Tammy’s Reviews > The Great Train Robbery > Status Update

The same is true for cops and robbers. We are given the history of Scotland Yard. Milton lived there while working for Oliver Cromwell! If there were no robbers, we would not need cops. In the story and IRL, the police at Scotland Yard did call in Willie and, because of the compartmentalized information, he could only tell them vague things. They decide to call him in again.

Later he meets up with Agar and they realize that the two of them are being followed and he only has days to develop a new plan. He begins to ponder.

Ch. 33 Often when there are two opposing groups, there can be some interplay that benefits both. The temperance movement bought pubs but did not serve alcohol. Pubs brought in church music to attract those who could lean toward temperance.

Ch. This reminds me of S&S and Pierce is Willoughby and Elizabeth is Marianne. They bump into each accidentally and he passes off some smooth lies and it’s all so deliciously awkward. He tells her that he sent her a letter from Paris and he acts surprised at hearing she never received it. Then he does some masterful acting when he tells her he assumed she did not care for him and he is engaged to a French woman.

We also get great tidbits about the construction of the crystal palace, including the problem of the sparrows.

Ch. 31 There is no honor among thieves. Pierce gets a formal letter from Willie, and clearly, he is being influenced by someone. They meet at the crystal palace, and Pierce gives him money and a warning.

Ch. 30 Miss Miriam did her job well in posing as the wife of an invalid who wants to buy a large, secure safe for a month-long stay during the summer. She finds out what she needed to know (the reason for the overhaul of the safes) and finds a legitimate reason to leave (it will take a month to build a safe and she needs one now).

Ch. 29 Part 3 begins with a series of setbacks and it’s a wonder they robbed the train. They got the dates confused. Then the czar up and dies and the whole need for the gold was thrown into doubt. British soldiers were still there but it appears to be winding down. Then the safes go into overhaul and they are in shock! Whoever heard of overhauling a safe? Pierce decides to put a woman on the case.

Ch. 28 Two things of note. The guard is given the code but it’s not the actual robbery. Agar tests the keys to make sure they work. Another interesting thing is the presence of a leopard. The public has been gripped about stories of man-eating leopards in India a caged leopard is being taken to a lady in the countryside. Coincidence? I think not.

Ch. 27 When it comes to Victorian crime, four months of planning is a lot. This job has taken eight months so far. Pierce has gone to all the eel-skinners to get a lot of bags filled with lead shot. Criminals threw them at people while committing a crime. I wonder what he’s going to do. My thought is to replace the gold so that the light weight of the safe doesn’t tip off the guards.

Ch. 26 Pierce finds a vulnerable guard who has a sick kid, and he and his wife have minimum income. I hope he doesn't end up in prison. All he has to do is not see when told the code word.