New-York tribune., 1915-12-07
BEDROOM A BOMB
FACTORY; WOMAN
AND Z MEN HELD
A. F. Mente, a Hungarian,
Is Accused in Plot to Blow
Up Allies Vessel.
EXPLOSIVES, FORMULA
AND CLOCKS SEIZED
Experimental for Amusement,
He Explained-Denied Know
ing SchOlz or Fay.

ing Scholz or Fay.
Two men and woman, suspected OF
making bombs to cripple merchant
men of the Allies. were captured yes
terdsy by Sergeant Barnitz Of the New
York police and a squad of Secret Ser
vice detectives in An apartment at 5OS
East Seventy-oighth Street. large
quantity Of chemicals and material used
in the manufacture Of bombs was also
confiscated
One Of the men, Anton F. Mente, a
Hungarian mechanic, was arrested
shortly aftervsrd charged with being
implicated in placing liquid bombs on
the steamer Kirkoswsld
Late last night one of the others held
was also arrested. Chief Flynn refused
to say whether this was the other man
or the woman, who they say are Mr.. and
Mrs. Eugene Kluger.
From June TO August Of last year
Mente. in whose room which was fitted
out like laboratory, the bomb ingre-
dients were found, lived at Union Hill,
where Fay and Scholz were arrested.
Since Saturday night Secret Service
men have been watching him every min
ute. During this time he has visited
many steamship docks in Manhattan
and Hoboken. With detectives still
dogging him, the man returned to the
fat on Seventy eighth Street early
yesterday morning.
Bedroom Laboratory.
Later. when a Gordon had been thrown
about the house. Barnitz and his men
entered the Kluger apartment. The man
and his wife were seated at breakfast.
Barnitz tried several doors which were
open, and finally stopped before one
that was locked.
"That is a bedroom which Mr.. Mente
hires from me-" Kluger explained, as
he unlocked the door.
The chamber was fitted up as
laboratory and crammed with bottles.
retorts and large collection of other
paraphernalia. Mente lay O.. couch
when the men entered. He looked up
calmly, and in answer TO a question
said that he was Experimenting with
chemicals"
On further interrogation he said
that he had come from Austria-Hun-
gary in 1907, that his home was at loo
Court Street, Newark, and that he had
a brother in the Austrian army who
had lost one of his legs in battle. lie
denied knowing anything OF Fay, Scholz
or any of the others implicated in the
Union Hill plot.
Among the articles contiscated by the
police in Mente's room were glass
retort, which had been used for the
manufacture of chlorine; two bottles OF
hydrohuoric acid, half-gallon carboys
Of sulphuric, nitric and muriatic acids,
a large quantity of picric acid, chlorate
Of potash, sulphur. fifty feet Of insu-
lated wire, number of alarm clock
mechanisms and some electrical sppa-
ratus.
Dynamite Recipe in Diary.
Numerous textbooks on chemistry
and several technical works were also
discovered. In mass of papers found
in the room were copies of "The Faith
erland," a volume entitled What
American Neutrality Should Mean-A
Protest" and another, "The German in
America" A black notebook, evidently
kept by Mente. was also unearthed.
This was filled with notes and formula
and included a sort Of code. Directions
for making dynamite and other eX-
plosives were contained in it.
The "code" was as follows: "A. b
Big Job; A. b. CAS- quick as You;
A. b. c. Dob Wait" Below this
last was the name, George Menjoc.
The police say that Mente has been
employed in the Crocker-Wheeler Com
pany's works at Ampere, \. j. While
there, an informant of the Secret Ser
vice overheard him tell fellow work
maj that since the factory was making
shells for the Allies it would be blown
up. and if this were not done he would
set 1t sfre himself. Among the papers
found in the laboratory was postal
from Hszleton Furnace at Youngstown,
Ohio, another munition factory. This
was written in Hungarian.
Mente told the police that he was
born in Austria of German parents and
had worked as an electrician. He, with
Kluger, who is q typesetter on Hun
garian newspaper, and Mrs. kluger,
was taken 10 police headquarters in
an auto patrol. All of the material
found in his room was also carted away.
At headquarters Mente was charged
with violation of the tenement house
law by having explosives in his pos
session, and on another count holding
that there was reasonable cause TO be-
lieve that he was implicated in placing
/ liquid bombs on the steamer kirkos-
valid. May 2, 1915. A liquid bomb was
/ found in the hold of the Kirkoswald,
then chartered to the French Line,
when she arrived in Marseilles on
June 8.
Two Secret Service men accompanied
! by a detective, Of the Newark Police
| Department, searched the fourth floor
! fat at $50 Court Street, Newark, where
Mente says he lives, yesterday after
noon.
! No bombs or bomb materials were
| discovered in the fiat. Papers and
/ books belonging to Mente were taken
away by the Secret Service men. Kow-
ach was also induced to go along with
[ tb.,, etiop u.