Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-08-31
Single Handed, Stops Pe'nnrsyl-s
vania Express and Takes
Thousand Dollars.
HE LEFT S., 900 IN BULLION.
Dynamite Placed Between Tracks
Had Not Train Stopped, Would
Have Been Blown Up. :.

LeNastown, Pa, Aug. 31.-single
/ handed, a daring robber stopped the
4 Nestbound Pittsburg 8 Northern ex-
press on the Pennsylvania railroad at
LeWistown NarroWs. eight miles east Of
here, ut o'clock this morning, and
\ robbed the express car Of 81 900
in gold and escaped to the
anounta Tins. The 81 robber was forced
To leave $500 in bullion on the
( mountain side where the fireman OF
the train had been forced to carry ii:
passengers having appeared armed ana
5 ready to give battle to the holdup. The
4 train consisted of two en- ines, three
express cars and two sleepers. A signal
cap placed on the track brought the
train to stop. Engi neers John Long
and Balzer Beahm, 10th Of Altoona, On
p alishting from theii.s cabs, were CON
fronted by a !lnasked man with two re-
J volvers who ordered hands up
While there were thousands OF dol
lars In the express car. the robber is
believed to have obtained only s11O.
With this he escaped to the mountains
The abroad company$is using pack
I OF bloodhounds and the capture OF the
+ desperate Is believed to be almost g.
certainty. The dogs are owned by the
Baltimore & Ohio railroad and are kept,
for just such an emergency.
& The srobber, who was mas kedS and pos
4 Eessed Of remark able GOODNESS, cowedl
the railroad men completely. the only
show Of resistance being made by the,
conductor, Isaac r. Poffen berger, who
was shot through the hand @
Conductor I. r. Offenberger OF Har-
Tisburg came UP and. taking in the
situation. started to run for the rear OF
the train. The robber fired five shots
at him. one taking effect In the right
hand. He then ordered the express car
opened, threatening to blow it up with
dynamite If not obeyed. The car wa
opened and at the direction OF the rob
! Der the money bags were carried to the
sideEof the tracks 1T Is thought about
d 900 was obtained. III Several Of the
bags contained pennies which we're
found later near4t scene of the hold \
Only one ian va seen BY the train 81
men Lat Ter investiga ton disclosed six
sticks Of dynamite between the tracks 4
at the point where the cap exploded
/ This is accepted as evidence that 1t was
the intention Of the robber to blow up
the train.
OFFICIAL STATEMENT.
Pittsbnrg. Pa, Aug 31.-The officials
Of the: Pennsylvania railroad here con.
firm the robbery OF train No. % near
Lewiston, Pa, early today. The fol-
lowing statement was authoriZtd:
From reports at hand now it APP
pears the rober-there was only one
did not get much money. In the ex-
press car was more than $1,000 in bull
lion as we'll as a large amount of Lin
coin pennies. It Is understion the
ahighWayn1an was compelled todrop the
bullion in order to escape.
The train was known as tie Pitts
burg and Northern Express 1t left
Philadelphia shortly after 9 CLOCK last
night About 1880 o'clock tbs morn
ing, when near the Lewiston lNarrows,
on the middle division. it4waI held up
by masked highwayman.
The train was halted by a n Explosion
Of dynamite which slightly damaged
the engine. Before 1t could b realized
Just what had happened TIE robber.
with heavy reyolvers In escf hand,
was In control of the situation,
LATER STATEMENT.
gts In a later statement the railroad Of
;fcials say:
when the dynamite placed On the
track by the lhlghWayrlan,6ex exploded the |
headlight glass and windows of the en-
gine cab were broken. One ran was
torn up also. 8l
1t is impossible to say at this time
just how much money the robbei'too
but one bag of pennies and severa! bars
Of gold, valued at $4,000. have been
found on his trail 81
TRAIN. ARRIVES
Il Pittsh,rp Ane, ri I--T,rain No 10 the
Pittsburg and Northern Express. pn the
Pennsylvania railroad. which WIS held
up near Lewistown early this msrnins,
arrived at the union station here al
500 a.. m. ss f5
Messenger Harper made a re5ort to
the local officials in charge pf the
Adams Express companyfiat the union
station and then with number of
detectives started back for the scene
OF the holdup.
CAR INTERESTS HIMSELF