The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1912-10-09
A SAILORS
KNOT
By EDWARD N. WENTWORTH

thi' iiehiihb way We nuoe ptIu S-vt
900 to the Third National bank of Cop
perton and get 1t there before o'clock
l wish you and Williams to take 1t
dividing the amount between you. Yor
have sent, to be here In ten minutes
from Anderson's garage. You and
Williams will, Of course, go armed, but
don't think there is any danger since
l see no reason why any one should
know that you carry money"
1t was very well for the president ia
say that no one would know we carried
money, but the bank was continually
sending out funds, and Williams and l
were known as the banks messengers
We didn't know who of the force en-
ployed In the bank might be dishonest
to other places would supply informa-
ton to crooks that would cause a rob-
berry.
l had carried funds so often with
tout getting into trouble that it seemed
to me the pitcher that goes often to
the well Is at last broken.
However, Williams and I started,
each with $4,000 on our persons. Our
chauffeur we had had often before
and had every confidence in him. We
rolled out of town and onto the road to
Copperton, some twenty-five miles dis
tant.
Some ten miles of the distance
had been done, when, coming to a
sharp bend in the road, our driver slow
led up to make the turn and man
Jumped onto the footboard on each
side, each man holding a cooked re-
cred the driver and ordered him TO
stop.
or course we had no time to draw
and defend ourselves, and the chauf-
feur was unarmed. The first thing
the robbers, who were masked, did
was to take away our revolvers and
the next to go through us and relieve
us of thes bills. Then they took us
into thick wood beside the road and,
whipping out strong cord, proceeded
to bind us so thoroughly that we
could not move hand or foot. Then
they put gags in our mouths and left
the three of US to get out of the
scrape as best we could.
Now, | had been to sea from eight
cen to twenty on sailing vessel and
knew something about the calling of a |
sailor. There was one circumstance
and only one that told me the man
who tied me had been seaman. |
When he bound me he tied the cord !
In knot that every sailor uses con-
tinually and no one but sailor would |
think of using. Fortunately for me,
couldn't talk for the gag in my mouth
or | should have called the attention
of the others to the fact. As 1t was,
soon bethought myself that large re-
ward would be paid by the bank for
the discovery of the robbers and with
the clew 1 possessed l might more
easily win the reward myself. So |
determined to keep my counsel and as
soon as we were released to hunt for
q sailor or one who had been a sailor
who was spending money freely.
The chauffeur, who had some false
teeth in his head, by dint of working
his jaws contrived to loosen them,
which loosened his gag also, and he ,
soon got both teeth and gag out of his
way. So when we heard the sound Of I
wheels passing on the road he set up
a shout. which brought a man into I
the wood. The chauffeur told him our !
story, and, taking his knife, he cut
The cords that bound us. This ena-
bled me to preserve the knot that was g
used In my case, and / stuffed 1t into =
my pocket for evidence. t
/ confess l didn't feel any especial a
tenderness for the president of the /
bank, who thought should have found s
better ways of sending money about I
than the one adopted. / not only had
he obloquy of having been robbed, of
having some suspicion cast upon me
nut had run risk Of being murdered.
Therefore l resolved on an effort TO
get something out of the occurrence.
l wrote or telephoned the police of !
he neighboring towns to look out for |,
my one of sailor cut who was spend d
ng money. l was soon notified of t
nan who was ashore temporarily, who Il
lad got 500 bill changed. / slipped b.
way to the town where the fellow II
vas, darkened my complexion, met v
lin in q saloon, pretended to be drunk y
ind asked him to drink with me. We 81
lad not been long together before he al
hanged another bill of large denomi-
alton, which believed had been car is
led by either Williams or me- | left "a
i'm at Ills boarding house, but return lie
d when he was asleep and before he II
wakenrd from his drunken stupor "
ad fouNd S10,S50 of the banks money. !,
When hr got righted again l prom -
;ed him light punishment If he would n,
each on his comrades. He agreed sa
nd ii turned out that the Others We're I'll
z-convirts. who had got hold of the a
ailor while ashore and led him into co
he robbery. All the money except al
w hundred dollars was recovered, 70
nd I captured a reward OF $1,000. As ID
BON as l had received Il, l left the 80
ervice OF the bank and do not intend IN
, go back as messenger TO that or II,
ny other institution. Their methods no
exchanging funds I consider out Of TO
,te and very dangerous. And ] have be
ms