The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-04-12
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looking me in the eyes, Lumas an- swered:
 s'Mr, Furlone, I only received si0.a
 "Lumas. wait moment uutil call in Mir. Brazee, who Is your friend I said,
 Mir. Brazee who had heard every word, was still seated behind the door. Lhunderstrnck. As I entered the room 1 noticed that he appeared almost as distressed as the messenger l asked MT Brazee to write down a record of the conversation as he remembered 1t, and Mir Rrazee did so.
 When he emerged into the room in which the messenger was stil seated. said,
 "Lumas. who were the two men who robbed your caro-
 Denny Downer and friend of his whom he called Little All replied tho man. "t never did know his real name"
 Lumas went on to say that he had made the acquaintance of Denny Downer in q saloon in Detroit, and that powner evidently knew at ths time that he was an express mes- senger The two men formed an anti- macy and soon Lumas got Into the habit of drinking with his friend a good deal. Downer had induced Lumas to let him know when he would be
 
 big run as it was termed Downer had then gone on to say that he would have a friend with him and would board his car at an out of the way station and bind him, without iniur- ing him. and shoot few bullets through the side or the car so as to make il appear that he had made a fight, and that subsequently, they would divide the spoils and that nobody would ever suspect Lumas on account of hts good standing with the com pany. Lumas finally was persuaded to enter into the plot. He learned that a safe containing a sum of money exceeding S4000 and some other valu- ahles was to he shipped on his train. and notified Downer. Downer and Lit tie Al took a train from Detroit and reached Rohan a little ahead of Lumas' train. After the robbery. when he had returned to Detroit Downer sent I.umas letter containing St0. with the prom ise to send him more later on but Lumas had never received another penny Ills conscience had troubled him and he had been drinking heavily in consequence.
 Lumas stated. further. that he had become convinced that the confederateS had tried to strangle him with the gag so as to be able to keep all the spells and at the same time To remove a dan gcrous ally.
 All the officials of the express com pany were amazed at Lumas' confess sion. l turned the man over to my operative and took the first train for Detroit where I arrested Denny Downer Downer at once admiatted his connection with the robbery. and stated that little Al' was Al Perry of Boston. noted porch climber and thief
 Downer and Perry were lodged In the county jail at Wabash, Ind. In due course both were put on trial They pleaded guilty and each manere- ceived a sentence of six years in the penitentiary at Michigan City. Ind. Their sentences were made eompara- lively light because they pleaded guilty.
 Lumas, who pleaded guilty also. was used witness before the grand jury against Downer and Perry. As he was much younger than the two men. and inexperienced in crime and had. fur thermore. been used as a tool by them, sentence on him was suspended.
 After the robbery the express com pany had offered a reward for the ar rest and conviction Of each of the rob Pat O'Neal, the private detective, filed claim against the company to re- cover the money. As he had had noth- ing to do with the arrest or the convic- tion, he naturally failed to obtain if. Copyright, 1914 by W. q. Chapman1
 
 (Next week: "Thc Terrier and the Bloodhounds.'D