The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1900-10-09
CHARGED WITH ARSON.
Two Portland Men In
Trouble In Marlboro.
How Thy Came To Be Arrested On
This Charge.
Had Been Followed
From Portland.
Had Fire Here Which Was Very
Had Fire Here Which Was Very
Suspicious.

Roberts, formerly Of Portland together
with man named George P. Critcher-
son were bound over to the grand jury in
Marlboro, Mass last week charged with
arson and conspiracy.
Roberts and Hammond are well known
In Portland. They at different times &C.
cupied and ran photographic galleries In
this city and had one IN the Dow block
at 5l4-16 Congress street on February
18th, 1899, when shortly after midnight
terrific fire broke out in 1t and did a
great amount of damage. Roberts had at
this time $1,000 insurance on the furni
ture, stock and fixtures OF the gallery.
This policy was taken out in Portland
on January POD in Roberts. name but it
was not until February 1rst that the ad-
ministrator Of the estate Of Alfred
Roberts sold to Eva NJ. Roberts. the wife
OF Fred E. Roberts the stock which Rob
erts had insured in his name. This stock
was sold to Mrs. Roberts for $500 and
Roberts had insured it previous to this
time for $780,
Charles A. Hammond had two cameras,
few negatives and some Photographic
fittings stored in the gallery at the time
of the fire there. He had just been evicted
from the CIapp building in Monument
square when he moved into the Congress
street gallery with Roberts on February
first. He had $500 insurance on the
property in the Clapp building and this
policy he had transferred to the Congress
street gallery. The most of the stock Of
Hammond was held by the owner Of ths
CIapp building. What he had moved to
the Dow block was worth $3.50 or 500 at
the most, so it was said at the time. This
was insured for $500.
The fire of February 18th was a very
mysterious blaze. There were no chemic-
ais, electric light wires, stoves or other
things in the photograph gallery where
the fire broke out, and 1t was suspected
by the local authorities of being OF in
cendiary origin. The fire had gained such
Roadway before it was reached by the
hremen that the place was pretty well
cleaned out. An effort was made by the
local authorities to get the companies
which held these insurance policies to
contest their payment, but they would
not do it so Roberts and Hammond COL
lected their insurance in full.
The entire stock or what was saved Of
it was then moved to Winthrop, and from
there to Marlboro, Mass 1t was watched
all the time by the detective for the in
surance companies. In Marlboro Roberts
and Hammond bought photograph gal :
lery for $85. They gave the owner $40 in
cash and note for s75. In this gallery
they stored their stock Of negatives,
cameras, etc., which they brought from
Winthrop. They then sold the entire out
tit to the old man Cr1tcherson for $1,000,
though 1t was not worth more than $500,
50 the Massachusetts, authorities claim.
Critcherson gave these men four ..snotes
for $500 each in payment for the stock
and had the place insured for $500 in his
name.
The police had orders to watch this gal
Iery day and night. If the curtains we're
pulled down at night the policeman on
the beat was to notify the Marlboro chief
OF police who in turn had orders to in
form the chief of-the fire department, who
was to get into the photograph gallery in
some way. For some weeks the curtains
Of the gallery were not drawn at night,
but one evening the first of last week
they were pulled down, The policeman
as soon as he discovered it informed the
chief OF police. The policeman had no
sooner t old his chief OF the fact than the
ire alarm commenced to ring in the box
where this gallery was located. The fire
men had orders to use no water, but to
allow the oheical engine to do the work.
This order was followed out and evidence
enough of an incendiary fire was obtained
to cause the arrest OF Criteherson. This
man when arrested is said to have con-
fessed to the conspiracy and to have I'M
pIicated Roberts and Hammond. He also
told the Marlboro authorities that the
Portland lire had been incendiary, so it
is said. All three OF the men have been
bound over to the grand jury.
In 1891 Roberts was in the wall paper
business in Lynn with another man and
was burned out there in October OF that
year. Hammond before coming to Port
land was in business in Lewiston and is
said to have suffered in a fire there. Both
Of these men have families living in Port
land and are well known here.
MISS LEONORA JACKSON.