The San Francisco call., 1896-10-17
Had No Connection With Irish
DynamiterS and Were on a
Peaceful Mission.
ROUGH EXPERIENCE IN PRISON
Policemen Who Tried to Make Them
Break Down by Stories of Confess
sions by Informers.

NEW 1OhA, IN. l., OCGs lO.-JOuu T.
Kearney and Thomas Haines, the two al
legged Irish dynamiters who were arrested
in Rotterdam September 13, arrived at
Hoboken this morning on the steamship
Werkendam. Besides few personal
friends there was no one on the pier to re-
ceive them. Kearney's wife did not re-
ceive telegraphic notice of the vessel until
8 O'Clock. and she was not present. Kear-
ney, however, waited for her, and at 10
o'clock he greeted his wifi and nine-year-
old daughter. The meeting was an affect
ing one. Ten minutes later Kearney. his
wife and child and Thomas Haines were
on their way to Kearney's home at 927
Washington avenue.
Both men tell remarkable stories and
both vigorously deny that they had ever
been engaged in any dynamite plot. They
insist that their arrest was due to a plot
on the part of the English detectives.
Kearney also believes that his own
brother-in-law was one of the prime
movers in it-that John Gort, the name
the brother~in-law goes by-is in the pay
of the English Government and actually
laid the wires which brought Kearney to
Rotterdam, knowing that the English
Government wanted him for an alleged
dynamite offense said to have been COM
mited in Glasgow many years ago.
Kearney, as we'll as Halnes, seemed
amazed when informed Of the stories pub
lished concerning him, particularly that
which said that $4,000 of English money
bad been found in his possession in Rot
terdam when arrested.
THE fact of the matter is" said he,
"that 1 left New York with less than $3.50,
and at the time of my arrest had only
$95 40. 1 have brought back with me
exactly 81 rs. As to the story that was
engaged in the manufacture of bombs or
destructive affairs want TO say right here
that there is not word of truth in the
story.
'I started for Europe on August1, my
brother-in-law purchasing the passage
tickets with money which / gave him,
and it was not until 1 was many days out
that / found my name had been changed
from Kearney to Wittges. My wife is a
German, and there is a little property COM
ing to her over there.
s'This brother-in-law sugges ted that 1t
would be good thing to take trip over
and have the estate settled. AS did not
intent starting my paper, the Irish Ma
tionalist,. until September readily con-
senteo to go. had pretty good time in
both Antwerp and Rotter lam, living in
the most economical manner until two
days before my arrest.
"While in a saloon one day / met Mr..
Haines. / recognized him as an Ameri-
can, as he did me. I learned from him
that be was in Europe on a vacation. He
asked me if l could tell him good
hotel to stop at, and Invited him to mine
When we got to the hotel we found that
there was not vacant room, so l offered
to him, as I would to any other American,
share of my bed.
"Well, Haines and myself looked about
for the first day, then he became very i'll
and had to nurse him. He was lying in
bed on the morning of September Is. 1t
was about 6 o'clock, II / remem Der rightly,
when there was a knock at the door. 1
opened it and :ound six policemen and an
Englishman, whose name | do not know,
standing on the side Each carried a
small arsenal and then / was told that we
were under arrest.
1.-THE room was never searched in four
presence. Indeed, we were bundled out
side and taken to the station.house. In
our absence they claimed to have searched
the room and found number of internal
machines under the bed upon which was
lying. Then / was taken to cell.
Every day for twelve solid hours two
policemen sat in the cell with ME and was
not allowed to lie down. They kept tell
ing me all the time that had better save
myself as one of my pals had confessed.
They spoke to me of lyman and Bell I
met lyman once or twice in New York,
but never knew him. ] did not know Bell
at all.
"Yet they kept harping about confess
sions and informers until I got sick OF
listening and refused to talk at all, except
to demand my release. I was never
brought into a police court, but always
before the Police Com missioners, who
kept harping always on the same theme.
They told me that my only hope was to
save myself by confessing. The food I got
was vile. Once l became so exhausted
that almost lost my mind. / was weak
from lack OF food and sleep. never want
another such experience. shall never
forget 1T. Only the Portland Prison con-
victs could be treated worse.
'Finally the detectives got tired. They
would not let me see any newspapers,
except those published in foreign lam
guages. / was not allowed to communi-
cate with any of my friends.
''Then the time came when we had to be
released. The Chief of Police tried to
make US sai1 home by way of England, but
l resolutely refused, for I knew what that
would NEAR. ~