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HOW THE HOLD-UPS WERE PURSUED |
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A Member of the Rawlins Posse Returns |
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Chas. Aggers Gives an Interesting account of the
Chase - Many Narrow Escapes - A Long Hard Chase. |
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The following
account of the chase after the train robbers is
furnished us by Mr. Chase Aggers, one of the
Rawlins posse that followed the robbers from
Wilcox. The others in the posse were Deputy
Sheriff E. M. Horton, John Camp from the Union
Pacific shops, Ed. Rankin and Union Pacific
Detective Wheeling. They were joined at Wilcox
by a posse of seven from Laramie. Before leaving
Wilcox they were informed by Union Pacific train
men that the robbers had been camped in the
vicinity of Wilcox for about ten days previous
to the robbery and had a wagon in their outfit.
They found the tracks of the wagon but could not
trace it away from the railroad. Sheriff Yund, a
few days afterwards, found where the wagon had
been burned and the iron thrown into Rock creek.
The only trail
found leaving the vicinity of the hold up was
one made by three horses which crossed Rock
creek about a mile north of Wilcox. This they
followed about six miles and lost it. The posse
then concluded that the robbers would make for
the Hole-in-the-Wall country and would no doubt
cross the Platte river at Casper.
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| The posse then
divided, the Rawlins party, piloted by Mark Edwards
of Medicine Bow, took the most direct route to
Casper through Bates Hole and the Laramie party took
a round about course by Laramie peak. The start from
Wilcox was made about ten hours after the robbery
occurred on Friday, June 2d, and the Rawlins posse
reached Casper Sunday, the 4th, about three hours
after the robbers had left. |
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| It was afterwards
learned that the bridge had not been guarded and the
three robbers crossed unchallenged about 3 o’clock
Sunday morning, rode into town and tried to waken
the hostler at a livery stable to get feed for their
horses, but failing in this they rode outside of
town to a cabin at Casper creek oil well, about
seven miles north of Casper, where they turned their
horses loose and rested until about 9:30 o’clock
a.m. when they left for the north followed by the
sheriff’s posse from Casper, which left Casper at
11:30 a. m. |
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| The Laramie posse
reached Casper Sunday night and overtook the Rawlins
men at noon Monday. After stopping in Casper about
ten minutes the Rawlins posse took the trail for the
north and overtook the Natrona county posse fifty
miles from Casper about 4:30 o’clock p. m. , soon
after they had lost three horses in their encounter
with the robbers. After this the posse made slow
progress as they had to trail the robbers through a
very rough country. They camped that, Sunday night
on Castle creek about four miles from the robbers
camp. |
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| Early next
morning, before camp was broken, Sheriff Hazen went
out scouting and discovered the robbers’ horses
grazing about a mile away from where the posse was
camped and saw the robbers coming up the creek after
them. When the robbers discovered Hazen they went
down on the creek and hid. The posse, fifteen in
number, then left their horses and on foot
surrounded the place where the robbers were known to
have hid. |
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| The creek at this
point was narrow with high steep banks and covered
with brush. The robbers, as it was afterwards found,
followed up the bed of the creek a short distance
and hid in a draw a short distance from the creek.
In surrounding the robbers Sheriff Hazen with
another man stationed himself up the creek from
where the robbers disappeared, while some of the
party proceeded to search among the rocks and
bushes. After the search had proceeded about an hour
Sheriff Hazen left his man to guard the creek and
went down and joined in the search. He knew where
they had disappeared, found their trail and with
Wheeling started toward the robbers’ hiding place
and was shot after going a short distance. About ten
shots in all were fired; some of them at Dr. Leper
and Wheeler and three at Deputy Sheriff Horton which
he returned but as the robbers used smokeless powder
they could not be located. |
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| After Hazen was
shot the robbers were seen by Aggers to slip out of
the draw into the creek bottom and disappear between
the high banks. Supposing there was no possibility
for the robbers to escape, the posse kept their
hiding place surrounded all night. When morning came
it was ascertained that the man Hazen had left on
guard up the creek had deserted his post when he
heard the shots fired the day before, and the
robbers walked up the creek for almost three miles
and escaped. |
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| After capturing
the robbers horses on Castle creek the posse found
their camp in which was found a sack containing
watches and rings. They also found about one hundred
rounds of ammunition, three saddles a .45 caliber
revolver and a Union Pacific Winchester shot gun
loaded with buckshot. The horses’ bridles were
afterwards found in the robbers’ hiding place in the
creek. |
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| The trail was
found about 8 o’clock and after following it for
about five miles the posse, having been without food
for about fifty-eight hours, turned back to go to
Casper for something to eat. In about an hour they
met United States Marshal Hadsell’s party with a
supply of provisions, and after a good meal they
returned and took up the trail again. About eight
miles from Castle creek the robbers separated, two
of them going in a direct course toward the K C
ranch on the Middle Fork of Powder river, and the
other followed that road that led to the ranch. As
the ground was muddy from a heavy rain the trails
were easily followed. The statement that the robbers
procured horses from a freighting outfit is
incorrect. Mr. Aggers followed the trail with the
posse from Castle creek, where Hazen was shot, to
Tisdale’s ranch on Dry Fork of Powder river seventy
miles from Casper, and the robbers were on foot all
the way. |
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| Mr. Aggers was
taken sick with measles at Tisdale’s ranch, where he
was compelled to remain three days, and was sent
home, being accompanied as far as Cheyenne by Union
Pacific Agent Tobin, who was also compelled to give
up the chase on account of sickness. In his long
ride of about three hundred miles Mr. Aggers rode
the same horse he took from Wilcox. |
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Mr. Aggers was one
of the youngest, and being light in weight and
accustomed to hard riding, and thoroughly
acquainted with the country over which the
robbers were being trailed, he would have
rendered valuable assistance had he not been
compelled by sickness to give up the chase.
Of those he left
on the trail he is unlimited in his praise. In
speaking of the Rawlins boys, he says: Ed.
Rankin is tougher than whalebone; John Camp,
although so badly used up with rheumatism that
he could hardly mount his horse, still persisted
in staying with the searching party and our
quiet unassuming deputy sheriff E. M. Horton, he
sums up as a “Joe dandy.”
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