The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1892-01-19
THAT Gas MYSTERY
Tho Subject of Much Excited Com
ment about Town Yesterday.
Mr.. JACOBS STORY0F THE MATTER
His First Intirnatlon Of anything
Wrong was from the 1ntclliscnccr.
Tho Attempt ut Arson n Pcnitcnti.
airy oncnsc, aud the Matter will be
Investigated. '43Ei ltaT!t

The cold-bloodod and deliberate at.
tempt to blow up tho dry goods store Of
Jacobs & hamburger, on Min street
above Eleventh, night before last, WINS
tho subject Of more comment about
town yesterday than any occurrence for
long time. All sorts Of theories were
advanced, and all sorts OF rumors cir.
culated, and ms usual; in such cases at
lenst halt Of tho rumdrs were untrue.
Mr.. Julius jacobs, Of tile firm, was
seen by an lSrELL,GEsCER reporter. lle
said that the first inklinghe had OF any
thing wrong was when he passed the
store on his way from his lodgings TO
breakfast at tho Granthousc, where he
boards. lie saw that n gas jctw burn
ing that was not lighted when he left
the store the night before, and going to
the lower store, oil the next square
below, TO get the key OF the upper store,
he was told by tho boy that there was
something in tho morning papers. He
Ai'u tiic III MS pOShCby
and taking it out he read the account.
Mr.. Jacobs said that usually his part
ner, who lives at Martins Ferry, takes
the key OF the upper store with him on
Saturday night, but last Saturday night
Mr.. Jacobs took it for tho purpose Of
turning out the gas which is left burn
ing in one jet all night, rs he thought 1t
was not necessary to let it burn all day
Sunday. He did turn it out on Sunday
morning, and went back into the store
at half past eight in the evening, lighted
the gas in that one jet again, and looked
to see that all was right. At that time
the transom, which is usually left closed,
was open. How it came to be closed
when the police reached the place q
little later he could form no idea.
When he LETT everything was all right.
lilo took the key to the lower store, went
to the NcLure house and sat around
awhile, and then went to his room on
Main street over tho former entrance OF
the Hotel Windsor.
Mr.. Jacobs said he had no knowledge
Of any enemy who could do such q.
thing rs to turn on the gas to blow up
the building. He himself no. only had
no motive, but the destruction oil tho
store would have entailed heavy loss
on him, as the stock was insured for
only 1000, and it was worth at least
$1,000 or $4,000, at low estimate, and
the store was doing good profitable
business, which he would not like to
sacrifice even for time.
OF the $1,000 insurance on the stock,
5000 was in the agency OF Major J. V.
L. Rodgers, and the other 81, 900 in the
Franklin, OF this city. This policy the
Franklin yesterday cancelled. :, 1879
The attempt to blow up the building,
which would necessarily have caused
considerable loss OF life, is as much OF
mystery us it was when the escaping
gas was discovered. In West Virginia
the burning OF house in which there
arc people is arson, punishable with
death, and the law further makes IN
attempt to commit any crime which is
punishable with death felony, so that
the apparenti attempt to destroy this
house, although it failed, is an otIense
punishable by confinement in tho peni-
Tertiary. - -
lIc uulliOl ltlcS ulc uIltlcTSlOOu 10 COLI
template steps to locate the RESPONSE
bility TO: the awful crime. They have
been in consultation as to the proper
steps to pursue, but what has been de-
cidcd upon, if anything, cannot be
learned.
In tho circuit court yesterday the
firm OF Jacobs & Hamburger in open
court confessed Judgment in suit
against the firm by jacobs & Isenberg.
The sum claimed and for which execu-
ton was issued on the confession was
S4.75S S..
In the account printed in the INrELLr-
GEScER yesterday the clothing store Of
Joseph Jacobs, on the Market square,
was unfortunately mixed with The
store OF Jacobs & Hamburger, where the
occurrence took place. OF course, the
mistake corrected itself, us Mr.. Joseph
Jacobs's name was not used, but it
should be known that his establish
mcnt was not in any way connected
with the attempted arson.
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