The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1906-10-25
Lena Beahlers Mistakes
Dynamite and Nitro
Glycerine for Rubbish.
MAY LOSE BOTH LEGS
Two Men Who Had Secreted DAN
gerous Compounds Arrested
May Be Lake Shore Bandits.

Mistaking a package, containing a
stick Of dynamite and bottle Of nitro
glycerin for useless rubbish. Miss Lena
Beahlers, a chambermaid in the Aetna
Powder Mill boarding house, kicked it
aside yesterday afternoon and caused
an explosion which may cost her her
life. Besides giving the town bad
scare, the force of the explosion tore
out one end of the boarding house,
causing considerable damage.
Miss Beahers is in Chicago hos
pttal, one OF her legs having been torn
of and the other may have to be ampu-
tated because OF its mangled condition.
Charles Packard and Fred Gerstrung,
employees in the powder mills were ar
rested yesterday afternoon and may be
charged with assault and battery with
intent to kill They were bound over
to the circuit court today in Judge
Nicholsons court at Crown Point to-
day.
1t was in their room that the explo-
sives were found by the girl when she
was straighteni2g I'd yesterday after
WhsAhe mills what had caused the |
n20gion, and that it was an innocent
efson that had come TO harm because
the working men knew no bounds /
q4~lt. WAS .tertunate for the two .enl-
prlts that they We're hurried on TO the
county jeii by Deputy Sheriff Agnew.
Angry threats were heard all afternoon I
Of what punishment should be meted
out to Packard and Gerstrung when
the mills should close after 8 o'clock.
Miss Beahlers presented a pitiful
sight when picked up by Mrs. Carndufs,
the landlady. She lay on the floor
against the wall in a senseless heap. |
Blood was flowing in profusion from
her body. The inmates of the house
rushed to Mrs. Carndufs asss tance
while the neighbors tarried in fear that
a second explosion would follow.
The boarding house which Is one of |
the companys institutions at Aetna, is
not far away from the mills, and the |
sound was heard there. With years OF |
experience there the older employees i'm
mediately knew the significance of the /
report.
How many. and who is it this timer"
was the question asked by the workers |
who left their employment.
Gerstrung and Packard were among |
those who were seeking the cause OF /
the explosion and were probably the /
first ones TO know the cause when they /
saw the wrecked wall in the building
whore they boarded.
1t was their room In which the ex-
plosion occurred and the gathering |
crowd was too persistent in its demand /
TO know how the explosives came there /
10 brook any answer but the truth
Packard and Gerstrung stin have to /
explain why they carried away and |
concealed explosives for which there
is nc. market Explosives for legiu-
mate purposes can be bought at very /
small amount of money. Detectives WIFI
be put TO work who viii try 10 find a /
connection between these men and those /
who have been blackmaning the Lake /
Shore officials. threatening to dynamite /
the Lake Shore limited unless $4,000 t
was dropped from the train at Pine
station last night. The clew will be
worked all the harder as the Lake T
Shore officials think that it was a gang
of men whe plotted the blackmailing |
Should they fail along that line their |
history Will be traced back in oredr to |
establish a connection between them I
and a gang of anarchists.
Mr.. Edwards superintendent Of the |
mills, personally took the manned girl |
to a Chicago hospital where it was
given out this morning that her re-
naming limb would probably be ampu-
tated.