“Our theory is that the dog was merely a blind to let the man into the car at Encinas. It gave the robbers an inside man, in case the messenger might refuse to open the door. Of course they could dynamite the door, but that takes time. Perhaps the inside man did not expect the messenger to put up a battle, and that the falling out of the express car was an unexpected incident.
“The messenger states that the man tried to pull a gun, which strengthens the theory of the fourth bandit. It is just barely possible that this dog might be identified; so the owner took a chance, sneaked back to the hold-up and secured the dog. This would make it appear that they felt it necessary to have the dog in their possession. That dog was in the car when the engineer and fireman went back to the engine. When the train arrived at Blue Wells, the dog was gone.”
“Which don’t prove anythin’,” said Johnny Grant. “When the train was robbed there were three masked men on the car, and when the train got to Blue Wells there wasn’t a —— masked man on it.”
The detective laughed.
“That’s true. But it doesn’t explain when and how Mr. Legg came to Blue Wells.”
“I walked,” declared Jimmy Legg bravely. “The train passed me.”
“Where?” asked the sheriff.
“I don’t know. It was dark, and I’m not familiar with this country. I got a room at a hotel that night.”
“When did you hear that there had been a hold-up?”
“I heard them talking about it the next day,” said Jimmy Legg truthfully.