Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1891-12-11

and in which other YES We're involved. A
dispatch from New York that evening
giving an account Of it says:
This afternoon Mr. Sage, whose office
windows on the second floor of the Empire
Building, broadway anu lteGior sLieet, look
North across Rector street. into Trinity
Church yard, had an appointment with
Charles E. james, Il broker at No. Mas
sau street, for II clock. hIr. James al
rived on time. lie entered tile little wait
ing room outside the general Office of Mr..
Sage, passed through the door i'll the glass
and wood partitlo and was uscied into
MI Sages private Office, Which opens into
the general Office. lie had noticed in a
careless way 4 man sitting in the small seat
with black band-satcie on his knees.
HOW THE CRANK LOOKED.
There WAS nothing remarkable in this
man S appearance. He wore a silk hat
He had light brown beard. He was re-
specially dressed aud his black overcoat
WAS buttoned tight.
James stool i'll Mr.. Sage's private office
looking ont into the church yard A young
clerk from w. NJ. lmbre Il Co. came into
the little waitng-l DOM. This clerk, whose
name is Frank Robertson, had Ill his hand
a certified check for $4,000, with which he
proposed to settle IL transaction in Y. Il. Il
q. stocks.
A CROFT Of VICTIMS.
Mr.. Sage was little late for his appoint
ment. At about 12:0I clock he came into
the little Wailiug-room- lean, white
haired, and a bit stooy ped. He passed at
once through the door in the partition,
stopped q moment or two in the general
Office to speak oColonel Sl0cum, his brother
| in-laW, and then went into his private
/ Office to greet AIr. james.
At 12:l5 clock there we're in Mr.. Sage s
private Office Mr.. Sage and Mr.. james In
mis- general Office were Colonel Slocum. B.
| f. n orton,a clerk; e. J. Mcnzie, the stem
ographer, and w. r. Laitllow, a clerk for
John Bloodgood IL Co., bankers. In the
/ DookkceDer's room Was the bookkeeptr,
| Charles W. Osborne. In the waiting-room
were Frank Robertson and the man with
| the hand satchel.
THE MAN WITH TIE sATCTEL.
Soon after Mr.. Sage had gone into his
private Office. the man with tile hand satcll-
ell arose aud walked to the window nearly
opposite the door into the hallway. Mr.
MenZie saw him and came over to inquire
| his business.
"Will you tell Mr.. Sage that a gentle
man with a letter from Mr.. Rockefeller
wishes to see him?" asked the man with
he hand-satchel.
Mr.. Menzie walked into the private office
| when MI Sage was just entering upon his
| business with MI. james, and delivered
the message.
"Just excuse me a moment" said Mr..
Sage, the millionaire, to Mr.. James, who
was now sitting beside his desk.
WANTED 81 100000.
Mr. Sage stepped out into the general
Il IN =
smliel pleasantly at the man with tie hand
sat ;!iel. The man. still holding tbs siltchel
| III his right hand, unbuttonel his overcoat
aid his undercoat and drew from an inside
pocket q long envelope which he handed to
MI. Sage The LATTER took from the envel-
ope Il typewriter document of some leugth
It set forth in wild and rambling way
that unless MI. Sage at once gave the bearer
of it 81 ECO, coo the whole building would be
blown to atoms with adynamite bomb.
WOULD TAKE SOME TINE TO COLLECT
TIE CASH.
MI. Sage lookel up from his reading
once. and saw the queer, gray eyes Of the
nan fixed upon him. He followed his usual
custom of humoring such insane individ-
uals, and looked the document over care
fully. Then he slowly folded it and put it
back IN tine envelope. He extended this
toward the man, who took it and put it in
his inside coat pocket again. Mr.. Sage
smiled cordially and said: 1T would take
some time for me to collect so much money
| AS that"
81 must have it at once, . said tho man,
earnestly n;}thpr than hercsly, advancing a
bit nearer to the open door OF the partition
| in Wilch Mr.. Sage was standing, and he
went on to rehearse the statements set
| forth in the document.
A TREMENDOUS EXPLOSION.
AT just this time, when nohody was pay
| ink any attention to MI. Sage and the man
so earnestly addressing him, Col. Slocum
was rising from bis desk with 100 shares
ton Wag standing by the window, MI
! Menzie WAS at the Side Of Col. Alooum s
| lesk, young Robertson was sitting at the
end of the ante room farthest from Mr..
,sige and the man with the satchel. 1t was
| 1919 o'clock. Mr.. Sage bowed and smiled,
ana half alosing tie partition door began a
SLOW retreat.
Robertson, looking at the man with the
satchel, saw him take some bright object
| from the outside pocket Of his overcoat
| Then he saw the satchel drop to the floor.
| just at the feet Of the man Who hand been
holding it.
| tremendous explosion came. The floor
sank. the ceiling t0ttered, partitions burst
and fell. Where there had been tlle we'll
| ordered, handsomely furnished offices there
vas i wild wreck and chaos, with shrieks
/ Of murder. ~ ringing through it. the
| binding shiverod. giaas crashed, the street
outside trenlbied, and deep. dull boom,
| like the confined explosion OF hundred
cannon, rolled up the island, to he heard
TWO miles and a half away.
MAN BLOWN THROUGH THE
WINDOW.
| At the shock and the sound OF the eXplo
| son the crowds on Broadway stood para
| lived with establishment. Those opposite
| Trinity church-yard luoked toward the
north side of the Empire building and saw
| glass, plastering, laths and bits of furni-
| ture shoot from the windows of the second
story otiiee to land in tha street below.
| They saw also the rolled-up body Of a man
shoot out with this mass of debEisto crash
| and unrol at.the edge of the sidewalk. 1t
| was the body of Norton, who had been
standing iy the wlndpw :,s The 4onb was
| dropped.
Before any one could move, Mr.. Sage ap
nearad at one OF the windows and caught
the sides, Stociil. lit another, and Mr.. james
at the third. Mr.. Sage seemed aholt to
jump out. bat as people called to him from
the street be stepped from the window sill
BACK into the wrecked room.
ONLY SLIGHT WOUNDS.
The two men helped him across the street