Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1926-10-15
Wreck Postal Truck

Continued from Page one)
F. Quinn, Ems helper. shot tbropsb
Tue right side, left wrist and left leg.
o,Icelilan Jacob Christman.
shocked from his motorcycle bv one
OF the bandit cars, two bullet wounds
In the left leg and one in the riebt
Arthur Decauter, bystander. shot
In the arm.
At five o'clock a force of "a troon-
cIs' armed with rifles were mustered
at Pluckamin headquarters. There
were deployed about the Wachune
mountains in the belief that the gum
men We're at bay. Major Mark o.
NUMBERING, in charge, sent for rein
torcements of fifty men, and the Or
der to close in was expected to be
given before midnight.
The robbers victims were shown
no mercy. The truck was proceeding
south on Elizabeth Avenue. AS il
drew up to the Sixth Street inter-
section, the leading bandit car, con-
tanning tour men, pulled from Sixth
street in front of the truck He ap-
plled the brakes and the second car
! swung TO the rear, crashing into
fonceman Christman throwing him
from his machine.
~.
ieaped from both machines. Three
turned their attention to the men on
the drivers seat of the truck, and
Chrlstman. Operating their hand
machine guns from the shoulder. the
ROBBERS sent spray of bullets in all
directions. ChriStman was shot as
ne lay helpless beneath his machine;
Quinn, jumping from the seat with
pistol IN left hand, was incapacitated
by a bullet through the wrist. Enz
was shot through the head and fell
unconscious, dying a few minutes
later.
The three who were not firing at
the victims, formed a circle about the
automobiles and set up a hail Of AZ
calibre bullets and slugs, which sent
the few pedestrians on the streets
scourrylng to cover. Non ecould give
coherent account of what happen
ed.
A large crowbar and wire nippers
were used to gain entry into the
truck.
AS to the mail sacks contents,
more than 100000 was known to
nave been consigned by the Federal
Reserve Bank of New York to the
EIizabethport Trust Company. Bank
ofhcials would not reveal the exact
! ptAiCl tLldll W Say was
| considerably more than 100000"
Ten postofflce inspectors from the
New York and Philadelphia divisions
| are working on the case under the
supervision of .. d. Williamson of
philadelphia
Williamson refused to say whether
the mail was registered or estimate
the total of the loot.
A large sedan containing eight
men was reported to have been seen
! near Basking Ridge, which is not
far from Bernardsville and in the
district surrounded by the state DO
lice.
3 Airplanes will be pressed into SER
vice in an effort to find the hangout
of the gang, If they are not captured
tonight, according TO Major Kimber-
{ ling.
Houses and a fence in the vicinity
gave evidence of the firing done by
the bandits. Several windows were
broken, and q dozen slugs We're i'm
bedded in the walls OF one house
and the small fence was almost per-
forated with the lead shot and bull
lets.
At the request of Elizabeth police
radio station WOR of Newark
broadcast a description of two of the
bandits.
The streets and crossroads Of sur
! rounding counties were thickly dot
ted with heavily armed police after
the alarm was spread Many motor
parties were halted and questioned.
In West Orange an Essex County
Park policeman cornered four men,
| armed with shotguns. after chase
of several miles at sixty miles an
hour. The men told the authorities
they were hunters and explained they
were attempting escape because they
had no licenses.
About an hour after the hoEiup two
automobiles, containing about eight
men, were pursued on Chancellor
avenue, Newark, by motorcycle po
lice.
An automobile patrol of detectives
| joined the chase which continued for
more than five minutes through
Irvington and Millburp. At the lat
ter village the officers were out dis
tanced
The gunner were believed to have
turned south in the fastness of the
Watching Mountains.
License plates on the bandit ma
chine were found to have been stolen
from cars in neighboring towns
within the past few days.
Elizabeth police tonight held as
suspects three men who are free on
bail in connection with other crimes.
They were Frank Barra, former
seaman on the Steamship George
Washington, and implicated in a
$4,000 mail robbery on that boat;
Lee McRitchie, accused of a hold
un ON Staten Island ferry three
months ago and Mutton Syms,
awaiting trial on a charge of implica-
lion in the Merck Chemical Company
rohhery in Railway.