Democratic Sentinel, Volume 1, Number 39, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 9 November 1877 — Capture of Western Road Agents. [ARTICLE]

Capture of Western Road Agents.

A Cheyenne (Wyoming) dispatch gives the following account of the operations and subsequent capture of a couple of bold highwaymen: “The coach that left Deadwood Tuesday morning, coming south, was stopped and robbed last night within three miles of this post, by two armed men, supposed to be Blackbum and Wall, the notorious road agents. There were seven passengers on the coach, among whom was United States Marshal Sweesy. The robbers took everything of any value that could be found—money, jewelry, blankets and overcoats. The same men, about daylight this morning, robbed a freight outfit, consisting of four wagons, taking all the blankets they had. They took from a Chinaman who was with the train everything he had, and then administered a sound thrashing with the teamster’s whip. Lieut. Chase, with a detachment of the Third Cavalry, accompanied by William Reid, an experienced man at tracking thieves and catching them, started this morning at daylight in pursuit of the thieves, and followed them nearly all day, hearing of them often just ahead, they having robbed six different men during the day. They finally captured the men twelve miles above the Government farm and about thirty-six from Fort Laramie. A hot chase was kept up for about five miles after the robbers discovered their pursuers. They threw away a gun and some heavy articles in their flight, and were finally brought to bay by several shots being fired at them, and surrendered. They are now in the guardhouse at this post. One of them is identified as Webster, the murderer of Deputy Sheriff Cuney. They would not give their names, telling the officer of the day that they had a dozen names each, and that there was no use in giving any names. The two gray horses they rode are identified as two horses that belonged to the Cheyenne and Black Hills Stage Company, and were stolen from them some time ago.