The Sunday morning news., 1891-12-20
PLAYS FOR CHRISTMAS
The stoWaway" and The
Police PATROL Are
Coming.
REALISTIC SCENES AND INCIDENTS
One Will Be Presented at the New
Opera House and the Other
at the AcademyrGossip
Of the Footlights.

Will tell you something about tn e
methods employed by burglars in open
ing safesi' and the speaker. who was
Spike" Hennessey. gased somewhat
suspiciousiy at the reporter. "Well.
don't know about that. You see Pm
not in the burglary business any more.
forsook 1t aud all it's belongings since
became an actor and joined tine Stow
away three years ago, and hardly care
to talk about a part Of my life that
would rather forget altogether."
Mr. Hennessey was urged by Manager
Davis TO uubosom himself. and finally
consented to do SO. Lighting Per-
fecto, the ex-burglar began:-
II started in the safe business when
quite young and stayed in it right along,
with the exception, of course, of a few
vacations for heightened periods which
certain bull-headed officials in various
parts Of the country insisted on my tax
ing. 1t was shortly after one of these
vacations thatI had the good fortune to
attract the notice of Mr. Davis here who
put me on the stage. ~
Now as for opening safes there are
more ways than one of doing it, just as
there are more ways of killing dog than
\ v
burglarized very often because it takes
months sometimes to work up job be-
fore you can go at it. One thing yon
must do and tnat is to find out the make
mp of the safe inside the bank vault and
it takes lot of pretty fly work to do
That. When was in the business never
worked with more than one man. Hedid
the outside work while l went in and
wrestled with tine safe. We had regular
signals made by tapping or throwing
sand against the window, SO when my
pal would tip me everything was serene
I'd begin work with the drilling machine
on the vault door. 1t don't take long TO
cut into the lock. and the next thing Is to
punch out the dog or the detent
that holds the combination, and
when it's off, the bolts are free
and you can pull the door open.
Sometimes its dangerous to punch the
"dog" out on account of the noise. 10
which case you put taper tap in the
hole, follow it with plug and cut
thread through the door. Then you
screw threaded bolt until it strikes the
detent. and by applying wrench to the
end of the bolt you twist the dog off
without bit of noise. Then there's
big steel safe standing smiling at you
and you're at liberty to go in and daily
with it, without being seen from the out
side"
And how do you open bank safe ~
al tuc
the Information might come in useful 1T
some future time when he was broke and
salary day was hall a week away.
.'Ohi excuse me-" replied Spike"
warily. ''buJ that's just what Pm not GO
ing to tell you. There amt SO many
that do amt shouting it from
the house tops. l will say, however.
that nearly all improved bank safes are
opened with explosives. You don't have
to lug around the tools and machinery
that are used on ordinary safes. The
secret is, how to get your dynamite, gas
or whatever explosive you're going to
use inside the door,and I'll tell you on the
dead O. I. all you need is an instrument
to suck air and one to blow it. In five
or ten minutes you can have the charge
inside the door, and thenyou use full
minating cap or electricity to touch her
off, You blanket the safe heavily, let her
go, and out drops the door so easily that
it would hardly wake weasel
''But let me tell you something. The
hard work to an expert is not In the act
ual opening or blowing of the safe, but
in getting into the place where it is, and
in getting in at time and in such way
that man can work unmolested by
policemen. The ordinary safes in busi-
ness houses are different from those in
banks, and very ofte1 they are placed SO
that they can be seen from the street with
a IlRnt nduH ONCt OhVihs hSAO CIV Il
good many ways of opening the common
or garden safe. 1t is easy enough to
blow a thimbleful of powder into
the lock and burst it off, or
you can drill into the lock and
then force it. In a case where the safe
has double doors you can drill behind the
inner doors and then insert a charge
sufficiently powerful to blow of both
sets of doors at the same time"
'.Well, how about getting the charge
imp" asked the reporter.
"Ohi that's easy" answered "Spike.''
svon just-but say. young fellow, think
There's no telling what you newspaper
fellows might be nm to. So long" and 50
saying the gentle Spike" percolated
softly through the stage door.
spike can be seen at the New Opera
House this week in the "Stowaway." An
extra matinee will be given Chrlstmas
Day.
CHRISTMAS AT TIE ACADEMY.