The news & observer., 1905-05-21

Mules Being Burned to Death With
Charred Fragments of Strickland
Found Under One of Them, His
Watchman's Clock Still at Work.
The roaring flames which early yes
terday morning destroyed the Stand
ard Oil warehouse in this city famed
sbove a tragedy and a robbery. a muir
der most foul.
A blow in the dark, a one-armed
white watchman done to his death. a
safe broken open and a pitiful sum of
money secured. a fire started to con-
ceal the murder and robbery which
swept all before it, is the brief synop-
sis of as horrible deed as has ever
occurred in Raleigh.
The fire swept away the Standard
Oil warehouse between West and Har-
rington streets in the northwest edge
of the city between two and five
o'clock yesterday morning. In the
charred debris of the stable, partial
ly under one of the mules burned to
death there was found shortly after
twelve o'clock yesterday the charred
and mutilated remains of what had
once been a man. William Henry
Strickland, the one-armed white
watchman stricken to death while on
duty.
This was the elimination of the
dreadful affair and after a full inves-
tigation of all the circumstances the
e~Sxv gNx.Tg
yesterday evening found that Strick-
land had come to his death by violence
at the hands of a person or persons
who had broken into the safe and fired
the buildings at the Standard Oil
warehouse, in which property, various,
ly estimated as valuing from $4,000
to $50, 600 was destroyed, the holocaust
of flame burning to death five mules
and eating the flesh from the bones
of the murdered night watchman,
whose skull had been crushed by fiend.S
lin human form.
Here is the story in brief as patch
ed together from the various pieces of
evidences which have come to light
The midnight hour of Friday night
had passed, and at one o'clock Strick-
land his watchmans clock in hand
was inside the stable making the re-
cord in the clock to show he was on
stable creeps up behind, and with an
axe. or crowbar, deals him a death
blow in the head, crushing his skull
killing him at once. Robbery the
purpose of the man, perhaps a COM
panion. steals from the stable, across
the yard and into the office of the
company Here with sledge and crow
bar and steel chisel the safe is broken
open, after perhaps an hours work,
and $40 or $25 is secured Then a
fire is started to cover the murder and
crime and while the miscreants steal
away the flames spread office and
warehouse are destroyed, oil flames
up, the stable is next on fire, four
mules are burned to death and one
falls on the dead body of the watch
man. one mule escapes into the yard,
the fire alarm sounds, but too late eX-
cept to save surrounding building, the
people and the fire companies arrive.
1T was half past two o'clock yester-
day morning that the fire alarm SCUM
ded from box / and later from box
A. The first alarm was sent in by
Capt Mart Thompson, of the Raleigh
police force, who coming down Nc
Dowell Street from the direction of
the Blind Institution saw the flames
and gave the alarm. At the box he
found Miss Minnie GriSsom, who
lives on North Street opposite the
warehouse, trying to give the alarm.
When Captain Thompson reached the
scene the fire had spread from the
office to the warehouse and storage
rooms of the oil company, but had
not reached the stables.
The fire companies responded
promptly and soon there was four
streams on the flames. The fire
could not be stopped. as spreading
from the office it found fresh foot
holdon the warehouse and in the bar
rels of lubricating and engine oil stor-
ed in the cellars below as only empty
barrels We're in the warehouse above
The flames cont nued to spread and
soon the stables were on fire and by
daybreak only charred embers of the
buildings remained.
The engine and lubricating oil in
the lower storage rooms were
consumed, and these exploded with
some noise. In the yard two kerosene
wagons with small tanks, caught on
fire, and the wheels and woodwork
were destroyed, the little oil left in the
tanks feeding this. At the west end
of the warehouse are five immense
tanks on brick foundations. From