The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1908-01-05
Eight Persons Were In
jured and Building
Damaged.
NO FRAGMENT OF
BOMB is FOUND
Building Shaken as If by Earth
quake, and Employees Hurled
Against Wall-Nlining Engi- :
neer Attributes Explos-
ion to Sewer or
Natural Gas.

lon to Sewer or
Natural Gas.
KANSAS CITY. MO-, January "A
bomb was exploded to-day in the base
ment of the ma agnificent three-story
marble building OF the First National
Bank. at the corner OF Tenth and Bal
timore Streets. in the business centre.
a few minutes after the noon hour.
The force OF the explosion was terri
dc. and caused much damage. Eight
persons were injured, none Ialany.
There Is no clue to the person who
placed the bomb and set 1t off. The
injured: Ebert Ward. negro porter.
condition serious; Logan Wilson. bank
clerk; j. Donaldson, bank clerk; VAL
I jean Brightwell. clerk; r.. NJ. Map-
meyer, clerk; Joseph Patch, carpenter:
X. W. Cole. and Charles Grant.
None OF the persons injured were
dangerously hurt.
John f. Pelletier. superintendent OF
tie fire insurance patrol, who was IN
the banking rooms at the time of the
explosion. and E. F. Swimmer. president
of the bank, are authority for the
statement that the explosion was the
result of bomb set OFF by some per-
son unknown to them. At first 1t was
supposed to have resulted from leak
ing natural gas. Neither was able to
give any cause for the commission OF
the act.
The bank was crowded with custom
sfs at the time, together with the en-
ployes. numbering perhaps $50 persons.
A panic ensned, and there was wild
scramble for the doors.
NiiIiton nollnr Structurr r
The First National Bank building
was one Of the most beautiful struc.
lures in the city. It was only finished
last year, and cost close to 81 100000.
The main floor was occupied by the
bank. which Is the largest financial In
stitution in Kansas City. The two
upper stories are occupied principally
by real estate and law firms.
~ investigations. developed the fact that
the bomb had been placed IN a toilet
room in the northwest corner at tlit
basement. two feet from the main
vault. The toilet room was Is by 20
feet square. and WAS separated from
the adjoining room by three-inch
plaster partition. This partition was
supported By steel post The bomb
struck this post with such force as
to bend the post a foot out of position
wreck tli'' partition and plumbing, and
send cloud of dust up the wide
stairway leading to the banking rooms
Half dozen basem"nt windows with
the steel rods protecting them were
blown out into Baltimore Ayan,1e and
across the street. The building was
shaken as II by an earthquake. The
explosion was felt in all parts of ths
city.
Eye-Witness Describes IT.
Mr.. Pelleter, who was standing at
the paying teller'S window when the
explosion shook the building. said
.Eollowing the explosion there was
bankins-room. The bank was unll-
sually well-iilled lI with people; At the
turned and rushed for the south door
leading into Tenth Street called out
n "a loud voice for quiet. shouting that
e no Ien and fSs
stairway powder and smoke were
pouring up the entrance way. l groped
my way down the, stairs, ana at the
bottom found Ward. the negro porter
carried him upstairs. where others
took care OF him, and returned to the
basement, ,s where ! wa, was 500 soon able to
powder and the hole in the basement
tain that the, explosion had resulted
from a bomb being set off.
There was no trace of the bomb.
thrower and as yet have not been
able to find any tangible manner In
which the missile was placed"
blown Twenty Feet.
Logan Wilson. another of the in,
time. He was blown clear across thu
basement and partly through the par
titton, distance Of twenty feet, Whei
vas removed to the emergency hos
pital, and SO far has been unable t
give any account of what happened
c,Is !; Ponalds9n vas working in hi
; sut by glass that fell from, chan
Z delier. Every one concerned is at /,
loss to find a motive for the eXplo
Vice President Abernathy, of th
bank. suggested that the bomb Nigh
hay, haze been paieed by disgruntled ae
j John Hayes, it former rNiift CHEF Of police
noson Mae stsa Msa hs sSfes said the
by yAleNander Henderson, assistant chile
of the Fire Department. No fragmen
but all agree that the explosion wa
not caused by gas. 81
y Myers, g mining engineer. wh
made an examination ofsthe baSemen
opinion i That tie eNplosionp npreIsh might hav y
been caused by sewer gus Or natura
gas. that had accumulated IN the sewer
Probably Work of n Crank. &
5$ No definite conclusion will be reache
to- night as to the cause of the eXplo
sion. a piece ofGpipe, believed to hav
heen partaof a bomb, was found thi
evening in. the wrecked basement D
Gers and the police incline to the be
lief that the explosionIs was either II
been secreted in the basement toilet
room by robbers ,f1r. future ,t,I, ,, y, use an
No arrests have been made, and tn
police are. without. am, definite clu
upon which to work. Joseph Peci,2
carpenterson of the Siniured, was take
i 10 The police station this afternoon. Fl
II satlstied the police that5he had no cor
neetion With the affair, and was re
leased. Pecl said he was passing III
building and wasitcut y7flying glas
The property5 DANA SO rs 81 $4,000, 4. COZ q,
OF the injured, only Elbert Ward,
negro porter, Who was severely cll
seriously hurt, but Stt Is bslieysl glle
will recoysr. sis