The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1892-05-02
THE ANARCHIST SCARE.

cautiOnary Detail in This City.
IAN anonymous communication sent to
one Of the morning papers caused ali this
talk about dynamite and auarchlsm," said
Chief Of Police Crowley to CALL reporter
yesterday morning, as he leaned back in an
easy-chgir in his Office at the old City Hall.
ut is true" he continued, "that on
Saturday night I caused 100 officers in
citizens clothes to be sent out In various
portions of the city and particularly in the
vicinity of the banks. No violence was
feared and We made the detail merely as a
matter Of preCautlOu. We did not desire TO
alarm the public, and the utmost secrecy
was enj0ined on the part Of the officers
sent out The Off 'ers were told ta say
nothing about their instructions. What
caused NE to take these precautionary meas
uTes were the adyccs Of impending trouble
among anarchists In Europe and Eastern
cities Of this country. There may be few
of those who believe in the use Of dynamite
in this city as a means of teTrorizjng capital,
but that there is no organization among
them we are certain. As I stated, the Off
GERS were sent out TO guard tile banks as
precautionary step, and not because there
was any apprehension Of trouble. The men
are still on duty and viii be kept at their
posts until tomorrow morning
AN INYEsTIG ALTON HAD.
headquarters that a dynamite bomb had
been exploded at the Mission il was at first
feared that some anarchist or reYOlutiOnjSt
had begun work in earnest here. Detective
Ross Whitaker was at once sent out to in-
vestigate the affair, and this is what he
learned:
a few minutes before o'clock Yesterday
morning Albert and Clarence Low, boys
employed as carriers OF a morning paper,
were passing down Sixteenth street when
they saw man enter the vacant lot on Six
teenth street between Harrison and Fol-
som. The lads thought nothing of the
mans appearance until they had proceeded
a block further. Then they es we'll as 9th
ers in the neighbOThOod heard a loud eXplo-
sion aud, looking toward the lot. saw
dense cloud of black smoke ascending into
the air Then the boys went down Sever
teenth street and encountered the man they
bad seen enter the lot. he stopped
in front Of a grocery store and said
pleasantly: 81 guess the people around
here will think they are having an earth
quake today" He repeated the remark
to John 0Brien of 1913 Harrison street,
who happened to approach, aud then
started down Seventeenth street, toward
Bryant. When Officer Atkinson of the
Seventeenth-street station appeared, the
man Increased his speed 10 a run and
quickly disappeared. Those who saw the
man describe him as a German, about 80
years Of age. lie was neatly dressed, about
feet inches high. had a black mustache
aud appeared 10 have dark complexion.
NEXT A BREWERY.
1t is a peculiar fact that the lot upon
which the explosion occurred adioins the
Enterprise Brewery, which employs only
nOn-uniOu men and is under boycott in
consequence. An examination Of the lot
failed 10 reveal any traces OF the explosion.
There was no indentatiou 10 the sand such
70 n Of
bomb or cartridge could be found For
this reason il is believed that IA stick OF
blasting powder was used. The black
smoke in Itself would show that no dyna-
mite had been exploded.
When these details were reported to
Chief Crowley aud Captain Lees they at
once said the powder had been exploded for
the purpose of soaring the Enterprise Brew
cry people, or by some crank" who de-
sired TO frighten residents in that vicinity
1t was not the work Of an anarchist.
Detectives BRYAN and SEYMOUR who also
investigated affairs at the Mission, discoy-
cred that the chests OF contractors had been
broken open and tools and explosives taken.
On the night of Saturday, the 10Th ult., a
chest belonging to A. &. Buchanan was
broken open at Diamond and Twenty-ninth
streets, and some powder, dynamite, steel
drills and shoyels taken.
STILL ANOTHER THEFT.
AuUlIcl CutoL lclL dt kUb EtONsluH ul
Twenty seventh and Castro streets was
broken open some time between Monday
and Saturday of last week, and the follow
ing articles used in blasting were stolen
Two eighi-pOund hammers, one crowbar, a
new saw. hatchet, four pieces Of drilling
steel. 2G0 feet Of fuse. box containing
eight pounds Of Hercules powder and 25
p0uBds Of ordinary blasting powder.
Last Friday night box of blasting-caps
was stolen from tool chest RI Green and
DeyisaderO streets A duplicate key was
used in unlocking the chest and the fore
mau thinks the theft was committed by one
Of tie i men employed in grading there.
"These kind of thefts," said Chief Crow
ley, when questioned about them, "have
frequently occurred before, and therefor G
can have no connection with labor agitation
or anarchsm. The stuff was probably
stolen by petty thieves and sold to small
con tractors or Chinese engaged In gravel
mining"
"Yes, you can add" said Captain Lees,
that anarchists dent operate in that clumsy
manner. Contractors frequently suffer from
thefts Of their tools and explosives. There
is no cause for the slightest alarm. There
may be half a dozen 'cranks' IN the city who
advocate dynamite as a weapon for adjust
ing labor grievances, but there is no organi-
Zation among them. In short. there is not