The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1881-08-05
INTERNAL MACHINES.

We have been reading Of late hints
and out.givings Of the construction in
this country ofnew Internal machines
for blowing up ships, prominent
buildings and prominent men, but till
quite recently did we place any reli.
ance therein, regarding them as SEN
sational paragraphs, intended to fill
some otherwise vacant place in the
makeup of our large city dailies. 1t
now turns out that several of these
machines were manufactured at the
city of Peoria, Illinois, and shipped
to England to be used rs retaliatOry
engines by Irish agitators against the
English government, whose policy
and laws have for these many Years
formed the basis Of complaint by the
down.trOdden people of the Green
Isle. 1t seems the idea of these in.
fernal machines arose from their fire.
quent use in Russia, and their con-
struction in this country is pretty
well established, not only by the fol.
lowing extracts, but also by an order
issued by the government at Wash.
ingtOn to the officers of the customs
at all our principal seaports to ex.
anime very carefully the cargOes of
all outgoing vessels before they issue
to them manifests of clearance.
A special dispatch from Peoria to
the New York Herald states:
J.J. Vanmartcr, city editor Of the National
Democrat, asserts that he had discovered that
the Internal machines recently received In
Liverpool were manufactured in this city. a
director Of the Association of United irish
men lives here and is supposed to know all
about the matter. There were ten of the
machines made here and shipped to New
York, where they were loaded with dynamite
and shipped To Liverpool. The factory is ON
South Washington Street. The reporter has
been invited by one of the parties Interested
u witness an exhibition of the destructive
power Of the machine. The trial will be made
in Tazcwcli county, within mile of the city.
The working Of this fearful engine
is thus explained:
The design with which they were made was
a zinc chamber, In the interior Of which clock
work and explosive material were packed.
The ciock-wOrk operated spring, AMI after
six hours running il liberated Il hammer.
something like the trigger Of gun. This
struck against percussion cap and ignitcd
the explosive charge. This consisted of an
ounce and and half Of illuminate of silver and
n pound and n half Of dynamite. man in
Peoria, connected with this construction, said
il would destroy the largest block OF buildings
In the world. The whole thing when COM
plcicd weighed exactly forty-five pounds, and
could he carried by Il strong man without cx-
citing suspicion. II could he taken up an
alley and placed by any large building that il
was desired To destroy. After leaving II the
person who carried II had only to provide for
his own safety, and when the buildings blew
up there would he no evidence Of the agent
that did the work.
This internal machine fabricatOr,
Grove, who tells the latter story of
his connection with their cOnstruc.
ton, was arrested August ! e., 10y order
from ". S. Attorney General Me-
Weigh and conveyed to Chicago.
where he will be held for trial. a
number of Irish citizens promptly
offered bail in the sum of SO 200, but
this WAS refused.
The British Consul General, Pier
repont Edwards, was in consultation
with Collector Robertson on the lst
inst, presumably touching the ship.
ment Of these internal machines on
outgoing vessels.