CALIFORNIAN TRAIN ROBBERY

Te Aroha News, Volume V, Issue 213, 30 July 1887, Page 4

CALIFORNIAN TRAIN ROBBERY

The East-bound Californian Express on the Southern Pacific Railroad was robbed at 3 a.m. on June 18th near Flatonia, about ninety-five miles east of San Antonio. The express car was robbed and nobody killed. It is rumoured that the robbers secured 7,500d01. As the train drew up at the station, two men, with drawn revolvers, mounted the engine, covered the engineer and forced him to pull the train to the open prairie, ' •where there were eight or ten men armed with 'Winchester rifles. The two robbers on the engine stood guard over tho man at tho steam-throttle, while the otheis went through the mail, express and passenger cars. Nearly all the passengers were asleep ■and unaware of what was going on until they were aroused by the robbers. All the passengers were relieved of their valuables, and it is diilicult to form any estimate of the money and jewellery scoured. It is reckoned at about o,()00clol. The express car and amul-pouches were also gone through, but the amount oi money taken is unknown. Tho total amounts secured aie now placed at 10,000dol. The whole country is jiroune I and several posses have gone in .search of the robbers. The scene of tJie lobbery is on tho line of the Southern Pacitic Company, but all the line east of Ei I'uso to Isew Orleans constitutes the Atlantic system, the headquarters of which are at New Orleans. Since the mhbory.in Arizona, Apiil 27th, theie ha\e been thiee in the bouthern country; one May 18th. near Fort YVoith, on the Texas Pacific; another on the Missouri P.acitie, at McNeill Station — the robbery of Ja^t night. The ♦Sheiili' has arrived in Galveston. He says there were twelve robbers in the party, a&ul that when they enteied the express car the messenger, Fiank Foiger, seeing them coming, thiew away the keys to his sate. Thi^, enraged the desperadoes, and two of them wreaked \eiiL r enoe on him by beating him over the head with their u^oheih and cruelly splitting hi*-. eai-> with ])ocket kni\-<es. The ine^en<;er w>b badly iibed up. The robbers lecovered the keys and succeeded in opening the t-ato. llow much money they lound i> a meie mattei of conjcotuie, but it is stated that the safe contained LI O,OOO.

RIFLING TEE PASSENGERS. After going thiough the express and mail ears, the robbcrb dhected their attention to the pa^t-eHgeis, none of "whom were overlooked or slu_fhted. Even the newsboy was lobbed of hi-! niekeK One old gentlejnan, filet;] iing in his berth, w^ awakened, and, levelling under his pillow tor his valuable^, was .-huek pensekss by a pi«tul in tlie hands ot the iobber>. The lobbeis tlien c-eeuied from under the pillow a well-filled pui^e. The Sheiih" :-ays that while the robbers were going thiough the forward cai^ the eolouied poiter extinguished all the sleeper, but it was usede-5-3, a^ when the lobbeis enteied the sleeper thty compelled lights in the brakenian to I^o ahead v. ith a lantern aikl ntop at e\eiy bei th. Col. Quinto 1 ;, of the anu\ , «,h amoii^ the pa.^tengers, accompanied by a } cnuiji lieurenanb. Whan Jib learned tliat tlie tsam was being robbed, he called to his Heut^jnanC to biini; him hi 1 - pistol quick and he would kill all the loblteiv. !Mis White, the Sheriff-- wife, who undor.-tancK Spanish, immediately ciied out to the co.lor.cl, telling him if he valued hid life, to leinain in and give up his money, as the robheis had cveiy acivauta^e. A few mQuaeiitß afterwards the robber-, came along v.jlh bLakeinen befoie them c^n\ying a lantern. One of the gang pulled the curtain back exposing the Mexican officer to tlie gaze of Captain Dick, the leader of the gai'g, who was complacently sucking a huge stick of candy in his left hand with the other hand he covered the jNlexican with a big six-shooter. The bandit, captain told him to disgorge, remarking, by way of emphasis, that he would as .vocn kill a greaser as eat his breakfast. The ollieer reluctantly handed over 4()0dols. Se\eraJ drummers from New York and (Jalveslon hou-.es- wcie in the ■pice per and vv-eie all robbed, ncaily g\ci>one receiving brutal treatment. The robbei.s were '>civ lough and ugly in their treatment, e\en striking lady ]">aseengerfe who were slow in finding their pocket-books. It is c-.-t-imatcd to-night that the robbeis obtained not less than 15,000d01. in money, bc-ide^ much valuable jewellery. Up to a late hour no news had been received icgauling the hunt after the robbers, but there is tcaro'Jy any doubt but that they aie safely in Mexico by thio time.