Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1917-12-18
Bomb Blows Away Portion
of Governors Mansion at
Sacramento
PRO- GERMAN AGENTS
AND &c C c" SUSPECTED
Governor Has Been Active In
Patriotic Work and Op-
posed Mooney Gang

Sacramento, Cal, Dec 1S.--An at
tempt to dynamite the governor IS man
sion and to kill Governor William D..
stephens and his wife, was made early
today when a charge of explosive set
off in the southwest wall of the build
ing. The rear porch was blown off and
a large hole was torn in the brickwork
of the building. Although Governor
Stephens, his wife and the servants
were asleep in the upper floor of the
building, nobody was injured and the
damage was confined to the exterior
wall of the building.
Pro-German agents or sympathizers
are blamed by the police for the QUO
rage Governor Stephens returned cnly
last night from Los Angeles where he
had delivered an address in which he
advocated sterner methods in suppress
ing enemy agents and enemy propagan-
da.
The principal clew, on which the en-
tire police force of Sacramento is work
ing, was furnished by Rev. Frazer
Langford, Baptist minister living in
the vicinity. He declares that for sew
eral months he has seen man, whom
he believes to be a German, lurking in
the vicinity of the governor IS mansion
and apparently examining its construe-
tion. This nAn, he said, vanished less
than a week ago and Rev. Mr.. Lang
ford believes he was responsible.
The police threw out dragnet early
today and rounded up a number of sus-
picious persons but have not yet To-
Gated the man wanted. Governor Ste
phens was calm Immediately after the
explosion and assisted the police in
their investigation.
81 am grateful that the affair was
not more serious,' he said "The rea-
son for the crime is a complete mys-
terry to me, as have received no threat
ening letters of any kind. Personally
believe the bomb was thrown from the
at the rear of the house, af
ter the watchman had passed the point
of explosion on his rounds'
Police, however, do not agree with
this theory. They believe the bomb was
Of the clockwork variety and was tim
ed to explode shortly after midnight.
They believe more than 81 dozen sticks !
Of dynamite were in the bomb
The explosion shattered a number of |
in the house and in residences !
for several blocks around, breaking |
and dishes, but did no 9TH I
er general damage
Had the force of the explosion gone ,
toward the front of the mansion the .
governor and his wife would undoubt- /
edly have been killed and the building |
wrecked. As it was, howev
er, the main force went across the al !
ley at the rear Of the building. 1t blew
1ut most of the windows Of an apart
ment house Immediately across the al
ley. The windows of the governor 5
were entirely blown out.
Up to noon today the police had no
definite clew.
Mrs. E. R. Payne who lives in an
apartment house across the alley from r.
The governor IS mansion says that inn
following the blast she look
I'd out of the window and saw man
standing behind tree in the alley. J.
what s the matter9" she scream
ID. Then, she declares, she heard some
me say g. Are you hurts" and the man
an from the alley into Sixteenth
street.
Fire Chief Anderson caused surprise
when he advanced the theory that ac-
of gas in the pipes of the
aundry and kitchen might have caused
he explosion.
Detectives, believing there may be.
ONE thing in the fire chief s theory,
md that the explosion might have been
are making full investiga-
ion of this angle They say that if
EXAMINATION shows the gas pipes under
he ground are shattered, the fire
hief s contention may be correct.