St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1884-09-22
NEW YORK lNCENDIARlSM.
Circumstantial Evidence Pointing
That a RivingtOn Street Ten
ant Burnt His Own
House,
Especial Telegram to the Globe. [

NEW YORK, Sept. 21.-For several weeks past
an epidemic of arson has ragged in this city. 1t
eliminated at an early hour this morning In a
diabolical attempt to burn a small tenement
house while its densely packed occupants were
soundly sleeping. Fortunately the attempt was
not entirely successful, resulting only in the par
tial destruction of the building and the death OF
the wife of the alleged perpetrator of the deed.
The latter is George Gerstig, the keeper of
saloon in the three story building No. 234 Riv-
ington street. One of the floors above the sa-
loon was occupied by Gerstig and his family.
The rest were rented IN tenements. Fire was
discovered at $3.50 o'clock this morning by
policeman, who gave the alarm and aroused the
occupants of the burning building, all of whom
escaped but two. The fire spread rapidly.
On the roof were found Mrs. Gerstig terribly
burned, and her nine-year-old boy nearly suffo-
Gated by smoke. How they got there nobody
knows. Shouldering the woman and pushing
the boy before him the policeman crept
along the slanting roof to the edge and
then handed both over TO an
insurance patrolmen. By this time the fire rose
in lurid glow behind him, having eaten its way
through the roof and the bells of the fire engines
were Changing in the street. The fireman watched
with aInazement the furious blaze even in that
old frame building and suspected that it had
been helped along by human hands. When they
had quickly drowned out the fire their suspicious
were freely verified
|, Everywhere boxes and baskets of shavings
and chips saturated in kerosene were
most good in feeding the flames.
To complete the work the gas every
where was turned on. The condition of things
was described in his report to his superior officer
| by Roundsman Golden il the following language:
1.-The crime OF arson and possibly of homicide,
was committed beyond doubt by some unknown
person of No. 234, Rivington street. Baskets of
shavings saturated with kerosene were found
in the bedroom, barroom, closets and on the
| stairway. Kindling wood was saturated and
scattered around the house. The gas jets were
turned on and not lighted, and found in that
condition by the fremen and myself. A sofa was
saturated with kerosene and placed in the front
| room, chairs piled on it and set on fire. A large
closet under the stairs was filed with excelsior
shavings and small pieces of wood and fired.
In addition, every door was knocked off its
hinges and made screen for heap of oil-soaked
excelsior and chips whitfield from white pine
stocks with jack knife. Along the stairway
the baskets of chips were distributed through
every story from the bar-room up. The
very thoroughness of the job had
iercely that it found vent too quickly through
the roof and failed to spread laterally, as in
tended.
Mrs. Gerstig was unable to give any account
of what happened. She jabbered in French and
German, and only made the policeman under
SIonu tAdI shC Woo AOiCy-louI years OAu pclOEc
she lapsed into Inconsistencies, from
which she did not rally while being
taken to the hospital, where she died at day
break The boy was not badly burned. How
he came to the roof fully dressed while his
mother wore not shred of clothing was mar
vel to the police. There could be little doubt
that she must have known of the preparations for
the firing of the house, if she did not share in
them herself, every room on her floor and be-
low was fixed with infinite trouble. Her husband
could not be found. 1t was common talk
among the neighbors that there had
been a quarrel last night between the
he went away and was seen no more. 1t was
reasoned that he returned and set the house on
fire, that she did it in his absence, that they
made up their growl and joined in the job.
While the police were looking for him in the
neighborhood at day-break he came up as un
concerned as if nothing had happened. He was
Immediately placed under arrest, though ht
stoutly denied knowing anything of the fire
Gerstg is a Frenchman of middle age, anC
seemed utterly unconcerned about the grave
charge resting upon him. He claimed that bC
left the house last night between and
O'Clock and went on a spree among various
there all night and had heard nothing about th'
fire when he returned home. AS to the elaborate
preparations to burn the building he heard then
described with Indifference and shook his head
refusing to say more than that it was all news Il
him. He went back to his cell as if the SHADOW
of arson and murder did not hang over him.