Rensselaer Republican, Volume 28, Number 17, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 26 December 1895 — BOMBS TO BIG MEN. [ARTICLE]

BOMBS TO BIG MEN.

Infernal Machines Sent to Armour and Pullman. Two cnfdely constructed infernal machines were mailed in Chicago Monday morning to George M. Pullman and Philip D. Armour., They did notyeach the-des-tinations''the’‘sender of them intended, but were tiyken possession of by Capt. Stuart; of the Postal Secret Service. Capt. 'Stuart “also has in his charge S. A. Owens, who says he heard two men talking of their scheme to kill Pullman and Armour, and almost ran his legs off Sunday night to warn them of the fate in store for them. The deadly character of the machines was demonstrated by an examination of their contents and by igniting some of the powder removed from them, as well as a part of the fuse which completed the ’ 'arfafigfid' that the Removal of the lids of the boxes which cOTnposed the outer casings of the devices would result in the ignition of tho powder and the fuse which was trained into a lead pipe.J The addressed to MrwArmour ‘wmrunrwfupped carefully. When the paper had been removed it was found to contain a thin box about 6 hiches long,T Vi inches wide and IVA inches deep. It was made Of wood taken from a cigar box. The three sides had been nailed together, but on top thercFwas a sliding lid. It had been made rather rudely, the lid especially‘being roughly shaped and working badly. Inside was ■ a'piece of lead, pipe three-quarters of an inch in diameter audits long Tis the interior length of the b.ox. Both ends of the lead pipe were plugged with corks. All around this pipe and completely filling ~the boxovas black, coarse powder, as. a match applied easily proved it to] bo. There w;is a hole in the side of the lead pipe, and jn this was fastened a piece of fuse three inches long. On the under side of the sliding lid a piece “of sandpaper. Covering the powder inside was an other piece of sandpaper, with the rough side turned upward. Between the two, sandpaper surfaces the *heads of a number of parlor matches had been placed, with more powder scattered in between. Tho whole machine was fastened so that if the sliding lid had been moved as mulch as one-fourth of an inch one of the matches must have become ignited by tho grinding sandpaper surfaces. No matter what was contained inside tho Xficce ofjgail pipe, a quarter of a pound of gunpowder must have been exploded and experts say that alone would have dqne considerable damage to the‘’person drawing the \lid.“ Both machines were constructed upon the same principle.