The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1909-10-25
FEDERAL PENALTIES FOR
BURGLARS ARE TOO LIGHT
Inspector Of Postoffees Recalls old
Calumet Burglary and Says That II
is the Only Case on Record Where
Maximum Penalty Was Inflicted BY
the Courts.

What is the mysterious lure OF the
postofiee safe that attracts the yegg
man and makes IL his favorite prey
There is a. reason, and il is an excel
lent one, too. II is not because the
yeggman-bold, desperate and unafraid
-labors under the dclusion that the
booty is richer there than elsewhere
a country town bank. for instance. His
reason is a sound one.
Ralph Bird. postoffice Inspector for
the Milwaukee district, named that rea-
son a few days ago.
why do yeggmen tackle postoffices
in preference to any other placer" said
Inspector Bird, in answer TO that ques-
ton. Il can answer that in one sem
tence-lt is because the penalty is so
light"
The inspector went on to explain
that the maximum penalty for postof-
fee robbery is five years imprison-
ment. and that it is seldom that yegg-
men get the maximum.
Courts Are Lenient.
"The courts are too easy on them"
said Mr.. Bird. "Yeggmen seldom get
more than three years, and as they are
model prisoners. behaving in an exem-
plary manner while they are behind
prison walls, they get time off so that
they have little more than two years
to serve. in the event Of three year
service. / have known many desper-
ate yeggmen on a third and fourth
sentence for postoffice robbery to get
only eighteen months, which with time
off for good behavior makes just a
trifle over year.
III those same men broke into a
bank and blew its safe, If caught they
ty-five years, for there the prosecution
must be in the state courts and under
the state laws. A yeggman can also
be prosecuted under the state laws, If
the state authorities make the capture,
but it is not once in a thousand times
that this ever happens. This is why
the yeggman, who knows the law as
well as he knows anything makes a
specially of Uncle Sans safes.
I'm my fifteen years of service as a
government sIeuth specializing on
yeggmen, / have known but one case
wherein a yeggman got the limit, five
years. He was Everett Wood, a no.
torious yeggman who with the two
Foster brothers, all from Cleveland,
o.. blew the postoffice safe at Calumet
Mich. ten years ago and got away with
something over 81 900 in cash, stamps
and jewelry. The Upper Peninsula
was in my district in those days.
A Clean Get away.
"And, by the way. that Calumet rob
berry was the smoothest piece of ycgg
work that was ever pulled Off. If you
know Calumet you know that the post
office and a bank were both I'm one
double building, and there are streets
and alleys surrounding 4 the entire
structure. Three night watchmcn
guarded the building, one OF them max
minutes. Yet those three yeggmcn
got in through a rear window blew
the safe and got away undetcctcd. The
three watchmcn were on the job all
the time, too. The three yeggs made a
clean getaway. The cleverest part OF
II all was the nolsclcss blowing OF tho
safe. The yeggs used just ten drops of
nitroglycerin, just enough to break the
lock, so that all they had to do there
after was TO turn the handle and reach
I'm after the booty. one of the watch
men told me that II heard that cx-
plosion, so faint it was, | would have
paid no attention whatever TO IT,, Th,
next day posse located the two Eos
ter brothers. not. however. until after
a desperate battle in which Wood sho
one of the posse. putting ,cighty-fou'
shotgun shots I'm his head and shooting
deputy sheriff with revolver. Woo,
made his escape, but ! located him lat
or In the penitentiary at Columbus. O.
where he was doing time for n rObbcr!
at Cincinnati. When his term oxpire'
he was taken TO Marquette and tn
Judge gave him the maximum. Th
other two pleaded guilty soon ATTIC
their capture and got off with llghtc
Observation-Disclosures Sentinel
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