, and in three months came the explosion.
Impressions were taken of locks, keys were provided, a waggon and team
were held in readiness, and one day as the cashier left the bank to get
his dinner, Langdon W. Moore, with a meal-bag concealed under his vest,
quietly opened the front door and entered the bank. One check he knew.
As he went in a girl of twelve tried to follow him--a near relative
of the cashier. The exercise of a little tact satisfied her that the
directors were in session, and she ran off to her playmates under the
big elm at the opposite corner of the street. Moore lost no time in
locking the door behind him, in opening all the locks, which yielded to
his cunning and foresight, and in packing the meal-bag full of bonds,
bank-notes, and plate. He accomplished the deed without haste, and by
the time that the cashier had finished his dinner Moore had disappeared
with his bag, and his waggon, and his friends, and left no trace behind.

Another masterpiece, in Moore's opinion, was what he magniloquently
calls the great robbery of an express car. Here, too, he proved the
fineness of his craft. He left nothing to chance, and he foresaw, with
the coolness of a practised hand, every step which his adversaries would
take. His first care was to obtain the assistance of the messenger who
travelled on the car which he proposed to rob, and the zeal and energy
wherewith he coached his accomplices ensured success. Again and again he
rehearsed every scene in the comedy. Before his eyes the messenger was
attacked by two masked ruffians, of whom one caught him by the throat,
while the other put a pistol to his head, saying, "If you open your
mouth I will blow a hole through your head large enough for a pigeon to
fly through." Then the messenger was gagged and bound, a piece of soap
was put into his mouth, that he might appear in the last extremity, and
presently he was set to learn by heart the tale that he should tell his
employers. By long practice each actor became perfect in his part. The
car was raided, one hundred and sixty-five thousand dollars was the
modest spoil, and Pinkerton and his men were gallantly defied. A hasty
trip to Canada still further perplexed the pursuers, and if we may
believe Moore, he not only baffled the great detective, but persuaded
the Express Company to dispute his claim. Moore, in fact, took a
sportsman's as well as an artist's pleasure in the game. After the
discomfiture of his enemies, he