The Delaware farmer., 1883-12-21
BOY INCENDIARIEs IN MILWAUKEE
SONS of Respectable Parents Corrupted by
Dime Novels.

A Milwaukee dispatch says: The
police have succeeded in capturing most
of the authors of the recent incendiary
fires here. Although it has been held
that it could not be possible that the
fires were the work of irresponsible boys,
as the detectives would be sure to catch
them, it turns out that all of the fire
bugs" are little fellows, none of them
being over fifteen years old. What is
most surprising is that all of them are
sons of men of considerable prominence
in business and society. Bennie West
is a son of General F. A. West, we'll
known officer of the Civil War, at
present a prominent member of the
Chamber of Commerce Ernest Finch, of
an officer OF the Chicago, Milwaukee and
st. Paul Railway Company, in Iowa;
Charles Millard, of leading grocer,
and Joseph Mofit, Jr., of the proprietor
of large marble yard.
Some months ago part of these boys
in company with others, melted by
dime novels and stories in ''boys
papers" organized themselves as a gang
of freebooters. They secured a limited
outfit and prepared to start for the West
where they intended to emulate the
deeds of the noted cowboys and Buffalo
Bill. They intended TO start at midnight.
but their failure to return home at a |
hour in the evening led to a
which resulted in the frustrating
of their plans. They then set about
plans for fires in the different parts of
the city. The West boy took part in
only one of the incendiary attempts,
that at the Fourth Ward Public School
the first part of the series.
The other three did the rest of the work.
They confess to setting nearly all the
ncendiary fires of the last few weeks,
out they claim to know nothing of the
,ause of the burning of Heller's sausage
actory and of few other fires. Two of
he'boys attend the Fourth Ward Public
school, and the others are students at
college.
One of them admits that he wrote the
postal card to the Chief of Police, threat
ming that officers life and to burn the
own. One Of the letters received by
he Chief, the contents of which were of
nature similar to that of the postal,
7as in the same handwriting as that of
he postal. Of the other letters sent to
he Chief the boys claim to know moth
lg. One of the boys was captured in the
vening and confessed the whole bust
ess. Before midnight his accomplices
ERE arrested. They assert that their
My motive was ''fun to see the engines
ONE out" One of the incendiary at
9mpts was made on the property of
oseph Mofit, father of one of the boys,
ut they all deny any knowledge of that
case.
The boys had regular meetings, most
which were held at the Public Library,
here they carried on whispered consul
toins and where the leader "Chief
night, laid the plans which the others n
,ecuted. Their plans were copied after b
e formulas obtained from flashy itera- P
re and were managed with much Ia
crecy and shrewdness. In the case of
e burning of Linderman's store-one -
the worst results of their work-for
stance, it was arranged that Chief
light should go to the front of the pr
IRE and engage the attention of those pl
esent by inquiring about the prices of IL
IN, while an accomplice should fire the tn
ilding in the rear. The boys do not 6r
ar the appearance of being specially -
llicious. But they are thoroughly d
bued with the spirit of current litera- l.
e for boys. and are conversant with IL,
Vboys' vernacular and thieves slang. we
cir arrest and confession are a terrible pr1
W to their families and great sur r.
Sc to the community.