Los Angeles herald., 1910-09-13
Associated Press1

SEATTLE, Wash, Sept 1.-THE
mystery of the theft of S57,500 in gold
bullion in transit on the steamship
Humboldt from Fairbanks. Alaska, to
Seattle, is almost as deep today as
before. Indeed, the distance to be
searched for the thieves has been en-
larged by the addition of the Yukon
river between Fairbanks and Dawson.
First reports stated that the gold
boxes containing $4,000 shipped by
the Washington Alaska bank of Fair
banks to the Dexter Horton National
bank of Seattle were opened by the
custom officials at Dawson and the
the Canadian officials merely looked
at the express seals to see that they
were intact.
SEALS INTACT; GOLD MISSING
The history of the travels of the
three boxes follows;
The bank August 20 delivered the
boxes made of 1-2-inch boards nailed
together and strapped with iron, to
the Yukon Express company, whose
agent placed wax seals over the heads
of the screws with which the box
lids were closed.
The boxes were then placed on
Yukon steamer bound up the Yukon
to Dawson, in the custody of the pur-
ser. When the steamer reached
Dawson, which is in Canada, the GUS
toms officials made the usual eXami-
nation of the seals and the Yukon
Express company turned the boxes
over to the Alaska Pacific Express
The boxes continued up the river to
White Horse and then were transferred
to train on the White Pass railroad,
which conveyed them to Skagway, AL
aska, where they were taken into the
pursers room. On the arrival of the
Humboldt at Seattle the boxes were
sent at once to the United States as
say office where they remained in a
vault twenty-four hours until repre-
sentatives of the Dexter-Horton bank
went to the office to open them and
check up the bars. The seals were
found unbroken. but the first box con-
tained lead instead of gold.
EARLY DUPLICATE CRIME
The prevailing theory among ship
ping men and Alaskans is that the
robbery was committed on the Yukon
steamer, for it seems to have been an
exact counterpart of the Bobby Mil
Ter robbery in 1906 Bobby Miller hav-
ing obtained a position as night watch
man on a steamer plying on the Tan
ana river, procured a quantity of lead
shot, and one night opened a treasure
box that contained $4,000 in gold bars,
took out the bars, hid them in his
stateroom, put lead in the box and
got the bars ashore at Fairbanks and
buried them.
The storekeeper who sold Miller the
shot betrayed him and he was arrest
ed. On a promise that his punish
nent would be only eighteen months
Miller dug up $4,000 of
the gold declaring that the other $19,-
700 had been stolen from him.
FORMER LOS ANGELES CLERK
Miller served his term and was on
the Yukon when last heard from. He
Is a Californian, aged about 80, and
his earlier years worked as clerk in
san Francisco and Los Angeles de-
partment stores. Six years ago he
Joined a stampede to the Tanana dig |
gings, which were then yielding pro-
Fortune did not smile on
Miller, however, and he was obliged to |
work as a restaurant waiter. He was
ooyish and refined in his appearance
and his exploit in robbing the Tanana
Miller was employed in a Portland
store early last summer.
The suspected men are clerk in the
Washington Alaska bank of Fairbanks.
a relief of the purser of the steamer
Tanana and two seamen. The use of
a duplicate bank seal used by the rob-
oers gave the detectives the first clew.
This, with evidence gathered against
the clerk, leads the agents to believe
that san employe of the Tanana, who
had acted as a relief for the purser,
permitted the two miners to enter the
private compartments in which the |
treasure was stored where they pried |
off the iron band protecting the seals, |
removed the end of the box, extracted |
the gold and substituted the lead in
It's place. The seal, wires and band |
we're then replaced and the seal and |
wax of the bank duplicated.
Immediately after the boat landed at
Tanana two miners left for the hills |
They have not been seen since.
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