The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-12-11
'STRATFORD HOUSED BY GUN FIGHT or
 POLICE AND YEGGS
Post Onace All Cluttered Up
 By Blasts Set Of By Burglars Who Fail to Open Strong Box But
 Make off With About $500
Bill Ney Tells Graphic Story of His Encounter in Early Morning With Masked
 Bandit Who Covered Him With Ponderous Pristolt

Bandit Who Covered Him
 With Ponderous Bristol.
 Bill Ney, janitor of Stratford,s post office building, set his alarm clock for 8: 80 this morning, when he retired last midnight to his boudoir in the Futile block Bill had just put coal on the fire, and figured that the fire would be ready to shut offtat 3 30
 The summons of the alarm clock pulled Bill from the hay at 3:30. He fumbIed his way down the backstairs, in the rear of the postofce- A pack ing box blocked his egress. He stoOp- ed to remove it-%
 And he looked into the barrel of one of the longest bigSest and bluest revolvets he says he's ever seen <
 Just back Of the revolver and at tached thereto by an arm, was "a lit tle weazened up guy with cap pulled way down over his eyess' Bill says A moment later "a long lanky fellow appeared and gave Bill a careful up- went in and fixed the furnace.
 When he came out, the elongated and curtaiIed visitors were still pres ent, and both covering Bill with busi- ness-lilze looking artillery So Bill quietly retreated to his downy couch.
 He hadn't got back to bed when, there was aA explosion Bill hadn't recovered from the shock, when there was another and louder blast t
 TT thought to myself, thens said BflI, this noon, fethat something was wrong It came to me. that maybe those two g1ys--tfe ta1Is Ian sl1oa4t and the little weazened up fellow that be trying to bnst into the post offlce. So went down stairs again.
 eeWheh I got to the foot Of the stairs there was that same weazened mp little guy with the same big re- voIver. He keppa looking right at If made one false move, guess he would have winged me. He didn't say a word. and neither did L I did considerable thinking. though.
 sI thought to .rnyself, here's this guy with a gun. Now it ainst going to do me any good to butt in afn't cop They ain't after my money. Because I ain't got anything worth taking. guess the best place for you, BilI. is back to the feathers
 s.So [ backed into the doorway, and backed upstairs and backed into bed. A little while later I heard them shooting When the first shot was fired my light was burning. Tie sec- ond one came half a second later. My light had been turned out by then and was in bed. They had quite a fight. guess. and they tell me they got qNite a poodle when they cracked the safe. But ain't cop and be- sides I didn't have a gun, so couldn't do anythfng.''
 BEu Ney was right. The stratford postof1ce was robbed by gang of regular yeggs-five~ in number, the police think. They left the inner strongbox unopened, as they did on their last previous visit on June 10. 1912. Early reports were that be- tween $500 and $500 worth Of stamps and cash had been taken The bur glars got away after pitched battle with Chief Allen Judson and State Policeman Rowe Wheeler.
 The strongbox was all primed with sssoup" when the entry of Stratfords s police force interrupted their work and made nasty and sudden exit necessary. Today Stratford officials strongbox, because they didn't partic- ularIy care for monkeying with a nitro -glycerined safe. At noon they were still waiting for the arrival of a couple of sIeutfls from Bridgeport's police department.
 According to William IT. St. John, Sfratford's popular druggist, whose emporium is almost next door to the post oh1ce, he noticed a couple of strangers in the Iunchroom of George H Bateman, president of the fire de- partment, shortly before midnight last night
 1T usually drop in there every night about 12 o'clock, to leave George the New York papers, said MT. St. John today "I noticed a couple of strang- ers there, leaning on the counter. George was cooking something and it took him so long that got interested.
 ssIt was an ome1et. I've been going in there for a year more. and I never noticed anybody ordering an omeIet at midnight. First, I thought ft was an order Of scrambled eggs, but 1t was an omelet. When it was ready, one of the strangers-he was a. little fellow-walked away from the counter, and looked as if he didn't I tnink so much of the ome1et- It was scorched a bit, I guess, and ome1ets aren't good if they are scorched, you know.
 ssThey didn't say anything to me. They left soon after and this morning T heard the post office was robbed ssain.',
 Since stratford has become sort of a rendezvous for post office cracks
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