The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-04-27
DEAD IN THE BOILING ARGOL.
LEBENS ACCUSED or MURDER
mo FELLOW WORKMAN.


fellow workman, Hans Won Grofski. were
detailed last night at an inquest held by
Coroner Flaherty. Other employees In the
works Of the Tartar Chemical Company, 65
Ninth street, told Of the disappearance Of
the victim early on the evening Of Satur.
day April IS. and the discovery Of the
body In vat Of boiling liquid early the next
morning by the man now accused Of homi-
eide.
There are eight copper tanks or kettles
on the third floor OF the oompany's works.
Each Ia eight feet deep and about seven
feet In circumference. Into these argols
the liquor used In the manufacture Of cream
Of tartar Is run and then II Is boiled 10y
steam forced downward upon the surface.
Seven Of these tanks are In constant use.
The eighth tank, No. 1, Is kept for emergency,
such as the Overlooking Of the others.
The tanks are sunk in the ground, only
two feet appearing above the floor, and
each Ia protected by strong railing four
feet high. The materials 70 be boiled
enter the tanks from chutes.
Two men watched these tanks all the
time. The men on the job that Saturday
night were Lebens and Joseph Schmidt.
Won Grofsd was a miller. whose duty II
was to see that the reservoirs feeding the
tanks were kept full. Every hour or 80 II
was his duty 20 go from the milling room
20 the tank room and learn from Lebens
or Schmidt whether they had q sufficient
supply Of material.
Lebens and Schmidt both knew that it
was against the rules to all Tank or turn
the steam on except In cases Of emer-
81,
had been an overplus Of argol, but that
night the supply was short Won Grofski
came TO the kettle room about rs p NJ,
according 20 Sohmidt's story, and about
that time Schmidt decided that il would be
we'll for him TO go for a pail Of beer,
as both he and Lebens we're hot and Thirsty
from their work
II was a dull night and Schmidt was
away some time. He thinks it may have
been an hour. When he returned Lebens
was alone in the kettle room. Schmidt
did not ask where Won Grofski was and
did not care. II the miller had been present
the beer would have gone three ways; now
it went only two. Nor did Schmidt pay
any attention TO Tank !, because il was
not supposed 70 be in commission. He
knew that the tank had about two feet Of
argol in Il early in the evening.
Schmidt and Lebens drank the pail OF beer
and then, as the tanks did not need i'm
me date attention, II was suggested that
they lie down and rest in the Office not far
away. Schmidt slept for nearly two hours,
and when he awoke Lebens was still lying
near MIN. but his eyes were open. Schmidt
went to the tank room and found steam on
IN, W Ia fOlA haN Lob
steam on. Foreman Charles B. Lisec asked
Lebens why he had turned the steam on in
the emergency tank. and Lepens said he
didn't know why be had done so; there was
no real reason for it.
About II o'clock the complaint was made
in the milling room that Won Grofsky had
not been at his machine for hours. In
quiries for him we're made In all depart
ments and a messenger came to interview
Lebens and Schmidt.
Hes through work at IL o'clock" said
Lebens. The night Waterman, Charles
Traub, said that he had seen Won Grofsky
at 8 o'clock, but not on his hourly rounds
thereafter and he had seen the miller on
every trip other nights.
Meanwhile No. l kept boiling and bub-
bling, the steam rising above the top.
Nobody paid any attention TO IL. APP
parently IL was doing no harm and perhaps
some one higher up had given orders that
IL shoulu De put nJo use 30 Schmdt
thought, and presently he forgot the miss
Il was o'clock Sunday morning when
Lebens went 70 Schmidt, who was at the
far end Of the line Of kettles.
Hans burns in the tank, he said. He
is In No l.
Schmidt nan to No. l, but could see nothing
in It's depths The steam was rising, thick
and hot, far above the rim
How do you know thst?' he asked Of
Il saw his head when turned the steam
on because It was on too strong said
Lebens
The steam was turned on, but, peer closely
az be would Schmidt could not see through
IT, Two OF three minutes later the vRpoB
grew thinner and then Schmidt saw. Many
OF the other worlmen came and they, too,
saw. II was not a pleasant sight
The body, or what was left Of IL, hoAted
on the surface OF the arRol, now sir feet
deep in the tank. Lebens had turned on
the liquor as we'll as the steam and. as he
admitted, without knowing just why
They opened the waste pipe, for the body
and emptied the tank BY that time the
police had been informed and Detective
bailey came from the Fifth avenue station.
A lantern was found on the bottom,
but Il was not the dead miller's. Il was
Lebenas lantern. The body was sent to
All these facts we're not patent to Capt
REYNOLDS at once. He was satisfied
with the report that Won Grofsky had
fallen into the kettle. for a personal in
spection showed him that the miller's
duties did not bring him within a dozen
feet Of the kettle and that the kettle was
veil protected by a strong fence. still intact
One Of his early discoveries was that Won
hat had been found on the roof
after the tragedy There Ia a skylight,
always open In dry weather. just above
the tank room and q person with fair aim
could throw a hat from that room TO the
roof. The captain heard, too, that IL was
a favorite trick Of Lebens 20 snatch OF the
hate OF other worlmen and toss them TO
the roof IL was ell In play, Of course.
He learned that DebenR, while small, Is an
athlete, and that he often seized other men
and held them over the railing. laughing at
their fear OF fall
These tricks we're told Of az the inquest
by Foreman Lisec who said he had heard Of
them from Charles Deligan, John Sesnosh
and Fred Burliwin, who had had personal
experience Lebens used 10 wrestle a bit
too, when the foremRn's eye was not on him.
but there never was any malice about this
skvlarking. as Lisec called IT,
Mr.. Wiltshire the manager OF the chemi-
cal company, said at the inquest that he
did not believe that a fall into the tank
could have killed a man whether there I
were two feet OF six feet Of argol In II; that
the cold lipuor was a. harmless az dirty !