Omaha daily bee., 1911-07-02
BANDITS HOLD UP
EXPRESS TRAIN
Mail Car on the Pennsylvania Road
is Robbed and Clerk Seriously
Wounded in the Battle.
LARGE SUM OF MONEY SECURED
vOIIeys of Bullets Are Fired at the
Passengers When They stick
Heads Out of windows TO
Sec what's Going On.

ERIE. Pa, July IA hundred or more
farmers and every police officer in the
county and state police are searching
today for the train robbers who last night
held up and robbed train Nc. 81 on the
Philadelphia and Erie branch of the Penn
sylvania lines in the most modern methods
of the wild west"
The train was bound from Philadelphia
for Chicago and was brought to a stop
against ties and telephone poles piled on
the track at Wesleyville, about five miles
from this city. The bandits rifled the mail
and express cars before they escaped the
mail clerk was shot and seriously wounded,
the conductor was stoned and many pas
| sengers had narrow escapes from death or
wounds by bullets.
The men who are searching for the rob
! bers are heavily armed and an encounter
with any OF the bandits will result in blood
shed.
No. accurate information is obtainable as
| to the amount of loot the robbers secured
Reports that they got $4,000 which was
being shipped to- this city by the Adams
Express company were promptly denied by
the express company ar well as the railroad
officials.
| Obstraction ON Track.
The train was rounding Five-Sliie curve
at reduced speed. when Engineer Albert
Carey saw the eobstruction on the track ir
the reflection Of the locomotive headlight
I He threw on the reverse and Just as the
locomotive crashed into. the timber II came
| TO stop. Had the train been running a
any kind of speed, railroad men say Il
would have been hurled down an embank
ment to rocks 200 feet below.
AS the train stopped one of the robbers
boarded the locomotive. Carey jumped tc
the. floor of the cab from his riding sea-
and hurled coal at the man. The bandit
fired and Carey leaped to the ground and
struggled with the robber until another
came up and threw Carey over the embank
ment. His clothing caught on a proturdin,
plank and he escaped with a wrenchet
back.
c. III. Klock OF this city, one OF the mai
clerks, was first warned by the smashing
in OF the mail ar door. The gang imme
oiaiely opened fire on him. He empte,
two guns ut the robbers beSore he fell will
a bullet through his hip.
Conductor II. d. Rooney borrowed a re
volver from a passenger, but was felle.
with q stone. He crawled to farmhouse
He was chased by farmers who though
ne wa sone OF tne rODDerS and 9Oug n
refuge in a tree.
Finally Rooney got TO a telephone an
notified the railroad officials here, who dis
patched officers on a switch engine.
Il Panic Among Passengers.
|, The 500 passengers. when they learne,
} they were participating In holdup o
! yellow novel magnitude. became PAM
stricken. Women screamed hysterically an
tainted. Heads thrust from the window
were hastily pulled back and those tina
ventured to leave hastened within the ca
when dozens OF shots belched fire alon
the line OF the train. The shooting towar
the passengers continued and broken gIas
from the windows fell tinklins to the tracl
None Of the passengers however. was hi
: by the bullets. but the express agent o
the train, James Hart. received q buile
in the side and was brought TO a hospits
here. II was said the robbers fired q
shots.
L Carl o. Anderson of Renova. Pa, graz
| pied with one Of the holdup men. and wa
hurled over a steep embankment. He wa
saved from serious injury by catching ON
bush. Anderson says the man he tackle
was an Italian.
Detectives are Of the opinion that tn
highwaymen Intended the train 20 h
the obstruction and go over the embanl
ment TO the bed Of Four Mile creek nearI
200 feet below.