Atlanta Georgian., 1913-10-19
Fair Sleuths Assigned to Investi-
gate Love Affairs Of 140 EN-
pIoyees Under Surveillance in
$4,000 Robbery Mystery,
After Forty Days Work, With 300
Secret Service Men on Trail at
One Time, No CIew to Stolen
Bank Shipment Is Found.

Mystery more bafiing than that
surrounding any other theft in the
history Of express company robber-
les and rivaling any plot which Conan
DovIe ever called upon Sherlock
Holmes to solve, shrouds the disap
pearance Of $4,000 in a shipment
from New York to Savannah Septem-
ber s.
The money was given 10 Adams
Express Company IN Jersey City by
the Chase National Bank on Mon
day night in a sealed trunk. When
delivered to the Savannah Bank and
Trust Company the opening Of the
rackage revealed nothing but empty
envelopes and newspapers.
Since that time the watchdogs Of
the express companies have not slept.
Within an hour after the discovery
~ the robbery every special agent of
the secret service had been notified,
and with Atlanta men leading the
work the weaving of a human net
from New York to Savannah began.
To-day that net is regarded as per-
feet. It Is composed of 160 men who
know that they may be on the spe-
clal assignment given them for few
weeks O. for yesrs.
During the 40 days which have
elapsed since the robbery the Adams
and Southern Express Companies
have spent more than $4,000 in the
effort to locate the thief. Three hun
dred detectives have worked on the
case. Should 1t be necessary to main
tain the present search until the first
Of the year the express companies
will have spent at least $4,000 in the
work If necessary the company
stands prepared to spend more than
the amount of the theft to land the
robber.
Greatest Line-Up of Sleuths.
At this time what is considered as
the greatest lineup of detectives on
a single case in American history
stands bafled, without one tangible
the slow process Of elimination the
number of employees of the express
and railroad companies under suspi-
ci0n has been reduced to 140. They
have investigated every man, and so
far nothing has been found against
anyone.
Experience has taught them that in
SO out of 100 robberies such as this
an employee of either the express or
railroad company is implicated. So
they have followed the policy Of es-
tablishing a network Of sleuths over
the 1,0O0-mile course. A complete
search of the right of way from New
York to Savannah was made in the
effort to find even a slight piece Of
paper or other evidence which might
furnish a line to work upon. But
nothing resulted.
There are 500 stations between New
York and Savannah; there are a
thousand ways in which the money
may have been taken, but in the main,
according to the detectives, there are
but half dozen
First there is the substitution Of a
fake package for the real one at the
receiving clerks office. Here is be-
heved to be the only loophole where
someone not an employee could have
committed the robbery.
To have succeeded in this he would
have had to commit 1t in the twin
king of an eye. Here is where the
professional crook enters the plot. 1t
was on this phase of the case that
the metropolitan detective forces ex-
srted themselves.
The search has been close in white
ways of the greater cities or along the
Nights Of crimson in the smaller towns.
For the thief, like the gambler, dissl-
pates his ill-gotten gains.
Women Detectives on Case.
The guilty man is sure to believe
that he is under surveillance. There
fore, this watching must be done in
the most delicate way Carefully the
life history Of the principal suspects
Is gone into.
It may be that new family moves
into his neighborhood. His family
comes in contact with new friend,
TO whom they take a great liking.
This friend, through acts of friend
Continued on Page 6, Column 2, This
Section