The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1910-10-01
UNIONS CHARGED
WITH THE. CRIME
Bomb Exploded in Blind Al
ley Wrecked Building
Fire Followed

1IS : 8UuOWeU
Los Angeles, Oct. THE building
and plant of the Los Angeles Times.
one of the best known newspapers of
the southwest, and of which paper
Gen. Harrison G. Otis is editor and
the principal owner. was completely
destroyed by an explosion and fire
shortly after o'clock this morning.
resulting in the death Of upwards of
twenty of it's employees and financial
loss of nearly 100000.
The management of the paper lays
the blame of the explosion to the la
Dor unions, with which organizations
the paper has long been engaged in a
bitter warfare. It is charged that
unknown parties set of charge Of
dynamite in the blind alley which ran
into the center of the building, COM
pletely wrecking the interior and set
ting it on fire from the roof to the
basement
Within few seconds from the time
of the explosion the entire building
was a fiery furnace. The crowds
that gathered early say they saw
many men fall back from the windows
into the flames. Others leaped and
were injured. The editorial rooms
were on the third floor but it is be-
lieved the greater part Of the men
on this floor escaped death.
The force of the explosion was ter
rife. It was heard for miles and all
the windows in the vicinity of the
Times building at First street and
Broadway were shattered. Between
fifty and seventy-five employees were.
IN the building at the time Of the ex-
plosion, and until the. whole list Of
employees Of the paper can .be checked
over it will not be known how many
lives were lost. The responsible heads
Of the paper including the assistant
general manager, Harry G. Handler,
had narrow escapes from death, many
of them having left the building a
short time before the explosion.
The building was equipped with
gas fittings and the force of the ex-
plosion tearing these pipes into bits
released the gas which was instas-
taneously ignited in every part of the
building. No other cause but that
Of the dynamite explosion was ad-
vanced by the witnesses, excepting in
the case of Western Union opera
tor. William Firman, who stated that
he detected the odor of gas through
out the building earlier in the night
and had called attention to it.
In addition to the complete plant OF
the Times. the building contained the
large jobbing and commercial plant Of
the American Engraving company.
Within a few minutes after the ex-
plosion the police arrested two men
near the Times building and they are
being held for Identification.
A few minutes after the explosion
the police arrested a man named
Harry Plake making his way through
the Broadway tunnel few blocks
distant. He was locked up on sus-
picion. Another man named William
Irwin was arrested later in the
morning and taken to the station.
The police are without clues as to
the probable perpetrators.
Manager Chandler's office was
wrecked by the explosion. Speaking
of the explosion he said:
"You can say for me that there is
no doubt that this terrible outrage
can be laid at the doors of the labor
unions. They have destroyed the
building and plant and have killed a
number of our men. We do not
know how many but they can't kill
the Times. There is no doubt but
that the explosion was caused by .
charge of dynamite placed apparently
in the little blind allew in the center
Of the building. For years we have
been receiving threatening letters
from people who said that the paper
ought to be blown up"
An issue of the paper was gotten
out today from the composing and
press room Of the Los Angeles Her.
aid and from an auxiliary Of the Times
once in another part Of the city. Mr..
Chandler stated that two years ago
the Times had exstablished an auxil-
larry plant OF College and San Fran
cisco streets with the expectation
that the present plant would be de-
stroyed.