combination, and Bull.
lard would follow him little later
and rob the safe. The suspicion Of
the safe company eventually caused
his Dismissal
On another occasion Proctor at
tempted to break jail but did not meet
with his usual success. He pried the
bars of the cell door, but when he
reached the corridor the sheriff
stopped him at the point of the pis'
tol. AS result Of this he was sen
fenced to eight years solitary con
finement, part of this for his original
offense and two years for attempting
to break Jail. A week after this
pieces of paper were found on the
floor Of his cell bearing the impress
sions of the key of his cell door, the
corridor door, and the door leading to
the street. 1t was after he had served
this sentence that he went to Sus
quehanna and lived as an honest man
until the opportunity came for him to
take part in the great safe robbery.
The king of Burglars, as Proctor
was called, was given a long sentence
for the Susquehanna express rob
berry at hard labor in the Eastern pen
itentiary at Philadelphia. His aooo0
plces were never captured