The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1918-06-11
BRANDECEE'S
 ARREST DOES
 NOT END CASE Capt. Cronan Not Satisfied With Explanation of
 Bomb Explosion.
BELIEVES BRANDEGEE
 INNOCENT OF CHARGE
Whether He Had Explosives Or Not Bomb Was Fired
 Near Naval Base.

The arrest of William s. Brandegee of Black Rock, by Charles H. Lane of the Department of Justice, for having explosives in his possession, but sup posed by many to be in connection with the recent attempt by Hun agents to blow up the Black Rock Naval Base, last Wednesday. has giv- en rise to difference of opinion be- tween the federal agent and the Bridgeport police department.
 When seen today Captain E. o. Cronan, chief of the detective bureau, who is personally conducting the po- lice end of the inquiry into the at tempted outrage, said People may say what they like about Brandegee but in my opinion a man of his standing in the community, a. mem Der of one of the oldest New England families and intensely patriotic in every way, would not be guilty of committing a crime of this nature or of even planting the bomb after the explosion.
 q have had a great deal of ex- perience in my life with internal machines and the one which was used at Black Rock was one of the best and simplest I ever laid eyes on. It was not an alleged bomb, but a real honest to goodness machine, which l if planted properly, and not thrown away hurriedly, would have caused damage which cannot be estimated.
 "We all know that W. S. Brande- gee was a collector of rifles and fire arms of every description. We know that he was an ardent yachtsman and carried his enthusiasm to the ex- ten1 of firing off a cannon every even- ing at sundown, in the same manner as warships do. When visiting yachts from the surrounding waters entered Black Rock harbor it has been his custom to fire salute of welcome to | them.
 l Some time ago W. S. Brandegee performed some rather eccentric
 tricks, but he has given up those ways
 and as far as I am aware is very sensible keen-ninded business man.
 There is no reason to suppose that he is mentally unbalanced, and a man to
 go to the trouble of manufacturing a
 steel and cast iron internal machine
 just to plant l. and bring notoriety to
 himself must be an idiot The bomb
 was made in a machine shop and not
 withstanding the assertion by certain people who looked it over that it was
 very crude it was just as finished as any bomb I have ever laid eyes upon
 and I have seen some of the most fla
 nous that were ever tipped off or about to be tipped off in the country.
 People do not make bombs for orna-
 ments.
 ''The machine was manufactured by an expert and not by an amateur. I defy anyone to say that the bomb
 which lies in my office is the work Of anyone but a party skilled in the making of deadly machines.
 q further contend that it was the discovery of the miscreants in the
 nick of time, whether it by the dogs ] barking or the appearance of Bran } degee which saved the loss of many . lives and the destruction of much I property. I emphatically state that 0 the bomb was not planted after the l detonation.. The explosin was caused by the internal machine the remnants of which are in my desk.
 "One of my most trusted men, De . leCIlNe SerSeduC WneeIST, WHO IS wei ! versed in explosives, made a mos | | thorough investigation and I hav y every faith in his report, coupled witt J 1 the result of my own investigation = that the bomb was intended for us | against the Naval Base, which is onl, . a hundred feet Or so away from tn r spot where the blast occurred. Tn = theory of a. keg of powder blowing III 0 Or an old charge of dynamite left b, @ eXcavators being accidently explode u cannot stand in face of facts and tn If facts are that a deadly internal ma d chine was used, but failed to do tn e damage for which it was intended
 ''The reason that the fragments O
 the bomb were not found until tn
 day following was first, because tn . fragments were scattered some dis
 tance by the force of the explosion an
 second, because they were buried un
 der a heap of wreckage which had t
 be moved very carefully while scare
 was being made"
 VI Brandegee is being held in bonds C
 $5,000 and will have his case hear
 I TO:.