Bonners Ferry herald. [volume] (Bonners Ferry, Idaho) 1904-current, 1921-08-04
TWO BANDITS
Are SENTENCED
WATSON AND McFAIN PLEAD
GUILTY TO ROBBERY OF FIRST
STATE BANK THURSDAY
MUST SERVE S TO Is YEARS
Captured Thursday Night BY Citizen
Posse South of Town.

The two young men who robbed the
First State Bank during the noon hour
Thursday and who were caught about
five O'Clock the same evening, after
having been surrounded by a posse
were arraigned Monday afternoon be-
fore District Judge j. NJ Flynn, and
upon entering pleas of guilty to the
charge of robbery, were sentenced to
from five to twenty-five years in the
state penitentiary at Boise.
The robbers gave the names of Ray
Watson, alias Bob Wilson, age 25
years, former home in Canada, and
Earl McFain, age 26 years, raised in
Tennessee. Finger print records and
photos of the two men were taken at
the county Jail Saturday. Both rob-
bers claim this is their first offence
and up TO the present time the author
tiles have not been able to connect
them with any other crime. McFain is
a veteran of the World War; and
served as an infantryman in France
for about six months. Watson says he
was in Canada during the war and was
exempted from military duty on ac-
count of being engaged in agricultural
pursuits.
McFain was the fellow who robbed
the First State Bank safe Thursday
after compelling Assistant Cashier
Hanson, at the point of a revolver, to
open the safe. Watson stood guard in
the front of the bank. When they had
secured all the currency in the safe
and a bundle of $4,000 worth of Lib
dc of
ination), the robbers locked Hanson
and Mrs. Mae Stewart, teller, in the
safety deposit vault and proceeding
south down Main street to the Great
Northern railway tracks they followed
the track westward a couple of miles
and then went up on the flat at the
VIM. Meader place to hide and get a
few hours sleep.
After their capture the two men
claimed that they had been drinking
and that they finished their supply at
the Great Northern depot just before
coming up town. Watson told that
they had not planned the robbery but
that the job was suggested by McFain
as they were passing the bank, who
said, Lets stick up this bank" Wat
son agreed and the job was pulled.
However, this story does not coincide
with the fact that Watson and McFain
had previously provided themselves
with a knapsack full of foodstuffs sufS
ficient for several days.
When Cashier Hanson found himself
locked in the bank vault he Immediate
ly telephcned to Sheriff Fisher, using
a telephone which had been placed in
the vault for use in such emergencies,
telling the sheriff that the bank had
been robbed. The sheriff and Charles
Noe county stock inspector, arrived at
the bank in a couple of minutes and
after securing information as to the
appearance of the robbers, set out to
look for them. Peace officers of all
nearby towns were Immediately noti-
fled of the robbery and on the Cana
mounted police were called on to keep
on the lookopt for the robbers.
AT this time apparently no one had
seen the robbers leave the bank and
no one knew of a certainty whether
they had walked out of town, left in
an auto, or had jumped on Great
Northern passenger train No. Al which
pulled out just about the time the rob-
bers left the bank building. Sheriff
Fisher sent Deputy Sheriff Alonzo
Osborn in a car to the Montana state
line, having heard that Pierce Arrow
auto had left town about the time of
the robbery. Osborn made the circle
of the northern part of the county go
ing to Eastport and back by way of
Copeland, but found no suspicious
characters had travelled that way r.
braves, proprietor of the braves Har-
ness Shop, had seen the two robbers
as they passed his place of business
on their way to the bank and had
heard them say something to the effect
that they would have to make a quick
job of it and later he noticed them
going towards the Great Northern de-
pot. Other reports were had from a
woman and a boy that they had seen
two men answering the description Of
the robbers, get on Great Northern
train No. A.
A number of special deputies were
sworn in, including ]. w. Reid, VIM.
Wohlford, Oscar Bangs and ]. w. jeff
ries, and these with Sheriff Fisher
started to look for the robbers south
or the Great Northern tracks, going
WCphs JClAilco anu oduB6 lOilOWeu the
right-of-way and Fisher and Wohlford
followed the brow of the hill of the
south bench. Near the Great Northern
"Y' Oscar Bangs found about 5000 in
bills near the railroad track and being
certain that the robbers had dropped
this money he returned to town and
with County Attorney o. C. Wilson
secured some 25 local ciizens to join
in the hunt for the robbers.
Watson and McF'ain were captured
about five o'clock They were first
seen by James McGlocklin and were
hiding in thick clump OF brush. Nc
Fain saw McGlocklin at the same time
and when McGlocklin called to the rob-
bers to surrender McFain fired two
shots, one just grazing the back of
McGlocklin's hand. McGlocklin was
armed with a shotgun and he fired
once, the second shell catching in the
chamber. The shot hit McFain, and
his left foot was literally punctured