Evening journal., 1911-07-01
BANDITS HOLD
UP ERIE TRAIN
Masked HiGhwaymen Shoot
Three of a Pennsylvania
Crew
HURLED A PASSENGER
OVER 3OOFOOT EMBANKMENT
BY Tho United Press.

DS Ah1 0Alltta AOo0s
ERIE, Pa, July 1.-Bloodspots
leading from the scene Of last nights
daring holdup Of an Erie train. and
partial description Of one Of the
robbers were the clues developed to-
day by the posse Of detectives who
are securing the country for the ban
dts. From one of the women passen-
gers of the Philadelphia Erie flyer on
the Pennsylvania Railroad it was
learned today that a light haired man
carrying a Winchester rifle was the
leader OF the gang of twelve masked
highwaymen who shot three members
Of the crew. beat the conductor and
hurled a passenger over three hun
dred foot embankment when he att
tempted to escape and give the alarm.
just east Of the city is camp Of
Italian workmen on whom half dozen
detectives are centering their efforts
in learning more of a description Of
the perpetrators of the boldest holdup
that has occurred in the east in a
decade.
The injured:
H. ]. Hart, express messenger. shot
in leg.
G. H. Block, mail clerk, shot in leg.
G. p. Bemis, brakeman, shot in arm,
Abe Carey, engineer, back hurt by
hurled missile.
II. ID. Rooney, conductor struck in
head with stone
Carl Anderson. salesman. Renova
Pa, thrown oy er embankment, head,
face and body cut probably fatally in-
iured
One Bandit Isjured.
The trail Of blood leading from the
tracks to the forest and undiscovered
until this morning gave the detectives
some hope today after a night Of fu-
tile seacn. u is thought that one Of
the bandits was Injured when conduc-
tor Rooney emptied bis revolver at
two men who finally beat him down.
and left him lying for dead under the
ruins
Immediately upon the discovery
physicians for miles around were tele-
phor0d on teleErsphed for and all
physicians and hospitals IN Erie We're
asked II they had treated anyone for
gun shot wounds.
All those Queried have not yet been
heard from.
Officials here today commended
Conductor Rooney for his pluckiness
in crawling from under the cars al
the risk of being Instantly shot and
killed. TO go TO a telephone and sum
mon aid
No booty is missing from the express
or mail cars and the general pre-
sumption is that the fifht put up by
the train crew prevented the men from
carrying out their intention. A new
force of police and detectives was put
to work on the case shortly before
noon. With the description given by
the passenger, the authorities hope "a
make an arrest within the next twen-
ty-four hours.
Brakeman Describes HOld-up.
Brakeman c. E. Bemis today gave
the following description OF the hold
up while lying on his cot in the hos
pital:
we we're on time and had reached
the Eagle curve, coming into Erie,
when there was a crash. / thought we
had hit the rear end of a freight train.
l ran through coach to reach the
front end AS / got outside the door,
man with black mask over his face
dealt me a heavy blow on the temple.
l tried to come back, when another
masked man shot at me- The bullet
struck my arm and / fell. Then they
kicked me off the platform
II tried to get up but was stunned.
lay there dazed. I heard women
screaming and passengers shouting.
heard Conductor Rooney cry out and
thought they had killed him The rob
bers kept up a steady fire. They were
in the cars only a few minutes when
they headed off toward the forest
shooting as they went. / was picked
up, and a woman who was the only
heroine in the car, tore up skirt and
bandaged my arm.
Conductor Rooney emptied his re-
volver al two bandits who jumped on
pullman platform. None took effect
One Of the men hit Rooney with a
heavy stone, picked up from the tracks
Rooney dropped but later managed tc
crawl along the car tracks and make
his way TO a telephone two miles away
where he reported the hold-up."