The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1911-05-11
NJ MANIGAL BLEW
UP TOWER At
SPRINGFIELD
Man Under Arrest at Los An
geIes Did the Job
INCLUDED IN CONFESSION
Detective William j. Burns Says Oy-
namlter Was Sent to Spring
field by Mcnamara

Springfield, Mass, May 1.-THE
dynamiting of the tower of Spring
fields municipal group the morning
Of April 4 was the work of Ortie E.
McManigal the man now under arrest
In Los Angeles, Cal. for the dynamit-
ing outrages in that city, according to
a statement made last night by Detec-
tive William j. Burns, who was here
in conference with the local police.
The arrest of McManigal, together
with that of John j. and James B. Nc
Namara, were effected by Detective
Burns April IL. and the information
that McManigal got 5000 from John
j. Mcnamara for the attempt on the
tower was CLEANED, according to Mr..
Burns, from the confession which Nc
Manigal is alleged to have made
since his arrest The dynamiting
was accomplished, Mr. Bnrns says, by
the use Of between II and 20 pounds
of dynamite exploded by a fulminat-
ing cap set off by an alarm clock Ac-
cording to the detective, Mechanical
came to Springfield on the day before
the dynamiting and left that evening.
The conference, which was held last
night in Chief Quilty's office, on the
arrival of Detective Burns from Bos-
ton. was attended by the chief, Capt
John H. Boyle of the detective bureau
and Peter Bowman, foreman of the
structural ironworkers employed by
the A. r. Stephens company, the mu-
nicipal group contractors Bowman
| is the man who had trouble last sum-
mer with NJ. j. Young, agent of the
Boston local of the structural iron
workers who, it is alleged. after a
row with Bowman went away vowing
vengeance. Young was one of the
men in the meeting at Detroit, Mich,
when the arrest of John J. Mcnamara
was effected. Chief GUILTY said that
Mr.. Burns came here from Boston
last night simply at mis- request.
While in this city Mr. Durns would
have nothing TO say relative to any
phase of the dynamiting arrests out
side of what he knew of the alleged
confession of Mechanical.
Speaking of the Mechanical con-
fession, Mr.. Burns said that he wish
ed to deny the accusation that Nc
manigal was offered immunity for his
confession 1t was entirely voluntary
he said. Mr.. Burns said that. as he
remembered the confession, McMani-
gal told him that he was sent here
by John j. Mcnamara with dynamite.
furnished by him, ito blow up the
tower. Mr.. Burns said that his
agents saw McManigal board the train
at Indianapolis but had no idea where
he was going. They they saw the
stories in the newspapers of the tow
er dynamiting. Mr. Burns stated that
MECHANICAL said he brought with him
the dynamite and a 50-cent alarm
clock, which was used in the explos-
ion. As is usual in such cases. the
clock was strapped to a board and at
tached to it by wires was a dry bat
terry, which connected also by wires
with a Illuminating cap on the dyna.
mite. A copper disk was sodered to
the clock, which served as the connec.
ton between the battery and the dyn.
amlte. The alarm indicator was SET
Tor certain time, and when the clock
reached that hour the indicator spun
around until IL was stopped by the
copper disk. The explosion followed
Mr. Burns said that the clock me
chanism may have been set five or six
hours before the explosion occurred
He said that the tower dynamitine
! was the last job which Mechanical die
and that it followed some so other
Jobs, for each of which McManiga
claimed that Mcnamara paid him
. $500 Mr.. Burns says that McMan
igal is structural ironworker, bu
has not worked at that trade since ht
} began his dynamiting career. He de
r .scribed Mechanical as a thick-set fel
, low, weighing about 155 pounds, rath
) er good looking. dark complexioneC
{ with dark hair and eyes. He is 8.
| years old. and served during tn,
! Spanish war.