The Washington herald., 1916-07-31


of the earlier figures went as high
as s7o.oOo.ooo. but it is believed the
first named figure is nearer TO the
mark.
Already the first investigation of the
horror is under way. At the behest
of the New Jersey Public Utilities
Commission two arrests have been
made and a warrant has been issued
for a third man.
Those in custody are Albert NJ.
Dickmsn. agent at Blacktom. for
the Lehigh Valley Railroad Company.
and Alexander Davidson, superintendent
of the National Storage Company,
whose warehouses and docks occupied
the greater part of the Island.
These two men were arrested in Jersey
City tonight on charges Of manslaughtsr
growing out of the explosions which
rocked New York and the country for
miles.
A warrant has been issued for Theo-
dore B. Johnson, of the Johnson Light
erage and Towing Company, which had
| barges loaded with munitions laying OF
the island. johnson is a resident of
Brooklyn and is still at large.
Origin still a Mystery.
The warrants were sworn out by Po-
lice Inspector Richard Battersby. of the
Jersey City Detective Bureau. He ap-
peared before Judge Mark A Sullivan. OF
the Hudson County Court. obtained the
papers and sent out his men to serve
them. His action was taken at the order
of Director Of Public Safety Frank
Hague, who with Inspector of Combusti-
bles James Connolly, Police Inspector
Philip Leonard, Fire Chief O'Brien and
others conducted the early investigation.
| While causes of the explosion are still
shrouded in mystery. the investigators
declare they have determined this fact:
There was illegal storage of high eI-
piosives on Black Tom Island. This vio-
lation OF the State and Federal laws is
laid directly at the doors of the COM
panies represented by Dickman, johnson
| & Davidson. Safeguards. it is charged.
were fiagrantly ignored.
Five more men will be arrested tomor-
row If plans for the authorities mature.
These men were eye-witnesses OF the fire
which resulted in the explosion. The first
and greatest blast came at 2:OS a m.
Lays Blame on Barge.
The Lehigh Valley Railroad Com
pany, in an official statement, lays the
blame on a barge owned by an Inde-
pendent Towing Company, which,
against orders. had moored to the pier.
The railroad charges the fire began
on this barge. Some eye witnesses as
sert the conflagratIon started on a
freight car.
A still alarm to the Jersey City fire
department brought several companies,
They had considerable distance to
travel, the scene of the fire being
about a mile away. The fire engines
were not able to get close to the fire.
and long lines of hose had to be
stretched.
| The Jersey City firemen, with the
assistance Of several railroad tugs and
employees on the premises. valiantly
fought the fire for two hours. but it
grew beyond their control
Probably more than 100 fuIly-loaded
freight cars. about a dozen or so con-
tanning high explosives and shrapnel
shell were stalled in the range of the
spreading blaze.
Suddenly the flames leaped to five
cars loaded with nitro-cellulose. a
high explosive.
The intire five carloads exploded al
most simultaneously. More than half
a dozen of the warehouses were wiped
out.
Flames Leap In Air.
Flames leaped hundreds of feet into the
air. The shock rocked thousands of
homes within a several mile radius.
The lower part OF Manhattan and
Brooklyn. both directly across the water
from Blackton Island, were heavily
shaken.
4 Thousands. of panes of glass fell into