The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1876-01-12
THE PLOT THICKENS.
The Dynamite Demon Charged with
an Attempt at Other Crimes.
THE LATEST DEVELOPMENTS.

workings and plottinRs of the Bremen
haven "Thom sssen" were further dis
closed yesterday in the discovery of
the fact that White Star
STEINER had been selected by him
tor destruction as lar back IS October last.
This fact was brought out yesterday by the
opening of one OF 1homss's treasure boxes
az the White Star dock in this city. The
working up OF the case shows that thomas
lett Liverpool in the steamship Celtic on Oc-
tober 14gh, arrived here October oath, sno
until the 2s.h was guest at the Fifth Ave
Due Hotel. The matter is being further in
We stigated to discover who his cOnfederates
were il he had any.
WHAT A POLICEMAN FOUND OUT AND DID.
Officer Thomas j. Laird, OF the ninth
precinct, who is now and has been for some
time detailed as special officer on the White
star dock, foot of West Tenth street, tells
he following story OF the new discovery:
The first l knew of this case was eff in Octo-
her last, on the 24th: a Sunday it wa'. The
Celtic came to her berth about IL O'Clock
an the passengers baggage was taken out
at once. There was among the pas seUgars
a man named Thomas, who had, besides bis |
regular trunks, small box which he SAID |
contained specie. 1t WAS brought out FIR IN
he specie room of the vessel. where it had |
been placed at the request of Thomas when |
heavy, and one of the porters had it on
a hand-truck. | followed 1t down the
pier To the door of the baggage
room. Costom House Officer Classy was
in charge of the mans baggage, and Tnomss
had asked him to put the box aside for q
Gay or two, when lie would send down for
II. This Classy promised to do, and told
or OF the porters TO wheel 1t To- the bag
glge room. Classy M ntiOned to me as |
WAS standing near what tue box contained,
and walked after to see 1t put safely away.
When we got to the baggage room door Il
was found locked, when Thomas told Glas-
sey 10 never mind locking il up, as il only
had in it cartridges which he intended using
on hunting excursion III the West. We
rolled the box up the dock again and put IL
do vn before tie custom house, near the
middle OF the pile. The rest OF the baggage
beld by Thomas was passed, and he went
off.
THE BOX SLOWED AWAY.
The box lay where We dropped it until
Saturday, the Both, when Officer Banks, OF
the custom house, who had been in charge
during the loading and Unloading of the
Celtic, wished to leave, as the vessel had
again started back to Liverpool and his
duties were over. Before going off be
| Or0ered one OF the men to open the box
| little, that he might see what was in it. /
was there then. TT box is about 20 inches
long, 10 wide and IL deep, but the outside
vas wrapped a sheet of black oil
cloth table cloth stuff dashed
with small rope or heavy Irvine. This
Was taken OF partly, when the box itself,
| II white pine, was found to be
strapped with two broad bands of steel
nailed on. These we're loosened and the
| screws taken from the box lid. On raising
il a sheet OF metal only could be seen, APP
pearing to be box within wooden one
IL was not further looked into at that time,
| but was nailed and tied up by order of Off
Ger Banks anu put into the bags ,e-roOm
/ until csllt d for. That was the last otit until
| last Sunday, when read in the papers how
Thomas bad tried to insure a box on one OF
| the Mite Star ships L recollected the name
OF the man, and it struck me that this box
| was the one the ap6rS were speaking of. i
| talked about il to the watchman and told
him what Thought. This was on Sunday
| last.
NICE BOX.
Monday morning L asked the baggage
room man whether that box was there yet
and he said yes. asked Mr.. PennelI, the
superintendent of the pier, what he thought
OF it, and he said he had read the papers
and had himself thought OF the box. He
wanted it taken right out of the baggage
room. / reported what there was in the
|
work it up. went to see Classy and he
| remem bered the man and the box distinctly.
| Ae said the man Thomas had gone TO the
| Fifth Avenue Hotel. This he knew, as on
| going of Thomas had invited Classy to
| step up to the hotel to have glass OF wine
with him. l went up to the Fifth Avenue
Hotel, told them what i wanted, and on
| turning back n the register to the 24th of
| October the name OF w. II. Thomas, OF DTes-
den, WAS found. The clerk remembered
him, and described the man enough tor me
10 know it was the same individual, Icalled
on Superintendent Wslling, at police head
quarters, and told what i had found out.
do instructed me to go the bureau of com
bustiOles OF the fire department and have
them send a man to inspect the box. Idid
so, it being then nearly 5 O'clock, yesterday
afternoon. They promised to send q man
around to look at 1t.
OPENING IT WITH CARE IN THE STREET.
This morning Pennell, the dock superin-
tendent, said he didn't want the box in the
bsggsge-room any longer, and 1 carried il
out. At II O'Clock (noop), when there were
only few about. one of the coopers on the
pier, Kelly, aud myself took the box out
into the street be- IRE the pier, where it
could do no harU co open IL, aud tell you
we did it pr " careful. Nobody who
knew anythi about it would come near.
The SUPER .endent came and looked at us
once or vice, and 1 kept every one else
away. fhe outer black oil-skin was taken
IF altogether, and then there was a COM
mon pine box. We loosened the steel trap
enough to get the top off, Below this was
a steel plate. In the middle of this was
a hole. BY putting finger in the
hole the plate was lifted 1t
was the top of a steel box. In this was
about a dozen straw packages, such as
come around bottles, with lot OF coarse
brown paper; at the bottom OF the metal
box we found two bags of shot, ordinary
drop shot. ana second box. This rather
frightened us, and neither OF us cared about
opening it. This little box was about ten
inches by eight inches and about tour inches
deep. With the bags OF snotit just filled up
the bottom Of the big box. 1t was wrapped IN
brown aper and tied about with string.
ton taking off the string and paper wooden
b X was seen The lid was held on by four