On Saturday, Sept. 9th, a party consisting of A. A. Keller, Russell M. Church, F. Martin and W. Rhine started across the country from Northfieid to Faribault, and catching there the train, proceeded to [pg 31] Owatonna, where they were joined by a party of some thirty well armed citizens.
Telegrams were sent to Waseca for a special train to carry them to Janesville. Finding a case of needle guns at Owatonna for Brisette, they took them on with them, arriving at Janesville at one o'clock. They found Brisette and his men there. They had been on the track of the gang from the first, often getting sight of them, and never for an hour losing their trail till Saturday, when they failed to see them during the whole day.
Early in the morning the party was divided into companies and took to the woods, determined to hunt the villains up. Besides the parties sent out in squads to the woods, other parties were out in each direction up the Winona and St. Peter R. R. on hand cars.
The whole country around Janesville was alive, and hundreds of volunteers were rushing about in search of arms to join the pursuers. By noon on Sunday there were at least three hundred men on the war-path, seeking for the fugitives and anxious to secure some portion of the reward offered for their capture.
The telegraph was kept in lively operation, and every rumor was sent from point to point, and mounted messengers carried the news along the lines of outposts, keeping the men well informed on the events of the day.
At about 3 o'clock a messenger came riding up to headquarters, his horse reeking and foaming, and the man's manner portending news of the utmost weight and importance. Hurrying in to the depot he handed the telegraph operator a paper containing the information that the fugitives broke cover near Elysian and were making for Waterville. To inquiries he answered that three of the robbers were seen and one was riding a cream-colored horse, and that the police were hard on their track.
Telegrams were at once sent to Eagle Lake, Owatonna, and other points, repeating the exciting tale and asking that the posts along the line between Waseca and Janesville be made especially strong—the supposition being that the thieves would try to cross somewhere between those two points. In prompt reply to these telegrams a special train was dispatched containing over one hundred men, well-armed, from Northfield, Winona, Rochester, Owatonna and Medford, and these were left in squads often between Waseca and Janesville, twenty-two of them coming up for instructions and news.
These twenty-two were under the command of C. Runnels. Many were
VETERANS OF THE WAR,
and they seemed to be under good discipline, all obeying their leader's orders with alacrity. This party it was thought better to use as a [pg 32] company of patrol, who were to visit the outposts between this section and Waseca.