Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1910-11-30

stringent building laws. In facts kno"
that they will welcome them.
IT wish to say, continued DR.. Steiner.
that we have an intelligent jury-fep-
resenting the best men in the eon1mun-
ity. It has no object in shielding the
guilty parties. if there are any guilty
parties. | promise that the investiea-
ton will be thorough.
IN talking about the fire the reporter
told the coroner of interviews with
many of the young women employeu
in the Wolf plant. He told OF the
eighth of the windows and the nal
ton OF the ladders leading to tnem.
The case of the Diehm sisters, VINO i've
on Norfolk street, was touched on.
AS told in Mondays STAR. MISS
Sophia Diehm stated that as one Oh
her sisters reached the top one OF
the four steps leading to the hre-escape
it broke and for that reason made IL
impossible for the girls to leave oy
the window. 1t is believed that 1t was
because the steps broke that Miss
Katherine Diehm was forced to go 10
a rear window from which she jumped
to her death. The coroner listened at
tentively while the reporter was speak,
ing and then made notes.
1--WE want the public to feel" he
concluded, that this jury will do all
in its power to bring to justice the
responsible persons We hope tnat
through our efforts a repetition OF the
horror will be made impossible.
The coroner said that he did not
know whether the grand jury would
proceed without waiting for the YER
dict of the coroner's inquest.
THE grand jury may find indict-
ments in this case without going into
the details that the jury IN
tends to do" added the doctor; an
the grand jury needs is evidence
enough to give them reason to belleVe
hat the law was violated and tnat
those against whom they vote indict-
nnents were the violators. Our verdict
will go far beyond the locating of the
criminality If there was any. 1t Will
contain recommendations that Will be
of great aid to the Lawmakers and
the general public as well. NO, we
eAnnot risk our duty in the premises,
IsProsecutor Wilbur A. Mott, who acts
Al the legal adviser to the coroner
tury as well as to the grand jury, Wouid
not discuss the question as to whether
the grand jury Intended to act at once
or not. It is understood that the granu
Jurors had this step in mind wnen
thew decided to make an inspection Of
the ruined building the first thing on
Monday morning. Many OF the jurors.
as individuals, were at the scene Oh
the fire while the flames were raging
and observed many of the building de-
fects as we'll as the ~disgraceful lack of
fre-escapes on the factory. Again, on
the next day Sunday, several OF the
Jurors visited the ruins. 1t is under
stood that when they officially visited
the fire site in a body they made up
their minds that there were violations
of the state factory law, especially in
regard to flr~e-eseapes.
Laws Provisions Noted.
The prosecutor has no doubt pointed
out to the grand jurors the sections
of the factory law that were quoted
in the Evening STAR yesterday. n
STARS diagram showing the location
of the partitions on the third n
fourth floors will no doubt be con-
sidered by the jurors in their deHp-
erations. Although the present jury
Will have ten days more for their
elaboration it is not unlikely but what
they will subpoenae witnesses within a
very few days, POSSIBLY before the
coroner's inquest begins, to a k tes-
timony next Tuesday.
Prosecutor Mott today supplied the
reason for delay in holding the coro-
ner's inquest by saying, II do not want
to go on a fishing expedition"
Continuing Mr.. Mott said: EN-
ployees Of my Office are busily en-
gagged in gathering evidence and get
ting it in shape for presentation to the
coroner's jury. If we were to proceed
right now we would be at sea and
would have only a disconnected story
to present to the jurymen.
Within a week we will have the
necessary evidence In shape to pre-
sent to the jury. 1t will be in proper
form and not a jumbled mass of facts
as It would be if we we're to proceed
now
Mr.. Mott could not say just when
he would be ready to present his evil
dence, but it is believed he will be
ready to proceed by next Monday. Dr..
Edwin r.. Steiner, the coroner In the
investigation, had a ten-minute con-
ference with Prosecutor Mott this
morning. Neither DR.. Steiner or MIR.
Mott would say what matters were
discussed when the conference ended,
Relative to the grand jury's program
the prosecutor positively refused to say
anything. 1t is known. however, that
subpoenas are being prepared for the
surnlnoning of witnesses before the
grand jury, as well as for the %coroner's
inquest. The same witnesses will APP
pear before both juries, except that
many more will be called upon to tes-
fifty at the ~coroner's inquest. The
grand jury only needs reasonable
grounds for believing that the factory
law had been violated and evidence as
to who are responsible for it's violation.
The prosecutors detectives, under
Chief Fred Weimer. nave been gather
ing evidence since the fire broke out.
The investigation of the disaster has
so far disclosed the following facts:
That there were two, instead of six
or seven, Horoscopes on the building.
The windows on the second floor of
the burned building were not only |
locked, but nailed shut.
4 The windows on the second floor. and
il Is thought on all the floors, were
more than four feet from the flooring
and a small wooden stairway about two
feet wide led to the windows opening
on the fr~e-escapes. |,