Los Angeles herald., 1905-01-16
HE TRIED
TO WRECK STATUE
W0ULD-BE DESTROYER or
GIFT OF KAISER IN JAIL
eessler Rousseau, Arrested In PhiIa-
delphla Thursday With Internal
Machine, confesses He Made
the Attempt
BY Associated Press.

BY Associated Press.
PHILADELPHIA. Jan. 15.-"Gesslcr
Rousseau" who was arrested I'm this
city on Thursday with an unloaded in
fernal machine In his possession, adj
mitted to the police today that he is
the man who attempted to destroy the
statue of Frederick the Great i'm Wash
ington last Tuesday, and also that It
was he who sent the trunk containing
an Internal machine to the British
steamship Umbria in New York in May,
1908. The prisoner. whose right name
is not known. made these admissions
in the office of Capt. Donaghy of TIE
Philadelphia detective force after he
had been identified by persons brought
here from New York and Washington
for that purpose. He gives no reasons
for the attempted outrages except that
there are too many foreign affairs in
this country"
After having Rousseau under fire all
afternoon the police classed his as IAN
American patriotic fanatic"
The prisoner gave no information
voluntarily to the police, he admitting
only those things which the police had
fastened on him. Both the Washing
ton and New York authorities want
the man, and it is probable that he will
be turned over to the police of the lat
ter city.
The apprehension of Rousseau was
due to the disappearance of owen
Kelly. wealthy Irish-American, who
is prominent in Irish-American socie-
ties in this country. Kelly disappeared
on October 25, and from time to time
the newspapers, particularly of the
east, have published articles on the
mysterious disappearance. These. the
police believe, undoubtedly attracted
Rousseau's attention. On Thursday he
called on Patrick Kelly, the brother of
the missing man, and offered to take
him to his brother in New York for
$500.
To Blow Up British Ships
He said he and Owen Kelly belonged
to secret societies that were organized
for the purpose Of blowing up British
ships in American ports The valise
he carried, he said, contained explo-
sives. Patrick Kelly notified the police
and Rousseau was taken into custody.
The valise contained an internal ma
chine of the clock arrangement variety.
but no explosives. About the machine
was wrapped Washington 11ewspa-
per. This gave the police the clue
that he might know something of the
explosion at the statue of Frederick the
Great, and his picture was taken and
sent to both the Washington and New
York authorities. In the meantime he |
was also suspected of knowing some
thing of the steamship Umbria Incl
dent.
Today Captain Robert Boardman, of |
the Washington detective force, and |
Alfred Carter colored, and George H. |
Hazel, cabman of Washington, who |
saw the man who attempted to blow
up the statue, and Detective Sergeant
Arthur Carey of New York and a Mrs. |
Curry who keeps a boarding house in
the latter city, arrived here for the
purpose of identifying the prisoner.
When Rousseau was brought into
the Office of Captain Donaghy, Hazel
said:
'I guess you know me-" to which the |
prisoner replied: How do you do?"
Rousseau bowed to Carter and then
greeted Mrs Curry. Having satisfied
themselves beyond doubt that the
Identification was complete the police
officials of the three cities set to work
to obtain a confession from the
prisoner.
On replying to a question he ad-
mitted the attempted outrage on the
statue He said he had manufactured
the internal machine himself and that
it consisted of a candle. fuse and
dynamite engine" Where he made it
he would not say. The failure to de-
stroy the statue, he said. must have
been due to the melting tallow spelling |
the fuse or interfering with the dyna-
mite.
Intended Another Attempt
Rousseau then gave the police the in
information that he had in
tended making second attempt to
blow up the statue, this time with a
time clock machine. AS it was difficult
to get past the sentries after nightfall. |
he intended going to the arsenal at
about dusk. arrange the internal ma
chine so that 1t would explode about
and then hang 1t on the
statue. This is the substance Of his
admission concerning the statue. ac-
cording to Captain Donaghy.
Regarding the sending of the internal
machine to the steamer Umbria. Rous
seau said that he made part of the
Umbria Internal machine in Chicago,
and then took it to New York in a