The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-03-11
LAST STf|E IN ARSON
PETROLEUM is NO LONGER THE
FAVORITE AGENT OF THE
INcENDIARY
DUE 70 DEFECTIVE WIRES
WHAT A CHICAGO ELECTRICAL IN
sPECFOR HAssTO SAY OF
THE SUBJECT
CAN BE ACCURATELY TIMED
How the Firebug with More Insur-
ance Than stock Can Arrange
for a Profs9abIe Fire
Sale.
DUE 70 DEFECTIVE WIRES
CAN BE ACCURATELY TIMED

I CHICAGO March 10+'There were sew
enty-eight fires of known electrical origin
in Chicago last year. There were hun
dreds of fires to which no cause could
be assigned, and of these many, 1 am
convinced, were deliberately planned ana
= executed by defective wiring"
So said Harry H. Hornsby, chief in
spector, in City Electrician Ellicott's Of
fee Yesterday. His startling remark was
the keynote of written statement by
Mr. Hornsby, which will form portion
of Mr.. Elicotts report to the council to-
morrow evening.
In brief the chief inspector asserts that
property owners who wish to profit by
burning insured goods or buildings have
found electricity safer and less easily
detected agent than kerosene This con-
r clusion he has reached as the result Of
closely watching the fires for which no
apparent cause could be assigned.
LEAVES NO PROOF.
BY the use of electricity as an agent
of incendiarism he says every trace of
the crime is obliterated, so that there
is no way to determine exactly how the
flames originated.
The fuse which is used to prevent
trouble by protecting the circuits in the
event of a short circuit or a grounding of
the wire is made OF soft lead" Mr.
Hornsby added tsWhenever there is
short circuit, or the wires become ground
ed, the force Of the current is taken up
by the fuse, which commences to glow.
AS matters grow worse, the fuse gets
hotter and hotter. Soon 1t reaches
white heat and rnelts
Here is where fthe firebug does some
fine work. He places heap of inflam-
mable material, or innocent-looking cot
ton under the fuse, and it ignites at once.
A little care will produce a short circuit,
or grounded wires. The whole thing can
be timed, or worked from distance. and
no one in the world can tell how the
fire was started. '~-.-rr-''s-----. r.-,.--.-
A SAMPLE CASE.
''Of course, a short circuit or ground
ing of the wires is likely to occur at any
time, and for that reason fuses are used
as a means of preserving the wires. If
the work is done rightly, there should be
no danger from this source.
81 have one aggravated case in mind
One of our inspectors last year was walk
ing past a big store, when he noticed a
defect i'll the. construction of the window
lighting fixtures There was a fuse IN
the window, which was lighted brilliant
ly@for display advertising. Just under the
fuse there was lot of white cotton, part
of the decora ton of the window.
THE inspector entered the building and
at once had the connection with the rest
of the lighting plant cut off from the
window That was on Thursday. Satur-
day night the wires having been recon
nected without a permit from the city,
a fire broke out in the store at II 80
o'clock, and the whole store Went up in
smoke There was a loss of 100000.
SAYS TT WAS ARSON.
'I have not the slightest doubt that
that fire was of incendiary origin, and
was set by means of the electric wires.
But the evidence was totally destroyed.
Had it even been found, the owner might
have pleaded accident
Mr. Ellicott will urge the enactment re-
uuiring all electric wirers to obtain
licenses from the city before putting any
wires in buildings, or repairing any
which have fallen into disorder An
ordinance to this effect was intro3uced
in the council last year, and was sent
to a committee, where it has slept for
months. 1t is likely that Mr.. Hornsby $
report will facilitate it's passage.
kaiser's Wound Healing Rapidly.
BERLIN. March 10-Emperor Will
Jams wound is healing, the swelling of