Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1881-04-22
WHO MICHAEL BOYTOv rs.
sketch of the Imprisoned American
by his Warm Friend.

! by his warm Friend.
Among the arrests recently made IL
Ireland In connection with the Land
League agitation was that of Michael
Boyton. George Clark, the actor, met
Boyton in London and vas quite init
mate with him. A Star reporter met
Mr.. Clark yesterday and spoke to him
of Boyton.
Eyes, I knew him very WE'LL" said the
representative of the Hazel Kirke's
husband, "and fine fellow he is. His
well-known Fenian proclivities render
ed him an object of suspicion in Eng
land, and he was under police surveil
lance for long time. 1 have CORES,
ponded with him for some time, and
our letters have been held back fol-
months by the authorities kilograms
sent by him to me have never been re
celved. He was especially watched
about the time of the Manchester ex-
ecutions.
HAS he ever spoken of his connec.
ton with the Fenians ?' asked the re-
porter.
HE has related many stories of his
escapades in that connection. The sys-
tenn OF espionage on the part of the
| government was not alone to secure in
formation of his acts, but they resorted
cd to many other plans. 1t required
no small skill on Boyton's part TO evade
these plans. He desired to pay the
English government In their own coin
and formed the idea Of establishing a
| spy system on that institution. Tc
this end he hired room next door to
the police station, near Trinity College,
Dublin. Under the guise of Evange-
lists these Fenians kept watch on the
police. There was bar-room under
meath the apartment, which was pat
ronized by the policemen. Holes were
bored in the floor, and Boyton mixed
with the men and learned many OF
their plans. He thus forestalled many
of their little games. When his per
sonal safety was endangered ne came
to America
Did he settle in this city,"
Eyes; he opened a store for the sale
Of Japanese goods on Broadway near
the Grand Central Hotel. / believe il
was the first of its kind in this city. He
is brother of Paul Boyton, the swim
mer, but the two have not spoken to
each other for years. Michael estab-
lished an agency in London for the
swimming suits which Paul used. He
was very fond of exhibiting himself in
one of these suits in the Thames. Not
succeeding very well he became jour
nalist, and was for a long time a CORE
spondent for several New York pa
pers.
"Did he make good Journalistic"
at was his forte. [ will give you an
idea of his readiness. When the great
explosion occurred in Wales five or six
years ago, by which over $50 lives were
lost, he was the first man to send typo
graphical illustrations of the mines to
New York paper and the English
press were forced to admit that they
We're indebted to papers published
5000 miles from the scene for a dia-
gram of the mines. Boyton did not
know the country or the language He
went there and found the entrance
boarded up and guarded. 1t is the
custom to do SO in England until the
Coroner makes an investigation, and
no one is allowed to enter. Boyton,
found plans in an old chest in the mine
and brought them away with him.
This shows how daring he is. He was
frequently employed by the London
papers where courage was required.
His bravery always made him the man
for a leader"
WAS he man of quick percep-
tion?'
"He was quick to plan and bold to
execute He was the inventor of a
dynamite torpedo. He took me to his
laboratory once and explained its use.
! doubted its power. So to convince
me of the tremendous force of the tor.
pedo, he put one of them in his pocket
and we walked to Waterloo Bridge. 1t
was about o'clock in the evening.
Boyton lit match and applied it to
the torpedo and threw it over the para
pet, and we walked swiftly away. ]
may here explain that the torpedo was
| about the size and shape Of the car
trldges used by sportsmen, and was in
cased in a waterproof cover. Well, as
l said, we walked away. In few MN
utes there was fearful explosion. The
water was thrown up over the parapet
a distance of thirty feet, and many
windows in the vicinity were shattered.
There was great excitement among the
people, many supposing that the pow
der barges at st. Johns Wood had ex.
ploded, while others thought that the
gas works had been shattered Thro
this means it was that lie became con
nected with the leaders of the Land
movement
"Did Boyton ever seek to dispose OF
his invention?'
eyes, he went to Germany during
the war with France and tried to in
duce that government to purchase the
torpedo, but did not meet with re-
spouse. | have understood that lie
tried to dispose Of his torpedo in other
places, and | have no doubt that the
idea of the bomb used to kill the late
Gar of Russia was taken from Boy
toms plan. He was a long time in
Birmingham, and you will recollect
that the Nihilists were busily ennaged
there"
''Do you think that the English gov
eminent had any knowledg,- of this
uOrpeuO
"Of course they had. The authori-
ties did not much fear his speech as
they did the use he might make OF his
destructive invention"
"Diu Boyton ever take out his natur-
alization papers in this country ?"
Eyes. He was well known in this
city, and there is no doubt of his right
to call himself an American citizen. /
knew his entire family His mother
now lives in Washington place III this
city. His father is dead. The latter
was an auctioneer at Kildare, Ireland.
He afterward came to this country and
was a cotton auctioneer in New Or
leans. He was naturalized Both the
boys reached their majority here.
Boyton is as much entitled to the pro-
lection of the government of the United
States as General Grant"
"What is Bovton's personal appear
ance?"
HE i a keen. why, bright-eyed.
1arinp-lookinp man Of ahOut forty