The Brunswick news. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 1906-2016, 1911-12-13
REGISTERED MAIL
SECURED BY THEM
BOLD ROBBERY OCCURRED AT
HARDEEVILLE, SHORT DIS
TANCE FROM SAVANNAH.
BIoodhounds Arrive on Scene to Run
Down CriminaIs-SpeciaI Train
Carrying Officers from Savannah
Wrecked on Way to Scene.

Savannah, Dec. 12.-Atlantic Coast
Line train No. so, north-bound, which
left Savannah twenty minutes late
this morning at 12.45 o'clock, was held
UP by robbers a short distance from
Hardeeville, S. c., just before day
this morning. The train was running
in two sections, because of the heavy
passenger traffic, and it is reported
the express car, which the robbers
were believed to be after, was car
ried on the second section and es-
capped. The robbers, however, cap
tured the mail car and secured sew
eral sacks of registered mail
D. H. McRoy, the night operator at
Hardeeville, states that the train
reached his station in good condition
and he gave it the signal to go ahead
Shortly after the train got away from
his station and before it had gotten
out of sight it stopped. He was sur
prised to see this, as it had had no
signal to stop at that point. Just
about that time the second section Of
the train arrived from Savannah and
McRoy advised the crew to go ahead
and find out what the trouble was
with the first section. Arriving at
the spot where the first section had
stopped the train crew found the ut
most confusion reigning. The rob
bers, two in number, had forced the
engineer to stop his train and cover
ing the fagman and the conductor
with pistols, they made the fagman
open the mail car after it had been
detached from the train and run some
distance. Here two mail clerks were
found at work and they were made to
give up two bags Of registered mail.
The robbers then made their escape.
Special Train Escaped.
AS quickly as possible Savannah
was notified of the robbery and spe-
cial train consisting of an engine and
two cars with several Coast Line of
fcials and detectives were enrOute to
the scene within an hour. The spe-
cial was in charge of Engineer L. E.
EaWls and a conductor. The Coast
Line and the Southern use the same
tracks out of Savannah to Hardee-
vile, and while enroute to the scene
of the robbery the train with the de-
tectives OH board ran into a freight
train Of the Southern railway.
Charles Reddy, the negro fireman,
and Engineer Rawls both jumped and
escaped serious injury, although the
negro was painfully hurt
1IA e
the officials and the detectives for
some time and they did not reach the
scene Of the robbery until several
hours after it had occurred The rob-
bers, it is believed, boarded the
train at FTardeeYille, as the dispatcher
thinks he saw two suspicious looking
characters get aboard at that point.
He thinks they got between the two
front coaches and from there made
their way to the tender and to the
engine.
Second Hold-up Scare.
Another feature Of the robbery was
the scare the passengers on the local
Coast Line train leaving here at $40
o'clock this morning got just this side
of Hardeeville. The train was going
along at good rate of speed when
suddenly there was a loud report and
everybody jumped up, believing it
was held up, too Pistols were drawn
and the passengers determined to
protect themselves at all hazards.
There was almost a panic for time
until it was found that the noise had
been made by a torpedo which had
been placed on the track to warn the
train Of the delay to the second Sec
ton of No. 50. Some of those On
the train that was stopped were: w.
R. Kahns of New York; T. G. Tren,
chard of Baltimore; w. A. Gilmore,
superintendent of bridges of the At
lantic Coast Line at Ravenel, S. c.;
A. R. Williams Of Savannah, and G.
S. Blount of Atlanta.
The Coast Line officials said this
morning that they did not know the
value of the booty secured by the
robbers, but that their advices were
that they got away with all the regis
tered mail the train contained.
H. w. Wingard, an employe Of the
Georgia railroad at Augusta, who was