Evening star., 1924-10-24
PASSENGERS TELL
+. OF TRAIN H0[D-UP
Describe How Bandits Raid
ed Train From Laredo to
Mexico City.
BRIDGE.
By HARRY NICHOLS.

By HARRY NICHOLS.
By Cable to The Star and Chicago Daily News.
MEXICO CITY. October 24.--A group
Of American passengers on hte
train held up by Mexican bandits a
few days ago while going from La.
redo to Mexico City just arrived here
with the story Of their experiences
with banditry.
The group included Mr.. and Mrs.
r. R Seaver, the former gen.
era1 manager of the Hussteca Pc
troleum Company, owned by Edward
J.. Doheny: Mr.. and Mrs. NJ. Ulvary
OF New York, tourists on their first
pleasure trip to Mexico, and Mr.. and
Mrs. B. J. Dupar, Frank Stevens and
Charles Weeks, all of Des Moines,
Iowa. There were others whose
names are not available.
Describing the experiences of pas
sengers. Mrs. Seaver recounted details
of the hold-up.
Halted With Crash.
1T was about 10 O'Clock in the
evening. Most of the passengers had
retired and / was at one end of
the Pullman and my husband at the
other when the train suddenly halted
with terrible crash. 1 was thrown
heavily against the side Of the car,
but not injured. Following the crash
there was rife firing which lasted
seemed like hours. All the passen-
gers lay on the bottom OF the car.
did not know my husbands fate.
and so I whistled and he whistled
in return. I noticed a passenger
throw his watch under'a seat and
] did the same with my Jewels. We
remained thus until a brakeman an
nounoed that the passengers had to
leave the car, as search was to
be made. Then the bandits entered.
There were six Of them, all armed.
They said that nobody might leave
or they would be killed. The ban
dts then left, but returned later, TAX
ing fire ak. I heard them banging
at what proved to be the safe in the
express car. The bandits returned a
second time, with the brakeman in
front Of them. With leveled rifles,
they ordered the passengers to place
their valuables in the bandits caps.
Each passenger had to turn his pock-
cts inside out and show that they
were empty. The women gave up
Valuables which amounted to a small
fortune.
Brakeman Injured.
1.-THE brakeman's right hand had
been smashed, and the passengers did
all they could to relieve his pain. The
bandits left at 1 o'clock in the morn.
ing, three hours after the hold-up
began. Our trunks were buried in
the debris Of the overturned bag
gage car, but had not been carried
off. The bandits apparently had re-
ceived word that assistance was COM
ing and made of toward the hills
An examination Of the situation the
next morning showed that the ban.
dts had torn up a rail on curve
The train was going upgrade at the
time and the locomotive was de.
rallied. 1t tumbled down an embank.
ment, killing the engineer. -Four
other cars were overturned, but the
secend and frst class coaches and
the Pullman did not leave the track
The train. was escorted by six sol.
diers. Two Of them were wounded
by bandit bullets and 1t is reported
that they died"
One OF the passengers says tha'
he was informed by the express mes
senser that the trains safe contained
10000 pesos ($45.00o). 1t appearl
that the bandits got no money, fail
ing to break open the safe. though
they hammered at II continuousl!
after extricating 1t from the wrecked
car. Several Of the American passen
gers refused to continue on to Mex
leo City and returned to Laredo
Special detachments of military wer,
rushed to the scene of the hold-ul
for the purpose of pursuing the ban
dts, who took to the hills.
(CopyriSht, 1924. BY Chicago Daily News Co..