davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1905-04-06
RioTING AT WARSAW.
Four Jews Killed and Forty Wounded
by Soldiers.

Warsaw, April "a serious con-
fict occurred at 1880 p. m. in Dzika
street, where a Jewish Socialist so
ciety, known as the Buki, had or
ganized a demonstration. The troops
were called to disperse the gathering
and fired into the crowd, killing four
persons and w%ounding forty others.
Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1905-04-06
THREE MEN KILLED.
Small Tank Used for Storage of ri.
t~rogIycerin E%xpIodes.

Bay City, Mich, April 4.--Three
men were killed by an explosion Of a
small tank used for the storage OF
nitroglycerin at a dynamite manrfac-
turing plant ncar here during the day.
Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1905-04-06
Saturday, April 1.

Big Bear, the we'll known Winnie
bago Indian chief, is dead at Reeds
burg, Wis.
Frank Byers, a Junior law student
in the University of Michigan from
Harlan, Ia, was drowned while canoe
Ing on the Huron river.
The Dowager Duchess OF Abercorn,
who was Louisa Jane Russell, daugh-
ter of the sixth Duke Of Bedford, is
dead at Coates castle, Sussex, Eng.
Officers of Drake university at Des
Moines have received an offer of a
donation from Andrew Carnegie of
$4,000 for the erection of a library.
M. de Thygeson, known as the
Father OF the Rigsdag, being the old
est member of that body, is dead at
Copenhagen. He was ninety-eight
years old.
1nga Hanson, former Salvation
Army girl, convicted of perjury at
Chicago, has been denied a new trial
and will go to the p~enitentiary on an
1ndeterminate sentence.
Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1905-04-06
Friday, March 81,

Judge Joseph C. Ferguson of the
Philadelphia orphans court is dead.
The Tennessee legislature has in
creased the tax on grain brokerage
houses in that state from $500 te
$1,000 a year.
President Roosevelt will deliver an
address in Brooklyn on May 80 at the
exercises in connection with the un,
yelling of the statue of General Slo.
cum.
George H. Colket, president of the
Huntington and Broad Top Mountain
Railroad company and a director in
many leading financial and business
concerns, dropped dead of heart dis
ease at Philadelphia.
James F. Wardner, known the
world owe as Jim Wardner, mining
prospector, promoter of all manner of
gigantic enterprises for moneymak-
ing, maker and loser of fortunes and
an eccentric genius. is dead at Ell
Paso, Tex.
Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1905-04-06
RUSSIANS BLOWN UP
sEvENTY.FVE PERSONS KILLED
BY THE EXPLOSION OF A
BOMB AT HARDIN.

artillery Depot Wrecked, Millions of
Finished Projectiies Destroyed and
Immense Number Of Others Rem
dered UseIess-Renewai of Hostili-
ties Expected Shortly South of Gun.
shu Pass, Manchuria.
st. Petersburg, April 4.-Seventy-
five persons, including four artillery
men and forty Chinese coolies, were
killed during the day by the explosion
of a bomb in the artillery depot in
Hardin. The man who caused the en-
plosion vas also killed. The entire
laboratory, a huge establishment, was
wrecked and 10000. 900 projectiles
were destroyed-2,000 packing cases
containing 5000 each. Millions of
other projectiles not yet completed
were made useless.
Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1905-04-06

/ LODGl
holds ref
third Tn
/ RoBER.
Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1905-04-06

/ Member
NJ.
Farrell, Y
Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1905-04-06

&ountyAu,,
Register o.
Tn
|Bherif.:,:,
Bounty u
BATES AT
county Co
}8up'tPuub'
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The Tupelo journal., 1905-02-17

EE #N M HM ## = &a
Every Friday, as regularly as that day
came each week, he visited the little
bank in the village, drew out from
$500 t $4,000 with which to trans
act business the week following.
Morrison was Ayers best friend, to
all appearances. One night, Morrison
casually asked the cattleman why he
never carried a revolver for protection.
Whats the Ise?" Ayers asked.
Nobody knows ] have money in my
pockets but my friends, and l trust
every one of them"
Within a week Morrison, fearing to
do the job himself, imported jim ELY,
a Kansas City crook, who was TO hold
up Ayers and murder him if necessary
to get the money. Ely baked on the
killing. Il have a brother who will do
that; he will be here soon," he told
Morrison, and in two days c. Waldo
Ely dropped in at West Unity, met
Morrison in the latter's barn and the
details of the crime were planned.
Morrison's scouts watched Ayers,
learned that he drew about $4,000 from
the bank, and Swallowed his every
movement until the time came to
strike.
Meanwhile Morrison remained at
home, conscious of the fact that half
the swag was to be given him, that
barn, where the plans for the robbery
The Tupelo journal., 1905-02-17

"a & # MH &A# M M # 81 M STEW ~ ~ & III Ell M #e# "a "a #
brains out" Again the farmer obeyed.
Suddenly coming upon a dozen ditch
men directly in his path, all hope of
escape seemed to be cut off. 1t was
then that the remarkable GOODNESS Of
the man and presence of mind as
serted themselves. Hurriedly jumping
from the wagon he cowed the crowd in
front with his revolver, calmly In
hitched n of the horses and before
anybody knew his intentions he had
jumped on the animals back and, with
half a dozen shots, dashed on a mad
gallop to a stretch of wooded land
three miles away. Reaching the
thicket he dismounted, turned the
horse loose and escaped from his pur-
suers. 1t was then that the plans Of
Morrison to aid in the escape were
useful, for Ely found the home Of Jack
Taylor, one of the gang, gave the pass
word, and was sheltered until he had
time to burglarize the residence Of
William Schwartz, a farmer, and ulti-
mately found his way to Kansas City.
Ely's Confession.
In the investigation of recent years
the robbery of Ayers was looked into.
and information given by JACK Page
resulted in the apprehension of Ely.
He was brought to Williams county
from his residence in the west, and
when the evidence prepared by the
state fire marshal was shown him he
The Tupelo journal., 1905-02-17

in the .Widdell hotel brought out admis-
sions from Page. Then he confessed to
some of his actions and asked Saunders
advice.
Tell the whole truth, you can't afford
to lie, now, Jack" said Saunders, and
Page, seeing an opportunity to make
good the threat of vengeance upon his
former pals, disclosed so much that a
conference with the fire marshal was
arranged.
A man, conscious of the fact that his
criminal operations are eve partially
known to those in authority, and wish
ing to bring upon his partners in crime
the punishment he had already suffered,
is easy picking for detectives. Thus it
was that Page. the stole. revealed the
inner workings of the gang which had
terrorized the community for years.
Names were mentioned, and when the
disclosures were ~substantiated by fur
Their investigation, the grand juries OF
Williams and Fulton counties were kept
busy for months, indicting men connect
ed with the conspiracy.
Number of Fires Unknown.
Nobody knows how many fires were
caused by the torches of these criminals.
The number is more than a hundred, but
more accurate count thar that has not
The Tupelo journal., 1905-02-17

friends who wished him only pros
perity. Homer Morrison, also young
and well-to-do, was his neighbor.
Whatever induced these two boys to
leave the Puritanic path laid out for
them by Christian parents cannot be
explained, except in their greed for
gold. But the desire to defraud came,
and 25 years elapsed before it was
satiated. Gathering as clansmen ap-
parently honest and respectable farm
ers, the gang pursued it's course, stop
ping at nothing, making insurance
companies it's prey, and bouncing upon
them every time an occasion presented
itself.
Working as honored men by day,
they became the vilest desperadoes by
night. A dual existence it was, with
church worship IN outward sign OF the
piety in their bosoKls. Nothing es-
capped. Schoolhouses were fired with
impunity, just as willingly as were
farmhouses; stores and barns made
the objects of their incendiarism, for
one class of timber made as pretty a
fame as another.
Made Arson a Business.
AS far as known, only n of the
band made arson a business, just to
see things burn. This was Freddy
Bowman, a genuine pyromaniac. whose
lust for adventure induced him to set
Ere to the Methodist church in Stryker,
The Tupelo journal., 1905-02-17
GOING AND COMING.

An international league for the ex-
termination of rats has been formed in
Denmark. In Berlin the municipal au-
thorities are offering a penny for every
rats tail delivered.
An English newspaper comments on
the difference between the Russian gen.
erals Great Car, forgive and the
English generals Il regret to report"
in announcing a disaster.
A dramatic paper gives the names and
addresses of 11S circuses and other road
shows which have gone into winter
quarters. OF these IS made their homes
in Pennsylvania, IA in Maryland, II in
Missouri and 10 in Indiana, these being
the most popular states as winter quar-
tiers.
AS shown by the inventories Of forts.
ships. Supplies and guns and powder.
1t was not lack of ammunition that
caused the fall of Port Arthur. Gen.
Stoessel himself ascribed the surrender
to the Japanese 11-inch guns. After
their arrival further resistance simply
meant a slaughter.
The Tupelo journal., 1905-02-17
HAVE TERRORIZED A PORTION OF THE
STATE FOR LAST THIRTY YEARS.
MANY PROMINENT men ARE INVOLVED
State Officials Were Baffled Until They Sc
cured the Confession of Eighty Year-Old
Jack Page, After Which Indict-
ments Followed Rapidly.
History of This Remarkable Band of Incendiaries
and Their Methods of Observation-Disclosures Marked
Every Move-A Desire for Revenge on the Part
of Page Finally Caused Their Exposure.

O. From a small shed nearby he
watched the flames devour the small
structure. Taken in because he was
young and precocious, he was entrusted
with small jobs, where the risk of de-
lection was not great, and where he
would be given opportunity to become
proficient in the art, and ultimately de-
-velop into a talented firebug. One
night, without orders from his superb
ors. he touched off the church, and his
subsequent apprehension II confess
sion almost enSnared the remainder of
the gang. But, so high in the commu-
nifty did the ringleaders stand. the adj
missions of the youth were pronounced
falsehOods, and nobody but the officers
placed faith in them. Not until within
the last year, when the boys confess
sion was substantiated, did it become
public that his arrest was one of the
first of an organization of men who al
lowed the commission Of no crime,
however enormous, to stand between
them and the money they coveted.
The traveller unacquainted with the
happenings Ol past years NOulu see III
tie in the scared country nowadays to
attract his attention. The fire-destroyed
buildings have been replaced with new
structures and, under the protection of
the state fire marshal, protection has
been given sufficiently to allow i'm
provements. But the time was when
every man. woman and child stood in
mortal fear of the gang. One man
could hardly speak confidentially to his
neighbor for fear that he would thus
address a member of the organization
and SO jeopardize, not only his prop
erty, but the lives of himself and fam
lily. So high in social standing were
the criminals that their identity was
unknown, except in the inner circle.
Once a building was fired. he who ap-
piled the flames was covered with the
garb of good citizenship. and even the
bravest feared to point at him the fin
ger of suspicion, for such meant speedy
revenge. A remark by one boasting
farmer resulted in the burning of his
barn the same night.
Task of State officers.
To hunt down such q lot of beings
was the task of state officers. The I'M
The Tupelo journal., 1905-02-17
williams County, Ohio, officer Who
Arrested George Letcher, Alleged
Incendiary, Now on Trial.

been kept. The insurance companies
have maid. il is estimated. more than
81. 500. 900 to the members of the gang,
Homer Morrison and Jack Page wee
indicted nearly a dozen times, principal
" for arson. April 2, 1878, they burned
Morrison's home. and got the insurance.
Morrison hired Page for that job. A lit
tle later, Page was duped into burning
John Keller's property, west of West
Unity. Then Keller, trapped because he
EMPLOYED Morrison to do the dirty work,
was forced into the gang, and he became
one of the worst of the lot. He was in
dicted several times for aiding Morrison
and Page. October 10. 1908, he pleaded
guilty to arson, and served a year in the
penitentiary.
Waldo Ely, Morrison. Wesley Ship
man and Frank Colon, all of whom par
ticipated in the attempt on Samuel Ay-
ers' life. were indicted. Morrison got
ten wears in the penitentiary, Shipman
two, and Ely one.
In 1895, new men were taken into the
fold. and their work resulted in the in
dictment of Harry Kirkendall, William
Bonner, Freddie Bowman, Charles
Smith, William Davidson, and a half
dozen others. Most of them confessed,
and were given sentences ranging from
one to four years in prison. William
Matthews was another of the later day
criminals. He vas sentenced to serve
two years. Newton Omey, Jackson
Swisher. Charles Hultzberg and n or
two more are still at large, having fled
from the state. They have remained
away. fearing to take the consequences
of their actions.
Even with the excellent work already
accomplished, the state believes it has
not done its full duty. More prominent
men are to be dragged from their high
pinnacle in Society, and their work Of
he past exposed to the public view.
Some have ceased to be active particle
pants in the s~aturnaliua of crime, and
are leading respectable eXistences. But
their reformation will not carry them
through the present storm of justice.
They must answer for their misdeedS,
and the confessions, being made almost
daily, will cause their downfall. and
none but their disgraced families a en-
joy the fruit of their i'll gotten wealth.
The Tupelo journal., 1905-02-17
READS TIE BOOK.
t1The Road to MELVILLE" Pointed the
Way.

Down at Hot Springs, Ark, the Wis
itors have all sorts of complaints, but
it is a subject of remark that the great
majority of them have some trouble
with stomach and bowels. This may
be partly attributed to the heavy med
icines.
Naturally, under the conditions, the
question of food is very prominent.
A young nan states hat he lad suf-
fered for nine years from stomach and
bowel trouble, had two operations
which did not cure, and was at last
threatened with appendicitis.
He went to Hot Springs for rheum-
atism, and his stomach trouble got
worse. One day at breakfast the wait
he try Grape-Nuts and cream, which
he did, and found the food agreed with
him perfectly.
After the second day he began to
sleep peacefully at night, different than
he had for years. The perfect diges-
ton Of the food quieted his nervous
system and made sleep possible.
He says: "The next morning I was
astonished to find my condition of con-
stipation had disappeared. l could not
believe it true after suffering for so
many years; then l took more inter-
est in the food. read the little book
THE Road to MELVILLE and started
following the simple directions.
II have met with such results that
In the last five weeks I have gained
eight pounds in spite of hot baths
which take away the flesh from any
one.
"A friend of mine has been entirely
cured of a bad ease of indigestion and
stomach trouble by using Grape-Nuts
Food and cream alone for breakfast.
"There is one thing in particular
/ have noticed a great change in my
mental condition. Formerly / could
hardly remember anything, and now
the mind seems unusually acute and
retentive. I can memorize practically
anything I desire" Name given by
Postum Co.. Battle Greek. Mich.
The Tupelo journal., 1905-02-17

dertaking was known to be big and
fraught with peril. Evidence was col
lected only after the greatest efforts.
Now and then, indications would ap-
pear on the surface of what was really
happening, and it was from these small
clues that the detectives finally I'M
earthed the chief conspirators and
turned them over to the law for pun
ishment.
OF this gang of fearless criminals,
Homer Morrison, nee a respected son
of well-to-do parents, was the leader.
His cunning brain devised most of the
daring jobs during the long years he
and his pals worked, unmolested, burn
ing any building for which the owner
paid the required fee. Once a mar
employed the arsonists to transact
business, he was in their mesbes, for,
if he was not aware that he was just
as liable to punishment as if he had
applied the torch, he was so informed,
and thus became an addition to the
ranks.
The Killing of Ayers.
It was Morrison's avarice that re-
suited in the concoction of a plot to
kill Samuel Ayers, November 81, 1897.
Ayers was a wealthy cattleman, who
lived near West Unity, a small village
in Williams county. The old fellow
was peculiar, believed everybody his
friend. and feared harm from no one
The Tupelo journal., 1905-02-17

confessed to the deed, took the officers
over the route OF his escape and veri-
fed all that had been related by Page
in his confession. He served one veal
in the Columbus co., penitentiary for
his crime, justice having been side
tracked to some extent because he
turned states evidence and supplied
the officers with information which, in
part, resulted in the arrest and con-
viction of Morrison, who is now serv-
ing a sentence of 80 years in prison.
Jack Page. first in crime after Nor
risOn. enjoys freedom because he gave
information of SO much value in hunt
ing down the firebugs. A crippled old
man now, he does not hesitate to say
hat he cannot begin to remember how
many houses he fred, and how many
dark and stormy nights he left his
home, with flaming torches, and sold
his manhood and soul for a few paltry
dollars, to be gained then the robbed
insurance companies paid the pollcles
on the buildings consumed.
At present Page is Willing away his
time with a secret service guard con-
stantly watching him, for members OF
the conspiracy have vowed to take his
life for the disclosures he made.
Fire Marshall Takes a Hand.
The first visit to West Unity of Walter
Payne. who was, during the investiga-
ton. assistant fire marshal, will never
l. H., L,~o II uvn nv thH
slightest chance that he ran into a
shred of evidence which. followed up
from a hundred different directions,
finally brought the hoped-for results.
Clyde Persirg, of West Unity. was in
debted to a Toledo firm in a rather large
amount, and, neglecting payment, he
was drawn upon. Hectored by the &C
ton in presenting a draft to him Tor pay
ment, Persing lost his temper, anu
threw care to the winds. At that time
he conducted a small restaurant in a
building owned by Mrs. Winlfred
Adolph. The night after the draft came
to him the restaurant burned. That was
in July of 1902. So bold was the action
of the man that it could not fail to
arouse the suspicion of Mr.. Payne. and.
within a few days, he visited the village.
He had not been there more than a lew
minutes before his presence was tipped
off to the leaders of the gang. Homer
Morrison was there at the time, and his
trusty lieutenants made him aware OF
the fact that the fire marshal was IN the
village. Payne desired to talk with
Frederick Miller, the only banker Of the
town, and who was the agent for nearly
all the insurance companies which had
policies placed in the vicinity. hem
shall went to the bank, and, to his sur
prise, the brazen scouts actually fol-
lowed him, in their attempt to learn the
exact nature of his business. Even Nor
rison, fearless because he thought his
dignity in the community protected him
from suspicion, listened with eagerness
to what the marshal said, and then en-
trusted the work Of shadowing Payne TO
less distinguished men in the profess
sion.
The officer finally succeeded in evad-
ing the fellows on his trail. and held a
long conference with Miller, and other
prominent men, who, he had learned,
had suffered because of their honesty in
refusing to participate in the depreda-
tions. From citizens of this class, he
learned much. and his suspicious that
The Tupelo journal., 1905-02-17
CAUGHT IN THE CURRENT.

1t is estimated that Denver will be
| called upon to entertain between 10000
and 30,O 0 people on the occasion of the
| seventh international convention of the
Epworth League, which is to be held
July SO. 1905.
The charge for wireless messages to
ships in the Atlantic from any postal
telegraph office in the British isles will
be six and one-half pence a word. and a
minimum charge of six shiilings and
six pence. kilograms can be addressed
like this: Jones. Lucania. Atlantic"
Jealous of what he thought undue
favor to another employe, Hugo Heck
elsmuller, an oiler in the works of the
United Railways of San Francisco, be-
gan putting sane in the machinery jour
nal boxes of the power house machin-
cry. He was caught when he had done
damage to the amount of $4,000.
After emigrating TO New York and
waiting in vain for her son Morris and
his friend Benjamin Harrison to for
ward S35 worth of her property. as ar
ranged. Mrs. Bessie Driver. a JeweSs,
returned to London to prosecute them
for theft. She succeeded in having her
son sent to prison for six months.
The steel bridge over the Pecos river,
Texas, is a marvel of mechanical skill
and extreme simplicity of construction.
1t is considerably more than 300 feet in
height and is 2,1S0 feet long, yet it is
supported by stone pillars so small that
it seems incredible to a beholder that
they can sustain the enormous weight
of passing trains, which invariably stop
on the bridge to allow passengers to
view the structure and the bleak, desc
late surroundings.