Year: 1874




JUDGE VAN BRUNTs ACCOUNT OF THE BATTLE WITH


THE BURGLARS AT HIS CoUNTRY-HoUsE.


Judge Van Brunt gave yesterday full
statement OF attempted robbery of bis house at Bay
RIDGE L. l.. and the death of the robbers My house,
he sad "is situated right on the shore road about
mile below the steamboat landing within about 400 OF
500 feet of the water. My brothers house Is about 2
feet south of that. My house Is always vacant
in the Winter. I have O burglar-alarm. which Is
attached to every door, window and all the blinds
I'm the house. The wires are carried to the other
house. and the bell Is there in my brothers BEDROOM 80


that the moment any door or window or bind Is opened
In my house. the bell rings instantly In his house. 1t
was about O'Clock Monday morning that that bell
began to ring, and he supposed that as
the wind had begun to blow very hard perhaps
blind had blown open. and had caused It to ring He
had been sick for week or ten days-yery ill-and
didn't want TO 60 out in the cold and he called his
to 20 and call my gardener who lives in the barn. about
800 or back OF the house. He went and called
him and they went down TO the house together
as they were putting the key into the door, TO go into
the house, they saw light in one of the windows. and
then, OF course, knew that somebody was there.
Then my nephew went and got one of his fathers men,
and two or three guns. for each, and came back
This light was seen moving In the house. these men
going from room to room. They could not tell how
many men there Then my nephew went over for
his father and although he had been SICK he pressed
him to come until he took his gun and went over He
put his son and man by the name of Frank In
the front OF the house. and he and William Scott my
gardener stood in the They saw that the cellar
door had been forced and that the way by which
they had entered the house. They watched tho for
a time, and then my brother was getting cold and
feared exposure he told the men to get them out He
was standing by tho diningiroom window ut
that moment, and of the robbers walked
through the room not ten feet from him. The men then
went the wing and while they were there the door
was shaken. The inside Immediately put Out their
light BY lighting matches now and then those outside
could see them feeling their back into the cellar
The besegers waited a considerable tme each OF the
watchers being in the position first assigned him. Tho
precautiOn had been taken that they should not leave
IL would be safe to fire. Il dark at tho time that
unless the form OF man was against something white,
appear as indefinite object but 1t could not be
distinguished whether 1t was man or anything else
The foundation OF the house Is dark and
when the burglars came from tho celia cellar the, they
heads to the white part of the house. AS soon as my
brother them he called to them to stand At that
very moment burglars ed, aud Scott says that one
Of the pistol balls whstled past his head. They then
fired themselves One load lodged In tue sill OF the
eau be found, and this is supposed to be
the load that hit one man in the bowels.
could only moving along not what they were
dong-and ran with his companion toward the end or
house. and then my DIOtner hnOt again. IHdb bnnt
struck them behind but they had thick coats ON,
and 1t didn't 90 through them. Tue man who was shot
fell at OF the house The other man. who was
evidently not injured, went around the corner
and there met my brOthers son. He nred at
him but was close that the shot passed
him. He fired twice Then Frank shot at
him. but did execution. Then this old man. the bur
glar, pistol and fired at my nephew twice, close
to him, but didn't hit him, and he was raising his


to fire the third time, when my nephew cluDbed his gun
and struck him on the arm. breaking the gun. The
man, then evidently disabled In his night arm,
stopped down as If 10 pick up something.
his pistol shot him twice in the back he stOOp
ing THIS got and attempted 10 run, getting
over quite distance, my nephew firing again. Just
m he got past the front OF the house. met the
man VINO mad been stationed with my brother In the
rear Of the house. who had come around The burglar
spoken before, and that was TO call my nephew by
vile epithet."


When | got down there the lyiny on the
piaZzI, dead. IL the man who shot the
bowels who made this confession about the Ross boy,
which accurately stated IN some or the morn
Ing papers. for it taken down In writing.
He knew he was dying at that time Each man
had q seven-shOoter and one, the old man, had
a knife about six inches long aud as sharp a
razor My brothers wife was looking out at the affray
could Ouly tnc flashes and hear the reports
shouts but II was dark tnat she could see any
figures at all thirteen shots were fired in about min
ute or minute aud half the men had been through
every in the house. and had opened every bureau
drawer; only two doors in the house were locked.
aud that only to secure their being latched The
keys the door, but the other side from the
burglars. These doors were forced. There nothing
displaced except where anything happened To be GOV
cred up with paper, aud that had Deeu of They
had been through tue whole OF the house garret TO
cellar. There was nothing in the house that they could
carry OFT. They had undoubtedly made an attempt
10 enter Mrs. Whites house the same nignt because
somebody heard around the house, and blind had
persons up in the house, which probably kept the burg
lars There considerable exc teineut for whiie
and only anxious that my brother shall not suffor
from the exposure