The Mellette County pioneer. [volume] (Wood, Mellette County, S.D.) 19??-1971, 1921-07-08
BANDIT QUEEN
TELLS OF LIFE
Reveals Romances Which Led to
Her Arrest as Instigator of
$4,000 Robbery.
HELD IN CORD OF CRIME
Left Home at 10 and Since Then Has
Struck Out Against WorId-RivaIs
Fought for Her Hand When She
Vas kitchenmaid.

Lead, S. D.-From the life of a
kitchenmaid in Lead to the role of
an alleged bandit queen, who inspired
the $4,000 bank robbery which oc-
Cured in Denver recently, has been
the experience Of Edna Book, who
passed several years here.
The girl is tw~enty-three years Old.
While she was living in Lead several
fights were started between young men
who were rivals for her hand.
After leaving Lead the girl contin-
ued her romantic c%onquests, and it is
said a man was killed in Minneapolis
last fall because Of her. The 500, 1000
bank robbery in Denver was brought
on because of the e~xtravagant tastes
Of the girl and the man with whom she
has now been living. They we're ar
rested In a fashionable Denver resi-
dence.
An interview published in the Den
yer Post follows:
Edna Carroll, the alleged bandit
queen" who answers TO three other
names equally dressy, including that
OF Mickey" is twenty-three years old.
Hustled a Living.
For ten years this girl, companion
Of Thomas j. Coleman. one of the
three men who robbed StOckyards Na->
tional bank employees of $4,000, has
been what she calls "hustling" a liv-
ing, and in those ten years she has
added m inhnritn1 ppnn1nriAS a p1OsS.
Of wisdom concerning good and evil.
AT twenty-three this girl with the
bright coloring, black hair and level
gazing eyes has the lives Of two men
linked to her own with the cord of
crime, the police say.
One of these, r. f. ~Cavanaugh, she
thought SO much of that she bought
the wedding ring for the lhird finger
Of her left hand and wore it when
she consented to beat the town and
go away with him for better or worse"
C~avanaugh, a mechanic, was killed in
Minneapolis last year, and Miss Car
roll, her wedding ring still cleaning
from her finger, returned to Denver.
Then | met Coleman" she said.
"He sat at the same table with me in
a restaurant, and, since in my set we
don't wait for introductions, we be-
a to talk, and as he was the second
man I've met that | wanted to marry
/ agreed to give up my business and
go with him. We had great plans.
These plans included things l had
never thought Of before"
Then Edna mickey" Carroll di-
crossed and told what life had been up
TO the time she met Coleman, the dap
per, dandy "oil broker" at the cafe.
First off, | wish to remark that !
have no use for women" she said, with
a thin smile that challenged a retort.
II never knew one that would not
double-cross you sooner or later, and
most always sooner. My aunt gave me
my first impression of what women
really are. / was born in South Dako-
ia and got tired Of living at home and
at thirteen | left and went to Lead to
work as a housemaid.
There | earned So q month and
got roasted for everything | did and
did not do.
Took Easiest Way.
II decided that this sort of work
didn't agree with me, and as l had not
been educated to do any other kind |
took the easiest way"
"Easiest?" was asked.
mot always; most times terribly
hard" she answered.
81 made a lot of money and saved it,
and sometimes / shared 1t with a sick
pal. But by the time met Coleman |
had saved $4,000, with which / bought
the automobile they're making so much
fuss over. That was my money. |
, earned it and not a cent was his.
"'Tom always seemed to have plenty
of money. and as he suggested that we
would rent a house for a little while,
buy q car and later go away and set
ourselves up in a rooming house that
would bring us In an income l didn't
see any need Of taking OFF my wedding
ring.
I'D dreamed Of a home, a husband,
good clothes and a car and q maid to
wait on us. The dream came true.
And when, on our first evening at
home, q neighbor called as we were al
dinner, the dream was too good to
last. Yesterday Tom told me he had
bought a suit Of clothes at a downtown
store and asked me If l would 60 and
get it for him. When l got back to the
house things had blown up and here
am"