The San Francisco call., 1906-09-12
SIX DIE IN fire SET
BY COMPANION.
San Francisco Boy Destroys
$150,000 Cannery to
Get Even With Packers
CONVICTED IN NORTH

The little steamer Kvichak, which
arrived yesterday from Alaska,
brought further details of the de-
struction by fire on June Of the can
the fishermen call it. While the
steamer was coming into the harbor
the Alaska Packers Association re-
ceived a cablegram from Alaska to the
erect that one of the men charged
with having set fire to the place had
pleaded guilty at Valdez and had been
sentenced to two years imprisonment
His alleged accessory was still in Gus
tody and would not be tried until the
next term of court.
The association officials are not in
possession of the names Of the men at
Valdez. but President Henry Fortmann
said yesterday that he had been in
formed that one OF them was an ex-
convict.
From the. Kvichak it was learned
that the men accused of having set fire
TO the cannery were two of a party of
tough youths shipped from here on
April II on the ship Santa Clara, six
of whom perished in the fire.
There was trouble with these young
men before the Santa Clara sailed and
the local police were called on board
to quen small-sized riot. E. Levin,
a local labor contractor, had agreed to
supply 900 Chinese to be sent to the
canneries on the Santa Clara Levin
sub-let his contract to Book Hoo of 721
Commercial street.
WHITES WITH CHINESE.
Book was unable to get more than
230 Chinese and made up the 500 by
engaging seventy men of other nation
alities. Many of these were Porto
Ricans, but about thirty were boys
picked up on the streets Of this city
They signed the agreement, received
an advance Of money with which to
buy clothes and were placed on board
the Santa Clara.
They were berthed forward with the
Chinese and raised howl about it.
They howled to more purpose, how
and each was given a bowl and pair
OF chopsticks by way of eating uten-
sils. The records showed they were
Chinese and only Chinese chow had
been provided for them.
They went aft and kicked. They
were profane. They threatened vio-
lence. Levin was sent for He sent
for Book Hoo. who notified the police.
Those who had not spent their ad-
vanced money returned it and were
sent ashore The others were held to
their bargain. Fortmann said yester-
day that when the vessel got to sea
and at the canneries the chopstick and
IlC6 details were fcdQJQSLG0 on an OC-
cidental basis.
The boys left here vowing to get
even. The Santa Clara arrived safely
at Coffee Creek and until June the
work of canning and packing the har-
vest of reddish was pursued without
unusual incident. The boys that had
made things lively on the Santa Clara
were more or less thorns in the flesh
of the men in charge of the work.
SETS FIRE TO CANNERY.
They had not been there long, 1t de-
veloped afterward, before one youth
suggested to the others the idea of
getting even with the Alaska Packers
Association by setting fire to the can
merry. 1t was deemed a splendid
scheme, but nobody wanted to- do It,
In disgust at their lack of back
bone, the originator of the incendiary
plot is said to have declared his inten-
ton of attending to the matter him
self. He did.
1t was blowing a hurricane on the
night of June 2 at Coffee Creek. Sc
lecting a place to the extreme wind
ward Of the cannery buildings, the
young man started his fire and in less
than two hours plant valued at $780,
900 had been transformed into glowing
ashes In the ruins of the cannery
were found the bodies of six OF the
boys who had left here on the Santa
Clara.
An investigation followed the fire
and as a result about dozen Of the
boys were taken before the United
States Marshal at Nushagak. The two
accused of the crime and several by
whose testimony it was expected to Sc
cure convictions were sent by the mar
shall to Valdez, where, according to the
cablegram from Alaska, one has plead
ed guilty and the other will be tried
at the next term of court.
The men thrown out Of employment
by the destruction of the plant at
Coffee Creek were distributed among
other canneries.