Democratic Sentinel, Volume 19, Number 24, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 June 1895 — CAN OPEN ANY SAFE. [ARTICLE]

CAN OPEN ANY SAFE.

An Expert Says He Can Do It lit Three Hours With a Satchal Outfit. One of the most expert “safe blowers” in this country, or in any othei for that matter, is William C. Clark, now a resident of Chicago. Some foolish friends of Mr. Clark hav& been claiming that he is the only man who knows anything about blowing open a safe, a statement which Mr. Clark promptly refuted yesterday in conversation with a reporter. “How did you gain your expei.v ence in opening safes?” was asked. “Legitimately,” answered Mr. Clark, smiling. “When a boy I learned the machinist trade in tbs Providence, R. 1., locomotive works. When about twenty-one years old I entered the services of my present employer. For three years I was associated with Prof. Charles E. Monroe, of Columbia University, Washington, D. C. He was the expert on explosives selected by the Commission appointed by act of Congress in 1890 to determine by actual tests of various manufactures what would be best for the proposed Government safes and vaults. These experiments, lasting three years, were conducted at Newport, R. I. Lieut. Rodman was appointed by the Government to assist Prof. Monroe, and I assisted in every test that was made.” “How do you proceed to force open a safe?” “If the idea is to do it quickly I usually bore a four-inch hole in the safe—that is, a hole four Inches in diameter. Then a little nitro-glycer-ine does the rest.” “How can you drill such a hole in a hardened steel safe?” “With a compound blowpipe in twelve minutes I can heat red hot a spot six inches in diameter. This draws the temper of the steel and leaves it as soft and easy to cut as iron. Then with a ‘cat-head’ drill we cut a groove an eighth of an inch wide around a spot four or even six inches in diameter. I once cut a four-inch hole through a steel vault door three and a half inches thick in the Mercantile National Bank of New York, in an hour and fifty-eight minutes.” “What tools do you use?” “In addition to the blowpipe and drill I have a small pocket battery, a coil of insulated wire with detonators, a few wedges, a hammer and a halfpint flask of nitro-glycerine mixed with alcohol. I carry the entire outfit in a small,satchel.” “Do you always use nitro-glycer-ine?” “Yes, it is the best explosive for many reasons. Put in a bottle with some alcohol it cannot possibly be exploded, yet in five minutes’ time it can be made ready for use. All that is necessary is to pour water in the bottle. The alcohol unites with it and the nitro-glycerine settles to the bottom. It doesn’t make any report to speak of; it can be introduced where nothiag else could, and it always does the work.” “How much is required?” “From two or three drops to half an ounce for each explosion, depending entirely upon circumstances. Burglars always use too much. The most nitro-glycerine I ever used on a safe, and I’ve opened hundreds of them, was four and eight-tenths ounces. I have opened every known make of safe, except one, and will wager any reasonable amount that there ii no safe made that I eannot open within three hours, without injury to the contents.”