Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-08-13
DEEP MYSTERY Turks
IN HOUSE OFFICE FIRE
Representative Johnson Kept
Busy Explaining Blaze
in His Closet.

Marble porches. with a mysterious
man and woman lurking in their shad
ows; a we'll laid plot to destroy pa
pers. and an atmosphere of secrecy
that takes these commonplace days
back to the velvet-padded corridors of
the middle ages-all these things and
a lot more are but the background
against which the real story was told
today of an attempt yesterday after
noon to burn a closet full Of papers
in the office of the House committee
on the District of Columbia. Repre-
sentative Ben Johnson sat in his office
until this afternoon explaining to
people just how it had been done, and
when 1T was all told, a very unusual
happening it was.
In the first place the District committee
room has been robbed twelve times or
more since Ben Johnson has been chair
man of the committee. That was told
by Mr.. Johnson in the course of CONVEX
sation. Yesterdays fire in the closet
where many blank envelopes and few
important papers are kept was simply
one of a series of odd things that have
been happening over in room 81 and the
accompanying suite.
Doors Ordered Locked.
The District committee rooms nave uii'ii
recently always been open at all times
in the day. Representative Johnson s
office force has varied from one to three
or four assistants. and there has gen
orally been at least one person In the
rooms at some time, and visitors have
been free to come and go Recently,
with only Miss Katherine Kirby, Mr..
Johnson's stenographer. on hand. the
orders have been to lock everything tight
when the rooms have been left without
a guard.
At the northeast corner of the House
office building. directly adjoining room
81. the District committees main office,
is a marble porticO with two big pillars
A mysterious couple were on that porch
nearly all of yesterday morning and some
of the afternoon.
This fact has been communicated to
those who are running down the clues
to earth.
At 30 Miss Katherin Kirby locked all
doors leading into the corridors and went
to lunch. The closet door. behind which
the fire occurred. was not locked, but
KEY was in the door. Leading to Tie
marble portico on which the mysterious
couple stood is large window, and 1t Is
now filled with screen door, locked:
but of such a lock that a handle pressed
down releases it instantly.
Smoke Is Discovered.
Miss Kirby does not remember exactly
how long she was out of the room. When
she returned she went into the middle
room of the suite and sat down at her
work After while she needed some
paper and envelopes and went to the
closet in the other room, which she had
left unlocked She tried the door, but it
r,I,- her hI1f 10
surprise was turned to fear when she
noticed thin, gray stream OF smoke
coming from a tiny aperture near one of
the hinges.
Representative Johnson went from the
floor of the House to his office, when tele-
phoned for, in remarkable time When ne
arrived the room was filled with people,
and a few blows with borrowed hatcnet
broke open the door.
A coat and vest had smoldered to
charred rags and certain papers were
partially burned. Only the fact that
practically no oxygen saved the closet
from being burned up.
Every one began to investigate.
Representative Johnson was surprised
to find that hole had been cut in the
door through the screen that leads to
the portico Representative Johnson
has some very definite ideas about who
did it. and he is naturally keeping
them to himself.
Last Chapter in Mystery.
The last chapter in yesterdays mystery
occurred in the middle of the night. Rep
resentative Johnson went home and told
his wife about the fire. and also told her
that he had missed certain papers from
his desk that very day His children
went to the theater last night. and after
their return Representative and Mrs.
Johnson went to the House Office building
in an automobile. Mr.. Johnson went
through the office with his wife, pointing
out where papers had been taken. One
important paper he spoke of especially:
THAT paper" he said, was under this
nile Yesterday morning and it was taken
away some time today
When he went to look it had been re-
turned.
1T was taken away and returned some