As soon as the news of the capture was received at St. Paul, Captain Macy,
secretary to the Governor, telegraphed the executive, then at the
Centennial, the fact. The Governor promptly responded, directing Capt.
Macy to order the Madelia authorities to bring their prisoners, with the
body of the dead bandit to this city. Capt. Macy spent about two hours in
telegraphing with the sheriff of the county, who at first strongly opposed
the removal, partly on the ground the wounded men were not in a condition
to be moved, but principally from a fear that had somehow taken possession
of the minds of those taking part in the capture, that their removal to
St. Paul would invalidate their claim for the reward offered for their
arrest. To this latter objection Capt. Macy answered that the Governor
would be responsible for the preservation of all their rights, upon which
the Sheriff telegraphed they would be sent down by the morning train, on a
sleeper tendered for that purpose, by Supt. Lincoln. Later, however, the
sheriff, in consultation with citizens, changed his mind, and determined
to send his prisoners on to Faribault, the county seat of Rice county.
Accordingly they were placed in the cars at Madelia on Saturday morning,
and at every station en route a curious and eager mob awaited the arrival
of the train, anxious to get a glimpse of the notorious freebooters. At
Mankato, half the city turned out, and arrangements were made at the depot
for the crowd to pass through and feast their eyes upon the big show.
At Faribault the crowd was comparatively small, owing, perhaps, to the
fact that they were unexpectedly brought on by a freight train, but when
it got generally noised about that the infamous desperadoes were lodged in
the jail, people of all classes and both sexes thronged the building
anxious to gain admittance.