Chicago Tribune
Tuesday, September 26, 1893
Price Two Cents
DEATH TO ROBBERS.
Fatal Attempt to Hold Up a
Train in Missouri.

KILL TWO DESPERADOES

Four Remaining Members of the
- Gang Under Arrest.


TRAIN WAS BUT A DECOY


It Contained Armed Officers Sent Out by the Company.

BANDITS FIGHT DESPERATELY


ST. JOSEPH, Mo., Sept. 25.-[Special] Two men shot to pieces and a third in
Jail, with the prospects of the gallows before him, is the net result of an
attempt to rob a train on the Burlington road near this city last night. The
men who were shot were Frederick Kohler and Hugo Gleitze, who, with Henry
Gleitze, had attempted the robbery. N.A.Hurst, a detective, and Charles
Fredericks and William Garver, two decoys, were arrested, and it was first
stated that they were members of the bandit gang.

The usual proceedings in the train robbing business were varied in this
instance, and the robbers met with a reception which will not be encouraging
to others who seek a living by this romantic but somewhat dangerous method.
Frederick Kohler, Hugo Gleitze, and Henry Gleitze, his brother, were
the men who planned to rob the north bound train on the Kansas City, St. Joe
and Council Bluffs road. They had laid their plans twice before to holdup
the train, but not until last night did they feel sure enough of success to
swing the red Iantern across the track. When the train came to a halt,
instead of encountering frightened trainmen they ran up against the Sheriff
of this county, the Chief of Police, and fourteen detectives, policemen, and
Deputy Sheriffs, all fully armed. In less than fifteen minute two of the
robbers were fast stiffening side by side in the baggage car, and the third
was fleeing for his life. Not one of the officers received a scratch,
although many shots were fired at them.

The bandits had two sticks of dynamite, to each of which was attached a
fuse about three feet long. It was known to the officers on the bogus train
that dynamite might be used and it was at first proposed to let the robbers
explode some of it before firing on them. Before leaving St. Joseph,
however, Chief Broder decided it would be a dangerous risk and he instructed
the bogus messenger to open the door before the robbers had a chance to
explode the stuff. Chief Broder says there was enough dynamite to blow the
car into splinters.

The bodies of the two dead bandits and the three captured men were placed on
the train which they had attacked. The train then re-turned to the Francis
Street Depot at 12:35 and the regular train went on its way. The passengers
did not know what had happened. It was quick work and the train bearing the
officers was back at the Francis Street Depot in just forty minutes from the
time it left.

W. C. Browns Statement.
W. C. Brown, who was in the first car, says Kohler was concealed behind
some bushes near the track when the train stopped. As the train slowed down
he walked toward it with his gun cocked, cursing and ordering the supposed
passengers to keep inside. When he was about fifty feet from the train the
shooting began and Kohler then commenced firing. Mr. Brown says he could be
seen very plainly in the moonlight as he walked towards the car. After he
had fired two or three shots he was seen to fall. He crawled' behind some
bushes and continued to shoot. He was being fired upon by Sheriff Carson's
men and the officers in the other car. When the flash from his gun was seen
the officers would pour a broadside into him. When Hayes was within ten feet
of Kohler the latter raised up on his arm and tried to shoot Hayes, but
dropped back dead. Engle fell soon after Kohler was killed and when picked
up was found to be mortally wounded. He was shot twice in the back of the
head and his brains were oozing out.

Supt. Hohl Tells Their Plans.
Supt. Hohl tells the following previous plans of the robbers:
Aug. 11 the men proposed to holdup a Burlington train. This plan was
frustrated by somebody having driven off the horse and buggy which was hired
by the Kohler brothers, who left it hitched on Felix street. I next heard of
a plan to hold up Kansas City, St. Joseph and Council Bluffs train No. 3 at
Rushville during the fair week, but the location of the robbery was
afterward changed to a point between St. Joseph and Amazonia near Roy's
Branch crossing. I was next advised that an attempt would be made to hold up
train No. 3 last Friday night. The robbers were all on hand but they
expected the fast freight train No. 17 ahead of No. 3 and intended to let
that train pass. No. 17 was late however, and No. 3 went ahead of it, and
before the robbers realized that the passenger train was coming they were
unable to flag it and they returned to the city and divided up. Train No. 3
carried $40,000 in the express companies safe. The next I heard was that an
attempt would be made to hold up train No. 3 Sunday night, the robbers
evidently thinking that there would be no Sunday deliveries of cash by the
express company and the car would be loaded with money on that night. Then
we went about our arrangements to capture them or prevent the successful
termination of their scheme. On Friday night I took Sheriff Carson, Chief
of Police Broder, and four-teen officers to Amazonia on train No. 3, but as
stated before the robbers failed to flag the train as intended.

Kohler's Bad Record.
Fred Kohler, who was killed last night, was only 19 years old, but he
was a hardened and desperate boy. He had been employed on the daily papers
of St. Joseph as a carrier for two or three years. He was discharged from
the service of the Daily News last winter because of his quarrelsome and
surly manner. After his discharge he came to the office and was put out of
the carriers' room by John Clark, Superintendent. He drew a revolver and
threatened to shoot Clark and has since threatened to kill him. He told
Hurst that he intended to waylay Clark on his way home from the Council
meeting tonight and that tomorrow night he intended to hold up Huston Wyeth.
He had recently stolen three horses. He married a most estimable young lady
three weeks ago.

An Ex-Convict the Leader.
Henry Gleitze who escaped but was subsequently captured is an ex-convict. He
was convicted of highway robbery about three years ago arid was sent to the
penitentiary for two years. He had been out about a year. He is known to be
a dangerous man and ambitious to engage in more dangerous crimes than
highway robbery. It is believed that he was the leader of the gang, although
he did not plan the robbery.

Officers traced him from the scene of the hoId-up to the house of Mary
Elsmer in South St. Joseph. His pockets were full of ammunition and three
fingers of his left hand were shot off. He denied strenuously that he had
taken any part in the attempted robbery, but refused to talk further. The
police are confident that they have the right man and he is securely locked
up at police headquarters.

Coroner Reynolds held an inquest over the bodies of Kohler and Gleitze. The
jury deciding that they came to their deaths while attempting to rob a
train, despite the fact that their relatives attempted to prove the railroad
officials could have captured the men without shooting them and tried to
make out a case of murder.

Hugo Gleitze was simply a worthless dissolute boy of the tough variety,
ready to rob a clothesline or crack a skull, as occasion demanded. These
three men were led to their destruction by a former member of their gang who
lacked heart to follow them in their dar-ing plans and the skillful work of
amateur detective. Young Kohler had aspired to become a criminal whose name
would appear frequently in the papers on account of his wicked deeds, and
since the epidemic of train robbing has swept over the country has been
practically a monomaniac on the subject. In June he first began to lay his
plan to rob a train on the Burlington road. August 11 he, together with his
brother and another man whose name is unknown started out to rob the same
train they attacked last night but some slight disarrangement of their plans
caused them to abandon their attempt.

Hurst the Detective
Soon afterwards N.A. Hurst and ex-employee of the Daily News of this
city who has recently been employed by the Western Detective Agency
discovered several sticks of dynamite in the upstairs room on Francis
Street. He knew that Kohler frequented the room and asked him where the
dynamite came from. Kohler replied that he was going to blow up a safe, and
after some little conversation he invited Hurst to join fortunes with him
and become his pal in a series of crimes. Hurst won the confidence of Kohler
and agreed to assist him in the rob-bery of a train and the date was set for
Sept. 23. Later this was changed to last night. Hurst promptly notified
Chief Locke of the detective agency and they notified the railroad
officials. About this time Charles Fredericks, a young man about 20 years
old, who had been invited to join the gang was employed by the Burlington
road. He was discharged the 12th of August. It is not known positively
whether he really intended to assist Kohler in robbing the train or not, but
at any rate he notified the railroad officials of the plot about the same
time that Kohler divulged his plans to Hurst.

General Manager W. C. Brown promptly resolved to make an example of the
gang, and quietly set to work to annihilate them. He put himself in
communication with Chief of Police Broder and Sheriff Carson.

Take Them In the Act
At first it was decided to arrest the men on the evidence of Hurst and
Fredericks but Mr. Brown finally decided that the only sure plan would be to
take them in the very act, and if they offered resistance to kill them on
the spot. Yesterday afternoon young Kohler informed Hurst and a young man
named Marver, whom he had invited to join him, that a passenger train No. 3
which leaves St. Joseph at 11:40 for the West, would be' held up within a
short dis-tance of the city. Hurst promptly reported the matter to his
chief, and General Manager Brown was informed of the plans about 9 o'clock.
At first he decided to send the Sheriff's posse and detectives with the
regular train and have it out with robbers, but he concluded that it would
not be wise to risk the lives of the' passengers, and at the last moment
changed his plans; he instructed Supt. Hohl to prepare a train which should
be in every way a counterpart of the regular train. Mr. Hohl hastily got
together a baggage car and six ordinary coaches. Curtains were placed on the
windows of the latter coaches, and they were made dark to look like sleepers
and the other cars were lighted, although the blinds down. The arrangements
were hardly completed before the regular passenger train came into the Union
Depot. Mr. Brown who took personal charge of all the arrangements, ordered
the regular train sidetracked, and hastily loading Sheriff Carson with his
deputies in the mail car next to the engine and Chief Broder and several
Detectives in the express car boarded the first passenger coach himself and
gave orders to the conductor to pull out on the regular time of passenger
trains. In the coach with him were Supt. Hohl and G. H. Sanford,
Superintendent of the Adams Express Company.  The officers were all armed 
with revolvers and three or four of them had Winchesters.

At the last moment Mr. Brown hastily pressed into service Engineer John
Callicotte to represent the real express messenger. Callicotte borrowed a
pair of overalls and a blue jumper, put a skull cap on his head, and sprung
into his car. An empty safe was loaded into the car, together with a number
of large wooden boxes, in order to deceive the robbers and induce them to
enter the car, also for the protection of the police officers, who concealed
themselves behind them. Engineer Lee Wright was in the cab and Conductor
John Hardenstine, one of the most trusted employees of the company, was put
in charge as conductor. His orders were to run the train on schedule time to
Amazonia, the first station out of St. Joseph. The engineer and fireman
carefully instructed by Mr. Brown in their respective parts. He told them
to promptly obey any signal to stop and make no show of resistance, but to
obey every command of the robbers to the letter.

Detective and Decoys.
It was understood, of course, that Hurst, the detective, and Fredericks
and Garver, the two decoys, were to accompany the robbers. To carry out the
deception to the last moment Chief Detective Locke instructed Fredericks to
flag the train and Hurst to be one of the men to enter the car. They
promised to carry out their instructions and their faithfulness came near
costing them their lives, for as soon as the robbers were fired upon they at
once suspected that they had I been led into at trap and turned their guns
upon the two detective and the two decoys. At the first shot Hurst,
Fredericks and Garver threw themselves flat to the ground. Hurst crawled
into a ditch, and nothing but this fact saved his life, as both the Gleitze
boys and Kohler fired no less than twenty shots at him.

Journey of Death.
When the train pulled out of the Union De-pot at 11:45 the moon was shining
brightly and objects were visible at some distance from the tracks. Not a
word was spoken by the officers in the cars, and everybody felt that they
were starting upon a journey of death.

Less than two miles from the city limits Engineer Wright, who was leaning
out of the cab in silent agony of suspense, discovered a tiny red light in
front of him on the track. As he neared it the light began to swing slowly
across the rails and giving the signal for brakes he slowly brought his
en-gine to a standstill. He planned to stop the train at exactly the point
where he saw the red light. As the train stopped Hurst and Hugh Gleitze
rushed up to up to the engine and presenting revolvers at the head of the
firemen ordered them to climb down and go back to the express car. The men
did so with all alacrity and were closely followed by the detective and
Gleitze with drawn revolvers leveled at their heads.

When they reached the express car Gleitze began pounding on the door next to
the engine with his revolver and called upon the supposed messenger to open
up. The bogus messenger Callicotte made no reply for brief moment when
Gleitze began hammering upon the door and threatened to blow up the cars
with dynamite unless it was opened at, once. It had been arranged to allow
the robbers to discharge a blast of dynamite be-fore firing upon them, but
Chief Broder de-cided that it would be unnecessarily exposing the lives of
his men and he therefore signaled Callicotte to open the door. When the
latter did so Kohler and Garver, who stood on the outside, promptly covered
him with their guns. Garver entered the car first and he was closely
followed by Kohler.

Kohler Opens Fire.
Upon entering the car Sheriff Carson, who was concealed behind a box in the
other end, made a slight noise which attracted Kohler's attention. In an
instant he at once became suspicious, and without waiting an instant, began
firing at Carson. The Sheriff returned the fire, and his first bullet caught
Kohler in the head, causing him to roll backward through the door. This was
the signal for battle and for a few minutes the officers and the robbers
were engaged in a deadly duel at close range. Henry Gleitze, who had been
stationed at the side of the train to prevent the supposed passengers from
making any trouble, began firing at the train with a double-barreled shotgun
and ordering every-body to "get back there."

He evidently suspected Hurst and Frederick because he was seen to take
deliberate aim at the former as he lay in a ditch at the side of the track
and shoot at him twice with his revolver. He then tired a shot from his
double-barreled gun in the direction where Fredericks lay and by that 
time evidently seeing that the game was up threw down his gun and started 
on a run toward the river.

KohIer's Desperate Fight
While this was going on Kohler, who was doubtless mortally wounded by
Sheriff Carson's first shot, ran at least thirty yards to a little clump of
bushes behind which he threw himself and began firing rapidly at the
officers. His form could not he seen and the officers could hardly make out
his location by the flash of his gun, as by this time the moon had become
slightly obscured. Every time Kohler would shoot, the flash of his gun
indicating where he lay, the officers returned the fire. After having
emptied his revolver and both barrels of the gun he stopped, and Officer
Hayes supposing he was dead, advanced toward him. Kohler, who was tying on
his back, saw the officer approaching and with a desperate struggle turned
half over on his side and attempted to reach his other revolver. It had not
yet been fired. Hayes was within ten feet of him, and fearing that Kohler
would kill him began firing at him at short range. Kohler dropped his
revolver, clapped his hands to his temple, and with a convulsive spring half
reached his feet but suddenly collapsed and fell over on his face, stone
dead. He was shot through the head six times and two shots had passed
entirely through his body.  

Four Bullets in His Head.
Hugo Gleitze got his coup de grace early in the fight and when the
officers found him he was lying on his face with four bullet holes in his
head. The right side of his head behind the ear was shot almost entirely
away evidently by a load of buckshot and his brains had run out upon the
ground. Ht was still alive when the officers picked him up. He was placed in
a car beside Kohler and brought back to the city where he died at 3 o'clock
in the morning. The news of the capture soon became known around the city
and the wildest excitement prevailed. As soon as the train started back to
the city the officers started on foot after Henry Gleitze who had made for
the southern part of the city. He was captured at 8 o'clock in the house of
a woman in the south part of the city. He made no resistance, but begged the
officers not to shoot him. He claimed to know nothing of the affair, but
three fingers on his left hand were shot off and he had seven bullet holes
in his clothing. He was locked up and refused to talk.

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