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Murdered While On Duty

Murdered While On Duty image
Parent Issue
Day
19
Month
March
Year
1886
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

One of the most darlog aud bloody expresa robbelles ever perpetrated in Illinois occurrea on the Chicago & Kook lslaiid west bound express on the night ot the 13th iust, between Joliet.and Morris. The f acts as leained irom the baggageman are that shortly after the train which leaves Chicago at 1:45 a. m. had left that city, he heard a rap at the bajtgagecardoor. TkWUoJl reas Ilin vnrw senger he opened the door and was met by masked robbers, who covered him with revolvers and deinanded his key to the express car. The key was given up, and one robber, a revolver öu 'lYie ira&aíí&oian through a transom In the rooi ot the car, while hls confedérales turncd their attentiou to the express car. It is thought that they i apped on the express car door and inforiiied the uu'.v senger, H. S. Nichols, that the baggageman wantcd to get in. At any rate th ; express car door was opened and the deeperadois eutered, and then occurred one oí the most blooüy and desperate ttruggles ou record. Being confrouted bj the laurderous villinus the niesEenger fougbt for his liie aud the property in his poesessiou. The interior oL the express car shows tb:it Le fought the robbers froui oue end oí tlie car lo the other, but at last the ruurdcrous blows rained on bis head with au ion poker loreed him to bu.cumb, and be as left ueail in the car. The robbers rlflsd bis pocUets ol the key e to the safe, whieh they robbed of all ita contents, variously estimated at from ÍÍÍ5.0U0 to $100,000. Clwcks aud vuluabie packages not cjontaiiniig moncy they lelt scattcred about the tioor. Niilln'ni; was known of Lhe otcurrence until the train reached Morris, tne lirst stop west ot Joliet, except the coal chute wliere ihe Lraln sloppcd to takc on coal. At Morris the local express messenger rappeii on the express car door, but as the summons was not answered it ras thougbt the traiu messenger was asleep. Upon the door of the car hcing opeued tbe horrible evideuces of lle desperate Btruggio unü the liead body ol the messen:. er were discoVcml. lu one hand that wxs elutchej the dead hero had a lock of darkcolored har that he must have toru irom the hcad of one ol the assailants. As to where the robbers boarded the train all as yet Is mere speculatlon. The conductor does not remembei' hayiDg seeu any suspicious characters aboard, but the general opinión is th.u the gang got in the train at the coalshute, and uuipcd ofl just before the train reaeheil Morris. It is thought that lhe men who lominitted lhe robbery and murder are conricts laiely reieased froiri Joliet pc-uitentiary. OtlUers sent from Chigago and Joliet are but alter tbe men. They ieit nolhing in the car by which they might be ldeuiiucu excepta stove [Oker, whicü was uaed by one of them as a weapon. Mr. WjRant, the express agent of the United States hkpress company, states that. the loss by the robbery will be inside of $5,1)00. There was a little over iOUO in money i.nd the balance of tbc stolen matter consisted oí packages of jewelry and other things which he thiuks were not valued at over 4,000. It is impossible just now to llx the loss exactly. The express compauy )3 workiug iolutly with lhe Koek lsland raiiway in endeavoring to catch the robbers, and $10,000 reward is ollered jointly by the two companies. Mr. Niclioib, the murdered iuan, whose home was in Chicago was oue of the most trusted ( mployes of the company, having becu in their emplov auouL au ycars. 'ihe baggageman, 11. N. Watt, who is a jouug mail about 4 ycars old, told thcfollowlug itory : "i was sitting in the car; the cliaius wcre up ou the door which went uto the train, but the door in tLe front j.ait of the car was not locked, as the car 1 had was the oue in which was the messeuger. Ue was checking up his ruue. 1 sat on a trunk, and just afu;r they liad whistled lor Miuooka i hcard a tori of tcraping sound ou the door, but not much, as thougu some one had rubbcd his loot on the door. Belorc f could turn around. a big gun was i.okc.i over my shouluer, anda man said: 'ïou open your moutb or move a musele, and l'U blow your braius out.' 1 could ouly see the lowc-r part of his i ace; it was covered with some clotli or paper, i tat lcoking toward the back part of the car toward the rear of the train when I hcard some one at the safe which was bchind iu: and cculd hear the rustliug and teariug of apers. l his went on for a while, and the man who stooJ over me said to me: ,if you u.ove or stir haud or foot before the train itops at Morris that iuan up there will blow the top of jour head off. I rolled up my eyes anu there was a mau's hand i tuck ihroueu the ventilator, with a gun iu it. In about live minutes, as it seemcd to me, the train sluwed up lor Morris and 1 looked up. The hand was tone, and 1 jumpcd out of the car. 1 heard no noisc nor any stooting. The tirst I heard was as l said, the man gpeaking to me, aud ai the same time putting the gun over my Bhoulder. They must have gottcn into Nichols' car nrstand got U:e key to the sale before tbey carne into me." The inquest over the remains of the murdered express messenger developed nothing beyond what the general story of the crime disclose. - - - - It is 6aid that Clara Louite Kellogg is a first ciüts cook. That j robability accouuts for the iuct that she has no ditliculty in raising her "do," savs the musical mau of the Boston Transcript. The Mississippi river is rightly called the "father," and not the "mother" of waters. With lal its mouths it oever says a word. Ben Butler' book I tbu Bibie. Uk liften cornmlW Mlioic to ipfppry.

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Subjects
Old News
Ann Arbor Democrat