The Mena weekly star., 1908-03-12
TR|ED ID HOLD UP A BANK
Vice President of an Omaha Insti- rution Given Fright by
 Stranger.
THREATENED TO BLOW UP TIE BU LOIKc
The Stranger Demanded Large Sum Of Money and Displayed Bottle
 Said to Contain Nitro-giycerIn--Led From Bank by Strategy and Cap

Omaha. Mar 11.--At 10 o'clock Tuesday morning and unknown an archist entered the Merchants Ma tional bank of this city and demanded | large sum of rones. at the same time displaying bottle of what is thought to be nitro-glycerin and threat. ching to blow up the bank If his re. | quest was not complied with. The man entered soon after the doors of the I bank were thrown open and asked to sec Vice President Luther Drake in l his private office. Drake seated him self opposite the man, who began talk l ing in a rambling manner about hav- ing had 5000 in the National Bank Of Commerce in Kansas City when that bank failed.
 And since all you fellows are in together, you had just better hand me over my money or I'll blow you and this bank and all of us to he'll" sud denly said the fellow, producing a three-ounce bottle of a thick yellow liquid. Don't you make move. This is filled with nitro-glycerin. If you move you are ueau man.
 You don't want to die yourself, do your" cooly asked Drake.
 "Oh, yes, came in here ready to die" responded the stranger. 'but when die. I'll take everybody in this building with me
 Well I'll go and get you the money" said Drake, raising from his chair. "Sit down." said the anarchist. If you get up again without permission Ill just drop this bottle. You know what will happen"
 Drake sat down. Drake then told the man he would talk it over with him and the stranger accepted. all the time keeping the bottle of nitro-gly- cerin in his hand and within sight. Noticing that the man seemed thin and pinched, Drake asked him If he wasn't hungry.
 T have been studying over this mat ter for several days and have not eat. en thing for AS hours" answered the man with the bottle. Well, lets go have breakfast and talk this over, proposed Drake.
 All right but don't try any monkey business or you are dead man" re- piled the anarchist.
 President Hamilton of the bank en tered the next room during the con versation and heard enough of it to enable him to know what was going on. As Drake and the stranger left the room together Hamilton tele- phoued the police station for plain clothes men and followed the two men to a nearby restaurant Drake and the man were on opposite sides of the table when three detectives, accompa- nied by Hamilton, entered the room. Slipping up behind the stranger, the detectives pinioned his arms and re- lieved him of his dangerous bottle be- fore he knew what was up. He was then taken to the police station where he has refused to talk. The bottle has been sent to chemist for an alysis.
 At the police station the robber gave his name as L. L. Fee and said that he came from Rockford, H., last October Since then he has lived in Omaha and has been out of work. He Is plumber by trade and has been drawing five dollars a month from the plumbers union while out of work
 Fee now acknowledges that he was never in Kansas City and that his story of having money in the National Bank of Commerce of that city was untrue. Fee says he had read of banks being robbed in the manner he at tempted and that he determined to try the scheme He insists that the bottle contained no nitro-glycerin, but was only water with coloring material in it
 The police took the bottle to the river bank and fired into it with q rife. The bottle was broken but there was no explosion. The police believe Fee to be crazy.