Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1909-09-21
BANK ROBBERS.
Four Desperadoes Blow Safe Open and
Escape. They Fail to Carry
Away Amy Cash.


report that the state bank in Athens
had been entered by robbers and the
big safe blown open. Officers were
called for, to help capture the men,
who were then supposed to be in the
woods, close to the village. Under
Sheriff Frank O'Connor, chief of police
Thomas Malone and Bert Arendsee,
went over as quickly as possible. They
found that four desperadoes had
visited the town some time during the
night, and first broke into the rail
road depot. Here they put charge
of nitroglycerine into the safe, and
there were quite number who were
awakened by the first explosion. This
did not open up the safe sufficiently
to gain access to the money, so another
charge was put in and exploded, and
their efforts were rewarded with S28.
Those who heard the explosions say
it was then about / O'Clock a. m.
From the depot they started out for
the bank. The bank is near the old
Blecha hotel.
A boarder at the hotel who was I'M
able to sleep that night came down
stairs at about two o'clock to take a
stroll and get some fresh air. AS he
was returning to the building the
robbers came down the street and one
OF them commanded him to stop. AS
he was clothed at the time with little
more than Adam wore in the garden
of Eden he refused to obey the COM
mand. One of them thereupon shot
in that direction, the bullet passing
through the door he was about to
enter. 1t suddenly occurred to the
man that it was about time to stop.
The robbers asked him to pilot them
to the bank. Dressed as he was he
thought visit to the bank in that
garb and at that hour of the night
would not be considered decorum and
he hesitated. While he was hesitat-
ing one of the burglars struck him
several blows over the head with the
butt end of revolver. This con-
yinced him that his presence was
needed in locating the bank. After
he had pointed out the bank, the
robbers told him to march onward
to the depot and having the command
impressiyely given by the sight of re-
yolyers he decided to go in the direc-
ton of the depot, although he was
very sleepy by that time and wished
to retire from the scene.
The robbers gained entrance by
using pry of some kind, either a
Jimmy" or a crowbar. After explod-
ing one charge of nitroglycerine they
found that they were still unable to
get at the money, and second charge
was placed in the crevices of the door,
The second one was very destructive,
wrecking the vault and blowing out
the front of the building. The rob
bers had worked nearly two hours,
and the explosions had awakened
many of the residents of the village
who began to gather around the bank.
Getting frightened, without securing
any money, they ran towards the
depot, where they had a railroad
velocipede in waiting and started
towards Abbottsford. The villagers
telephoned ahead to the village of
Milan, which is few miles distant,
also to Abbottsford and other places.
Five men in Milan volunteered to in
tercept their progress. Four armed
themselves with shot guns and hid in
the bushes. Presently the bank rob
bers were seen approaching and the
man who was unarmed stopped them,
telling them that there were ties
placed across the track, and that the
bank of Athens had been robbed and
that he and others were then looking
for the robbers. The latter said they,
too, were on the track of them and
got off, removed the ties and sped on
ward.
A hurried consultation among the
guard resulted in the five coming to
the conclusion that the men who had
just passed were the ones wanted.
They called on the men on the veloci-
pede to stop. When they did not the
four began firing. Shortly thereafter
the velocipede was stopped, thrown
off the track and the men disappeared
into the woods. Lying along side of
the yelocipede was handkerchief.
In this was s2S tightly tied up, sup
posed to be the amount secured in the
depot.
They worked in the bank nearly
two hours and during part of that
time many of the villagers heard the
explosions and knew what was going
on, yet the men were allowed to es-
cape.
The bank was badly wrecked and it
will cost several hundred dollars to
repair the damage done. Some of the
broken fixtures were brought over
here yesterday to be repaired.
There is diversity of statements
regarding the number of men in the
gang. Some say there were three,
some say five, but local officers are OF
the opinion that there were but two.
There is one thing, however, on which
all agyee-the men are desperate char
acters. They have got good start
and viii evidently make good their
escape.