Denton and Haughton Examiner, etc. — 1881-10-08 (Denton, Greater Manchester, England)

AMERICAN RAILWAY ROBBERS. THE LATE ATTACK ON THZ KANSAS EMPRESS. A oorrespondent of the Times at Chicago obtained information from a gentleman of that town, who was a passenger, of the robbery of the Kansas express. 1:c says: The affair seems to have been the work of a moment. The train was proceeding smoothly; no one dreamed of insecurity; the passengers were lounging about the cars, and the officials of the train were either asleep or conversing one with another. Suddenly the train stopped, obstructions having been laid on the track, and gun shots and the,sharp crack of the revolver were heard. At the same moment a dozen armed ruffians presented themselves in the coaches. Pointing their rifles, they called upon the astonished passengers to surrender. To this admonition the travellers submitted by holding up their hands. Six of the brigands then proceeded to relieve the passengers of their money, watches, and trinkets; while the remainder of the gang were murdering the express officer in their efforts to induce him to open his treasury chest. The engineer and fireman were forced at the point of the rifle to break open the office, their movements being accelerated by the firing of revolvers at their ears. Altogether the brigands secured between 515,000 and 520,000, as well as a sackful of watches and trinkets. They then decamped, signalising their departure by a fusillade of shots; to use the language of the Chicago gentleman "They skipped op the embankment and were out of sight in a twinkling." Before taking their departure the gang imparted an ante-climax to the drama by distributing rewards to the fireman and engineer for their assistance in breaking open the express officer's car. The unfortunate officer himself they belaboured in the most brutal manner, by striking him upon the bead and face with their revolvers. The marauders, according to my informant, were all young men; they wore masks, but these were of the flimsiest description; it was easy to discern their features. They were dressed in the approved fashion in the West— that is to say, they wore coloured shirts and dingy blue cotton trousers stuffed into jack boots. Upon their heads were the customary wide-awake hats, and in their belts they each carried a 14-shooter and a bowie knife, their equipment being completed by a Henry rifle. These men are all " dead shots," and their desperation and utter disregard of human life render them a source of terror wherever they appear. The gang which "cluck up . the Missouri express are believed to be well known, and their ultimate captors may be looked upon with certainty. Jesse James, whose name was incidentally mentioned by a member of the band, is known as onset the most desperate ruffians in the country. He formerly belonged to the gong which owed allegiance to Quentrell, the leader of the troop which figured so ingloriously in the Civil War, and which dyed its name in ineffaceable ignominy by the massacre at Lawrence, in Kansas. Jesse James, however, is not now upon the war path in the Kansas territory, bet he is believed to be residing upon the residuary gains of his exploits in Texas. The leader of the attack upon the Chicago and Alton train is believed to be identical with the leader of the gang which on July 17th stopped and robbed the Chicago and Rock Island express  at Winston. The authorities of the State of Missouri are exhibiting a laudable zeal in the extermination of these pests of their country, hut the dem and desperate character of the outlaw's render capture extremely difficult. According-to the Chicago gentlemen, the robbers are probably luxuriating upon the rewards of their exploits; and while the police are scouring the woods and pampas, the ruffians are living pleasantly within gunshot of the residence of Governor Crittenden.