Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1891-02-19
AWFUL CHARGE.
The Secretary Of the Great Whisky
Trust in Trouble.
PLOTTING TO EXPLODE DYNAMITE.
Detectives said to Have an Internal Ma
chine Found on the Trust Premises-A
Peoria Report That 1t is the Other
Fellows Plotting.

CHICAGO, Feb. 12.-George J. Gibson,
secretary of the great whisky trust, was
arrested at the Grand Pacific Hotel
yesterday morning on charge of con-
spring to blow up all the distilleries in
the country not belonging to the trust.
Mr.. Gibson lives at Peoria and 1t Is
said that he came here for the express
purpose OF wrecking the Shufeldt dis
tillery in this city.
In small satchel carried by Mr.. Glib
son was found a number of articles
which are said to be positive evidence
of his connection with the conspiracy.
Gibson was taken to the United
States marshal's Office in the Govern
ment building, and at a preliminary
| hearing before United States Commis-
sioner Hoyne in the afternoon waived
examination and was held to the Fed
eral grand jury on $4,000 bail
The conspiracy was worked up
through Revenue Inspector T. S.
Dewar, who was told guardedly some
months ago that the Shufeldt distillery
was in the way of the trust, and that
there was ''big money for the man who
succeeded in getting the concern out of
the way"
Solicitor Hart, of the internal revenue
bureau of the United States Treasury
Department, who has arrived in this
city from Washington to take charge of
the case, has in his possession the dyna-
mite machine with which the destruc-
ton of the Shufeldt distillery was to be
off ha
tract for the diabolical business.
The specific change against Gibson
is that he tried to bribe Dewar to blow
up the Schufeldt distillery. All ar
rangements had been completed for
the work when the Government officials
prevented the consummation of the
conspiracy.
Inspector Stuart, of the Post-ofice
Department, one of the officials who
made the arrest, said: 81 am not at
liberty to give the facts in the case, but
there is nothing that human mind can
conceive more diabolical and horrible
than the intentions of the conspirators.
1t was nipped just in time, too, for the
first blow was to have been struck here
in Chicago Then it would have been
repeated in other points"
The Shufeldt distillery was the most
important outside of the combination,
and it was against this that the plot was
arranged. Two previous attempts,
which were attributed to the whisky
trust, but not proved, were made to de-
stroy Shufeldt's with dynamite. One of
them occurred two years ago last fall.
Detective Dan Coughlin, of the city po-
lice force, was detailed on the case, and
it was while at work on it that he made
the acquaintance of the little German,
John p. Kunze. Both of them were af-
terward tried for completely in the as
sassination of DR.. Cronin. Coughlin is
serving n life sentence for the crime,
but Kunze was acquitted.
SURPRISE AT PEORIA.
PEORIA, Ill. Feb. 12.-Tlse arrest of
George J. Gibson in Chicago caused
At trust headquarters every
office was deserted and no one could be
seen. President Greenhut went to
Washington ten dars ago and is still
there, although his relatives and friends
do not know at what hotel he is. His
SUI Sdlu Ihdt IL HIS IdJntT ucSlIcu "
say any thing on the subject he would
make his whereabouts known, other
wise not.
Tuesday night Gibson and his wife
started for Cleveland to visit the father
of Mrs. Gibson, who was reported i'll
Whisky men here all declare them
selves of the opinion that Gibson's ar
rest is the result of a conspiracy on the |
part of distillers outside of the trust,
and that the case has been worked up |
by them