after the affair at russellville the james boys appeared twice in their old haunts in missouri, but spent nearly a year in texas and mexico, in remote districts, where they were free from the interference of officers anxious for their capture. it was not until the latter part of 1869 that they resumed criminal operations, their plans being laid to rob the bank at gallatin, missouri. in this scheme they were assisted by the three younger brothers, whose career for consummate daring and recklessness is fully equal to that of the james boys.
it was on the 7th of december that a body of[pg 42] seven thoroughly armed men, superbly mounted, galloped into gallatin and commenced firing their pistols indiscriminately, shouting most terrible oaths and fearful threats. after alarming the residents of the place and preventing resistance, jesse james and cole younger dashed into the bank, and at the muzzles of drawn revolvers, they compelled the cashier, capt. john w. sheets, to deliver the keys of the money department of the safe, the main door being open. after rifling the bank of $700, jesse and cole whispered a few words together, put the money in a bag, and then one of them, but which of the two it is not known, deliberately shot capt. sheets dead. the reason given for the commission of this crime was that capt. sheets had, during the war, led a party of militia against the guerrillas, in which conflict bill anderson was killed, and that the killing of sheets was in revenge for anderson's tragic death.
capt. sheets was a very popular man in gallatin and the surrounding neighborhood, and when the news of the terrible tragedy and robbery spread, nearly the entire county arose in arms and demanded the blood of the assassins. several bands were organized and started in pursuit, each taking a different route, with the hope that one of them might be able to apprehend the bandits before they could get out of the county. one of these bands, numbering twelve citizens, overtook the robbers on the[pg 43] edge of clay county and a running fight ensued, in which one of the citizens was wounded slightly and the horse of another killed. these casualties ended the pursuit and the bandits reached jackson county in safety, where they disappeared.
