Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1909-12-30
CRACKSMEN
At WORK

The office of the Welliver Hardware |
company was the scene of daring safe |
robbery Thursday morning. The cracks
men after successfully opening the |
safe got away with booty representing
in cash checks and notes, over one
Thousand dollars.
The offices are in the eastern end of
the big warehouse situated ON Church
street at the d. L. & w. railroad. The
safe crackers showed considerable
familiarity with the premises. They
gained admittance by forcing open a
window on the second story at the
rear of the building. To reach the
window they climbed to the roof of
the long one-story annex built at the
rear of the warehouse proper. Thurs
day morning short ladder, brought to
the spot by the burglars, was found ly
ing under the platform at the door of
the annex, where goods are loaded and
unloaded. This ladder had been utiliz-
ed by the robbers in getting to the top
of the building. Marks of their feet
on the tin roofing could be detected,
where they had made their way along
to the rear window of the warehouse
proper. On the window frame may be
seen the marks of "a jimmy that had
been used to good effect, the lower
sash having been forced upward un-
til the patent fastening gave way
The robbery was committed about
three o'clock Thursday morning At
that hour people in the immediate vic
unity were aroused by a loud report.
The noise was attributed to an eXplo-
siou of iron in the Danville rolling
mill and no alarm resulted. 1t remain
ed for George Gross to literally catch
the robbers red-handed and to report
the affair in such good time that the
officers We're enabled to get on the
trail of the cracksmen before they had
| escaped very long.
Mr.. Gross, who was working on
night turn at the Danville rolling
mill, was returning to his home about
3 20 o'clock Thursday morning and
| had reached point on the ID. L. 81
W. track just opposite the large ware
house when he was surprised to see
two men leap to the ground from the
large side door, which was wide open.
\ third man suddenly materialized,
! GtAnpintr q hatNUnan thp tyun md
| Mr. Gross. not more than four feet
from the latter. Had there been any
doubt as to the character of the men
| it would have been dispelled as they
| jumped to the ground by the tell-tale
clink of coin, which came from the in
side of box that one of them held
under his arm.
Mr.. Gross believing that prudence
was the better part of valor did not
| tarry to interview the men, but got
down town quickly as possible, where
he related what had occurred to Night
Watchman Lewis Byerly and w. e.
| Young, after which he called up Chief
of Police Mincemoyer. Lewis Byerly
called out Officer Voris, while Night
Watchman Young aroused w. w. Wei
liver, member of the firm that had
| been robbed.
When Mr.. Welliver entered the
offices of the company the rooms were
still full of smoke. The cracksmen had
done their work well, demonstrating
that they We're no novices One of the
| double doors of the safe was shattered
to pieces, the interior being fully ex-
posed to view. The plan adopted by
! the cracksmen was to break off the
| combination and also the knob or
handle of the door. Through the small
round aperture produced nitro -glycer-
inc or some other high explosive was
poured, the joints having been careful
! ly closed with soap.
The Office presented woeful ap-
pearance. Fragments of the safe door,
lay scattered about. The walls and
furniture were bespattered with soap,
which was shot in all directions when
the explosion occurred.
The safe was entirely ritied of its
contents. The drawers and the frame
that supported them are badly shatter-
ed and splintered. The covers of sew
eral of the books are mutilated al
though the leaves are intact.
The money drawer contained less
than twenty dollars in cash and
this is all the safe blowers secured
that will be of any value to them. The
safe contained notes and checks
amounting to nearly or quite thou
sand dollars, all of which were carri-
ed off. That the robbers will be able
to realize anything ON the notes and
checks stolen is not ut all probable al
though the loss of the paper will be
felt by the Welliver Hardware com
pany, which will be put to endless
trouble in securing duplicates.
AS described by George Gross the
three men were of unequal height, one
bieng a rather portly fellow. The tall
est wore long overcoat.