The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1894-04-24
CONFESSION BY THE FTREBUG.
ACCUSING HIs BMPLoTER sILBERBERe
AND VICTOR IsHL

AsS, Arrested After = chase, But siIser-
berg, who Hsa Taiior shop n the
Tenement thu, ws- Fired, H Nis,inr.
LYMAN Blumenthal. the frobug who was
! caught early on Sunday morning almost In
the act OF setting IRE to the tenement at rs
Fast Broadway. where more than one hundred
| persons were sleeping. confessed yesterday to
/ Fire Marshal Mitchell He said that his en-
/ ployer. Lyman Silberburs. had got him to set
! the fire. and that Victor Ask distantiy related
! by marriage to Silberberg. was concerned in
the Job Ask lie a Russian jew. 43 years old.
and lives at 12l Norfolk street He 10 q
| slipper maker. He was arrested. but silber-
! berg has not been found.
When Bumenthal was arrested In the cellar
OF the tenement house early on Sunday morn
ing he begged to be released. and said he
would tell the name OF the man who had sent
him TO set the building on IRE; but when he
found the police wouldn't let him go he refused
to say anything. He got lawyer yesterday
morning and the lawyer told him TO 90 TO court
and demand an examination, and II would be
all right.
Acting on Blumsnthals tip, that some one
had sent him there to ire the building. Fire
Marshal Mitchell began an investigation to
find out who In the building was insured. The
only person insured. SO far as he could learn.
was Silberberg. who had q tailor shop on the
first floor. SilberberR said that he wasn't In
the building at the time Of the fire. and that
he didn't know Blumen thal. When Blumen-
thai got to court and Mitchell had chance to
talk to him. the Marshal pretended that he
knew the man who had sent Blumenthal to
the building. He mentioned silberberg's
name. whereupon Blumenthal said that he
would tell all about IL. He went with the Fire
Marshal. Mr.. Frel. the Marshals assistant
NJ nata IN
private room. There he made . confession.
which was given out later by Fire Marshal
Mitchell. in substance as folio rs:
i do not think that am to blame. I was
employed By Silberberg two months and
half. / didn't like him. but didn't have any
ths iGS he had hsdIt been there long when
SilberberS and some Of his friends had a CON
ference: They planned then to set the build;
an assignment After that silberberg began
Sa, IL ads e y oS frG.
he t9Id me all sRout IT. was , trlghssSed; put
In earnest and told me that to fire the tene-
ment and get M MS insurance 81 an opey only
Suildins, and didn't want to have snyIhins
On Saturday helped him to take down into
tho cellar tho rags benzlne. and Faint that
fuses. Victor Ask also assisted us b.. furnish
ing the stun About IL o'clock Saturday night
and o as
as W. LEFT them We were rust getting getting ready ready
wasn't ' " enough 6ensine sprnEled around and
We put more on the walls and tioor When al
Sa Sy, he IL SsS. Of du the hSs. to
other ' wood cellar to, get a bundle Of goods for
"A mi nnf
sPrested The f rags Ss found il the ella ss,s:
store as S' did tas alsnpsn and the hatSeI ed
With resin. the latter being brought there on
Blum enthal said that Saturday night before
he went to tho cellar he was with some jewish
said he had taken some wine with them; that
when he met silbeIberg he went with him to
saGons and got intoSo ate As aeon
he was taken before Justice Hogan. and was
held by the Justice In $4,000 bail: The JUS
berg ,'g and A.ei.. and Hsseerty and Power
started Quite md them. They went to Siiber-
berg the SON Of. the proprietor, there: jacob
said no didn't, know where his father had
tectives arrested JACOB and took him directly
to court. but he was discharged.
ri SoriofE .tfsst Ask va: tssrs hut thsS
didn't know him. They asked him y he knew
What ns ss he
and flnd Ask lie hustled out of the back door
in such hurry that Hacgerty followed him.
while Tower ran out to watch the front OF the
building Ask. tho detectives say. ran out
into the back yard and into the house By tho
rear entrance up stairs two steps at time
Haggerty went after him on run. and caught
him on the top floor. Then Ask admitted his
identity, and protested that he didn know
what he Was arrested for. Ho was tax en- down
to the store. where his wife was. She talkedat
him in Russian and screamed and wept. His
children chung 10 him. all crying, and his sister
came from four doors down the street and |
added her wall to those OF the family
searched the house. and they found hidden in !
the middle room OF the basement two rolls Of |
cloth. There was about nifty yards in tho two !
rolls. The whole family accompanied Ask to /
Madison street station, where he was locked !
un He de ed that he hal had anything to do i
with the attempt to turn the tenement. and he |
denied that he was related to Silberberg. He |
will be arraigned in court this morning The |
poiIca haIIAva that SiIbarharR ia atill in the |