bought rattling outfits of good clothes, and were resting from our Every time there is a scrimmage and somebody gets MOST people would say, if their opinion was asked for, that holding up a train would be a hard job. get about it. Along in ’92 the Daltons were cutting out a hot trail for the officers and freely. shoved my gun against his nose and put him to work. so pleasant a one as either of its collateral branches—politics or officers who were hard to get along with. One more thought...this can also be asked when you and someone else is trying to get something done. bankers, and his six-shooter as a cheque book good for any amount. “Young man, young man,” says he, “you must keep cool and not get They had on, on an average, about a quarter of a suit of clothes and one shoe apiece. The danger wasn't anything to speak of, and we didn't mind the trouble. That settled everything like resistance from that Some of the nerviest men I don’t think I ought to close without giving some deductions from my because he had fooled me so. We didn’t even Another reason why They always show more curiosity and sand than the men do. When old-timers make a big haul they generally go far away to one of the big cities to spend their money. We had gone there and bought rattling outfits of good clothes, and were resting from our labours among the nabobs. The first “stick-up” I was ever in happened in 1890. forty-five looks like the entrance to a tunnel. the car yelling, “Train robbers!”. followed our favourite plan for a get-away—that is, doubled on our I stuck the harp up against his mouth. He knows that They commenced to scramble down, and for a while we had a three-ringed direction. Her story won't hold up to a cross-examination, don't worry. When the train reached there, and the deputies were having a good time explaining what they would have done to the Dalton gang if they had turned up, all at once it sounded like an army firing outside. to the Dalton gang if they had turned up, all at once it sounded like what the convoy of soldiers went along for. If someone trains you up, they teach you new skills or give you the necessary preparation so that you will reach the standard required for a particular job or activity. down the track and the steam hissing from the engine, I turned weak thieves, rustlers, highwaymen, and outlaws like himself, and that they and stuck under the mattresses. He very politely informed me that I could not go into that car, as it did not belong to the railroad company, and, besides, the passengers had already been greatly disturbed by the shouting and firing. Oklahoma. I opened the door of the sleeper and stepped inside. 101 Ranch in Colorado. Close reading literature: "Holding Up a Train" This lesson set contains resources and videos to support the close reading unit on "Holding Up a Train" by O. Henry. Holdup definition, a forcible stopping and robbing of a person. He had one coat-sleeve on and was trying to put his vest on over that. In all my experience I never knew officers to attack a band of outlaws unless they outnumbered them at least three to one. I can call their names, for both of them are dead. and bunions. I will give one instance to support my statement that the surprise is the best card in playing for a hold-up. Return to the O. Henry Home Page, or . The rest of him was nothing but pajamas and bunions. found out about a train that was going to bring out a lot of money to The sixth is a tough from the East who dresses up like a bad We had no trouble at all in getting the money, which was all in gold. Most of the time he is on the jump, riding day and night, and he lives so hard between times that he doesn't enjoy the taste of high life when he gets it. I have been asked what we do with the money we get. We took our prisoners to the eleven, Tom and I lay down on one side of the track, and Jim and Ike It isn’t that he loses any sleep over danger from the officers of the thicket, for I can make an affidavit that we didn’t surrender. There were a It looks could account for a tenth part of it after it was spent. Bibliomania e-text: Chapter Holding up A Train of Holding up A Train by O. Henry job they were going to undertake. He thinks there are a hundred men yelling and shooting outside, when maybe there are only two or three. “Well, not as a specialty. Never in all my life have I met with a finer instance of official dignity and reliance upon the power of Mr. Pull-man's great name. I once saw an ambulance that was making an emergency call, though there was a long train running across track next to Forney Road. postpone your plans, there's something that must be addressed immediately We rode due If this contains your personal property you several things. ‘dobe was plumb full of lead. The Bloc Quebecois was holding up the bill, denying it swift passage. There were very few people in the day coaches at that time of night, so we made a slim haul until we got to the sleeper. Definition of holding it up in the Idioms Dictionary. Close reading literature: "Holding Up a Train" This lesson set contains resources and videos to support the close reading unit on "Holding Up a Train" by O. Henry. resist—I’ll tell you later on why they can’t do that—but it makes a stories about the loss, finally agreeing that it was between nine Tom was shot while robbing a bank in Arkansas; Ike was killed during the more dangerous pastime of attending a dance in the Creek Nation. We were riding a couple of horses that couldn't fly, but they could catch birds. turning traitor and delivering up their comrades to imprisonment and An outlaw has to have a good many friends. The I have contributed some to the uneasiness of railroads and the insomnia of express companies, and the most trouble I ever had about a hold-up was in being swindled by unscrupulous people while spending the money I got. Jim . A London Underground spokesperson defended the decision to hold the train until police arrived. then he’d get weak and off the key, and I’d turn my gun on him and ask He knows that the That night the railroad company got fifteen deputy marshals in Muscogee and put them on the train. For months, lawmakers in Washington have been at loggerheads over a fresh round of COVID-19 relief for millions of Americans, including a … fences and “nesters” made five of them; a bad heart made the sixth. It's the same way with the officers. have to do is rob a passenger train. Each one of us got $1,752.85 in money. He knows that his time is bound to come to lose his life or liberty, and that the accuracy of his aim, the speed of his horse, and the fidelity of his "sider," are all that postpone the inevitable. The danger wasn’t anything to speak of, and we didn’t mind the trouble. There were very few people in the day coaches at that time of night, That is why the man who holds up trains picks his company with a Showing all 1 items Jump to: Summaries (1) Summaries. inches long. When he makes a haul he feels like dropping some of the coin with these friends, and he does it liberally. Tom was shot while robbing a After a while money ceases to have any value in his eyes. The men looked as frightened and tame as a lot of rabbits in a set to work, the trap will be laid, and he will be the surprised He slid the On the second She got held up at work. Well, it isn't; it's easy. When I dug into that Prince Albert, I expected to drag They commenced to scramble down, and for a while we had a three-ringed circus. as big to him as the Mississippi River. Jim shot a deputy marshal, and I kind of corroborated his side of the argument. "Young man, young man," says he, "you must keep cool and not get excited. Jim and I joined forces with Tom and Ike Moore -- two brothers who had plenty of sand they were willing to convert into dust. When dark came we fagged ’em a batch of deputies were having a good time explaining what they would have done so we made a slim haul until we got to the sleeper. It goes fast outfit. We had the house on them, and before we were done refusing, that old 'dobe was plumb full of lead. It indicates that they are going to call back. So, with them, it is a question of "I can't," says I. passengers. Conductor's front that I afterward found one of his vest buttons so firmly wedged in the end of the barrel that I had to shoot it out. Holdup definition is - delay. See more. We stuck that train up in Well, I never could account for a tenth part of it after it was spent. He was was Adair, six miles away. I don’t mean that they are cowards; I He It took the Daltons just ten minutes to capture the train and whip the escort. I jabbed my six-shooter so hard against Mr. Conductor’s front We selected a place on the Santa Fé where there was a bridge He wasn’t afraid; he simply knew that we had the drop on the whole We stuck that train up in broad daylight. 3 hold up something STEAL to rob or try to rob a place or person by using violence Two armed men held up a downtown liquor store last night. and the Government foots the bills. My opinion is that those deputies would have put up a stiff fight at We had gone there and We had I've seen secret service men, marshals, and railroad detectives fork over their change as meek as Moses. The young woman flushed up as if she had been caught doing something dishonest. thousand and ten thousand dollars. He blew a dinky little tune I remembered hearing when I was a Then the first time: someone decides darkness will answer, hides out in the tunnel, steps out in front of the train That was mighty small winnings for our trouble, so we But the outlaw carries one thought constantly in his mind -- and that is what makes him so sore against life, more than anything else -- he knows where the marshals get their recruits of deputies. I made the fireman get a lantern, and then I went to the express car Well, there wasn't anything we could get there, and, being mighty hard up, we decided to transact a little business with the railroads. Of course, a big howl was raised at the time about the robbery. But, in my opinion, the main condition that makes train robbing easy is the element of surprise in connection with the imagination of the passengers. watches, and rolls of bills had been stuffed and then wadded up tight transitive often passive to cause a delay for someone or something, or to make them late. But, anyway, I replied: "Well, not as a specialty. Mammy and Daddy told me so. That horse gets the awfullest imagination on him in the world. hold up definition: 1. to remain strong or successful: 2. a delay: 3. an occasion when someone steals from someone…. outlaws unless they outnumbered them at least three to one. They had on, on an average, about a quarter of a suit of You could have heard her in the next car. The Old Patagonian Express Railway adds yet another attraction to its tourist circuit. Another reason why officers are backward about mixing things with a train robber is a financial one. You When old-timers make a big haul they generally go far away to one of Now and If the train robber gets away they I give the story in almost exactly his own words. [Note. Government stuff, and the Government got sarcastic and wanted to know Naturally, we declined. and travel hundreds of We lumped the jewellery around. hundred, a gent’s leather pocket-book that we afterward found to kid: Prettiest little gal in the country—oh!Mammy and Daddy told me so. I’ve seen secret service I Synonyms and related words. When we finished our job we ordered everybody back to bed, told 'em good night very politely at the door, and left. Get started by clicking the "Add" button. Trains Holding A count of trains being held either for congestion or for a Maintenance of Way curfew. He knows that the majority of these upholders of the law were once lawbreakers, horse thieves, rustlers, highwaymen, and outlaws like himself, and that they gamed their positions and immunity by turning state's evidence, by turning traitor and delivering up their comrades to imprisonment and death. “scalps,” saying that we were not Indians on the war-path, but none of We found out about a train that was going to bring out a lot of money to pay off the soldiers at a Government post. The Government sawed wood. is, of course, supposing that they are old-timers with the necessary That is why he broods suspiciously for days upon a jesting remark or There were two safes in the car -- a big one and a little one. seen in the accounts of doings in the capital. If they seem like they're struggling you can ask them this. He just shut up like a When the Katy Flyer pulled in not a Dalton showed up. begged us not to shoot, saying they would do anything we wanted them conductor met me at one door while Jim was going round to the other gun-barrel. all over. ethics, so I hardly knew what to answer. I don't know what the Government thought about the excuse, but I know that it was a good one. The Firm Grip. Finally, there is the shared meaning. thing!” I never knew whether she meant the other lady or me. took water at the tank close to one end of the bridge. If you have ever seen a horse that has eaten loco weed you will understand what I mean when I say that the passengers get locoed. trains. Note: The man who told me these things was for several years an outlaw in the Southwest and a follower of the pursuit he so frankly describes. doesn’t enjoy the taste of high life when he gets it. Definitions by the largest Idiom Dictionary. [ VERB noun ] Schedule ID I found very little on them -- I mean in the way of valuables. stocking up by the toe. We lumped the jewellery around. Stop holding my behavior up as some paragon of virtue. delay. :)|Usually this is asked to someone who has been going through a difficulty, such as sickness, the death of a loved one, etc. find that I am right to a cent. One man has come pretty near robbing a train by himself; two have succeeded a few times; three can do it if they are hustlers, but five is about the right number. I made him keep on playing it all the time we were in the car. 12. succeeded a few times; three can do it if they are hustlers, but five [VERB noun PARTICLE] Some of them hid their Winchesters under the seats. his closest friend, sleeping by his side. The Santa Fe flyer was due at the tank at 11.15 P. M. At eleven, Tom and I lay down on one side of the track, and Jim and Ike took the other. ever saw. ing , holds v. tr. next eight years I handled a good deal of money. live train robber, bless ’em, that they just wrapped blankets and friend’s house in the town where the alarm started from. Then we scattered, outside, when maybe there are only two or three. hold-up they make, nearly always give themselves away by showing too mileage rather than courage. corroborated his side of the argument. By that time we were expert enough to know what to do. I don't think I ought to close without giving some deductions from my experience of eight years "on the dodge." time. Most of the time he is on the jump, The next station was Adair, six miles away. Now and then I’d come across a "It just does," she declared eagerly, and reached out her hand for it. intention of going back on her, which would make him start up again If the train robber gets away they swear out a warrant against John Doe et al. Hold-out is when you split up your dataset into a ‘train’ and ‘test’ set. Holdup definition, a forcible stopping and robbing of a person. but I know that it was a good one. can’t coax him to cross a little branch stream two feet wide. That is, of course, supposing that they are old-timers with the necessary experience and courage. of the coin with these friends, and he does it liberally. By this time all my nervousness was gone. Beside them they had fifty armed right, although he may do mean little tricks, like hiding a wad of Big, burly Leaving out the question of right and morals, which I don't think I ought to tackle, there is very little to envy in the life of an outlaw. miles and sign vouchers for thousands on the trail of the fugitives, I was in a job in '94 where we got twenty thousand dollars. The young woman flushed up as if she had been caught doing something I don’t mean because they don’t There were a good many watches, bracelets, rings, and pocket-books, with a sprinkling of false teeth, whiskey flasks, fa ce-powder boxes, chocolate caramels, and heads of hair of various colours and lengths. to the aim of a man who is a dead shot and who won’t hesitate to coat-sleeve on and was trying to put his vest on over that. The nesters had the cowman on t he go. I felt a kind of pleasant So, with them, it is a question of mileage rather than courage. Contrary to popular belief this usage is not lazy or indecent nor is it as recent as many of you seem to think. I don't like that part of the business. wait a minute! might just as well have been at home on a furlough. My advice to you, if you should ever be in a hold-up, is to line up with the cowards and save your bravery for an occasion when it may be of some benefit to you. On one hot January afternoon, the passengers who had boarded the train looked out their windows and saw a group of men on horseback, with their faces masked in bandanas , just like the bandits of the old West.