Los Angeles herald., 1910-10-07
PRISONER TELLS
HOW DYNAM|TERS
SOUGHT HIS AID
Two Arrests May Yield Light on
Mystery of Times Build
ing Explosion
WOMAN WANTED BY POLICE
Officers Learn That Former Resi-
dent of Los Angeles Nego-
tiated Launch Hire
WOMAN WANTED BY POLICE

Two arrests were made yesterday In
connection with the Times explosion.
Albert Hoffman is in custody at Yuma,
Ariz,, and has made signed statement,
it Is said. that two men tried to per-
suade him to help them dynamite the
Times building, but that he refused.
He has given the sheriff at Yuma the
names of the men, description OF
them, and their addresses as given
him. He says they were In the saloon
business His story will be thoroughly
Investigated.
Frank Mehel was arrested late last
night by officer Browning, one OF the
departments plain clothes men. Ac-
cording to the police, he told several
persons that something was going TO
happen" before the Times disaster oc-
CURED. He was employed by the Edi-
son Electric company in its blacksmith
shops until the day before the Times
building was destroyed. He will be
closely questioned before he Is re-
leased.
MAY SOLVES FIRE MYSTERY
Detectives do not attach great i'm
portance to the arrest of Meher, but
they show interest in the story told by
Hoffman at Yuma. The man mad been
drinking when taken into custody, ana
mis- nrSt Io6diuili5 tAO
plosion were passed over lightly, al
though the arrest was reported
promptly to Los Angeles. A statement
from him and his photograph were re-
quested. When HOFFMAN, after pc
coming sober, again made a detailed
statement his story took on I'M
portance.
While few facts regarding his state
ment have been given out 1T is under
stuod that he mentioned saloons IN
North Main street in connection with
it. A canvass of the saloons IN that
section Of the city last night revealed
that no one knew Albert HolIhldI' Ohe
man knew Arthur.
Detective Burns evinced lively inter-
est in Aoffmans story last night.
Earlv reports from Yuma were that
Hoffman's statement had been tele-
graphed, but at the central police sta
tion 1t was said late last night that
II had not been received. 1t Is possl-
BILE that the statement and photograph
are being brought to Los Angeles by
an officer
Efforts to trace the missing sehoo-
ner Kate yesterday added Few 1acts 10
those already known. Positive evil
dence that the vessel carried tne uy-
Mantle purchased at Giant out Of san
Francisco bay is still lacking. An at
tempt is being made to locate the yes
sell which cleared from San Francisco
for the Galapagos islands.
HANDWRITING OF SUSPECTS
An Associated Press dispatch from
San Francisco stated that the police
there had secured what they regard
as tangible evidence concerning the
Identity of the suspects. 1t consists
of specimens of handwriting known
to have been executed by one or per-
haps both of the men known as Bry-
son and Morris, who were of the trio
that purchased 500 pounds of dynamite
at Giant. and which is believed to have
been used in blowing up the Times
building.
THESE specimens, names on the regis
ter of the Hotel Argonaut, where the
two suspects lodged prior to the rent
ing of the launch Pastime, in which
they visited Giant have been sub
mitted to handwriting experts.
The men who registered at the Ar
gonaut as j. b. Bryce and f. A. Ferry
are declared to have left unmistakaple
nroof that they were members of the
party that bought the explosive at
Giant They arrived at the hotel on
Sertember IS. Bryce registered as
coming from Chicago and Perry from
New York. They remained at the
hotel until September 2S, the bill for
their room being paid by Bryce. They
were absent from the hotel September
81, 20 and %.
CALL FOR LAUNCH OWNER
IT has been learned by the police
that September 20 the men rang up
telephone number Alameda 337 which
Is the number of Capt. John Stanley,
who was in charge of the launch Pas
time. Another number called up by
the pair was Oakland SS46, the number
of Douglas Burrowes, one Of the own
ers of the launch.
falnnhOna
left no clew when they departed from
the hotel
Last night, on information furnished
by Sheriff r. r. Veale of Contra Costa
county, the pursuit of the three sus-
poets took a new turn.
Veale gave the authorities at San
Francisco information which causes
them to believe the three men visited
Martinez, Contra Costa county, in the
launch about twelve hours after they
landed the explosive into the boat at
Giant Veale is of the opinion that
the. dynamite was placed aboard the
southbound train at that point and
taken to Los Angeles.
Detectives, under instructions from
Earl Rogers, are looking for a woman
to whom, the police believe, the two
men who negotiated for the hire of the
launch telephoned three times while
guests at the Argonaut. The woman
formerly lived in Los Angeles and has
been in this city several weeks.
18TH BODY FOUND
The body of Charles Haggarty, a
pressman, was taken from the Times
ruins late yesterday afternoon. Sew
eral employees Of the press department
OF the Times positively identified the
charred bones and flesh as those of
Haggarty. The body was identified by
its location and by parts of the cloth
ing which were clinging to bits of
flesh. 1t was removed to the Bresee
morgue, where there are fifteen other
bidies.
Tuesday night a charrred body was
taken from the ruins and Identified as
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