Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1885-05-15
EXPLOSION IN LoNpoN-

EXPLOSION IN LONDON.
Tho Admiralty Building Badly Shaken -,
. government Official Injurcd-The ,r "a
situation.
LONDON, April 24.-Great e~xciteme,.
was caused IL the Admiralty Office ~
Whitehall at 1850 yesterday morning ~
an explosion close to the Secrctary,
room in the basement Of the Admirai,s
building. The room was badly DAM
aged and Mr.. Edwin n. Swanson. ASH.
ant Secretary, received a severe sc,A,
wound. The force of the explosion was -
great that the fittings of tile room wa,.
smashed to atoms, while the plaster on tbs
walls and ceiling hangs in ribbons. tn.
corridors adjacent to the oom vert ver,
much damaged, but the walls and princin,,
parts of the building are uninjured, with
the exception of the glass-domed roof
which was shattered into fragments BY fl,
violence Of the conclusion.
At first it was reported that the explosio,
was caused by dynamite or gun-cotton, anal
that it was the outcome of a plot hatehM
by either dynamiters or Nihilists for tha
purpose of harassing the wal operation,
of the Government. There is, howl
ever, no accurate knowledge of thu
nature Of the explosion. The employl
of the Admiralty Office have been WORK
ing night and day to hurry forward
the war preparations, and any disaster Il
Az, I,,;J1;,,,r NJ vroaoOf xunn16 mr.
rious delay. 1t is probable that the eynl0
s4yc. whatever it was, was thrown against
window in the room, and a report is cure,
that just previous to the explosion two me1
bearing q package were seen mounting
wall near TO the S%ecretary's apartment.
Up to n late hour last night no arrest
had been made. A strong suspicion nm
walls in police circles that the explosion n
the Admiralty Office was the result of pI
vate malice, as Mr.. Swanson was greatl
disliked by a number of his employees.
Some of the officials are of the opipioI
that the explosion was caused by the spo1
taneous ignition Of a specimen of torpel
explosive which had been sent to the A
miralty for inspection. The general belid
is that the explosive agent was not dyp1
mite.
The Daily NcWs and the Lou J0urnd
| assume the explosion at the Admiralty Of
| flee yesterday forenoon to be another dynj
| mite outrage, and they call upon the Col
eminent to capture and hang the dynami
| ers. They also comment on the fact tina
the office selected for destruction is III
most inert of all administrative department
| of the Government.
TILE WAR SITUATION.
,oH ,>,sI "a Fv,1 "a .c II |
Government maintain the strictest silence
regard to the negotiations which are know
to be still actively going OH between Englaa
| and Russia. This reticence Is carried by ID
Ministers to the length of excluding fToj
their confidence ven the most faithful SUI
! porters of the Government, and 1t has cause
much dissatisfaction among the latter. Tl
Ministers explain privately to the malcu
tents that they have put themselves on ln
or to divulge nothing at the present crsl
and that the negotiations have reached
stage of such delicacy and gravity that
single indiscreet word might. imperil peac
Long dispatches continue to pass dali
between the Foreign Office and Genu
Sir Peter Lumsden, the British Cod
missioner in Afghanistan, and Sir Edwal
Thornton, the British Minister at St. Petel
burg, but neither the public nor the pd
is allowed to get any mint of their content
1t is evident that the chiefs, of the Cabin
are determined to guard their secrets ze
ously, at least until the vote-of-credit 4
bate in the House of Commons next Nd
day evening.
In the House of Commons yesterday
Gladstone, in replying to All inquiry maj
by Sir Stafford Northcote, said that td
was no intention of having further papd
touching the Afghan situation upon 4
table before asking for a vote rpl
the war credits already submitted
the House. The Government
Gladstone continued, was engaged in
correspondence OF extreme gravity wi
Russia. 1t was impossible to make now
complete statement of the nature Of III
correspondence, while no partial stateme
could be given without the greatest risk
creating misapprehension.