Perth Amboy evening news. [volume] (Perth Amboy, N.J.) 1903-1959, 1918-11-23
ONE GUARD FOR THREE ACAzINES 500 FEET APART,
HSTATEMENT MADE BY CILLESPIE'S s Chief OF POLICE
Admission That Guards
are Not Sufficient for
Plants Protection
GET JOBS ON APPLICATION

With the prospect that the multi
tude of witnesses which the T. A. Gill
lespie Company intends to call In their
defense, In the invetigation by the
United States Senatorial Committee,
will take several days to complete,
the hearings continued this morning.
At adjournment early this afternoon
It was announced that the hearings
will be put off until December 8,
conditlonally, and II inconvenient to
the senators at that time, until De-
cember 12.
The first witness called by the COM
pany this morning was Chief of the
Guards Chester A. Haines, who was
examined by Russell e. Watson. or
New Brunswick, associate counsel for
the Gillespie Company. This Is the
first active examination conducted by
Mr.. Watson.
The chief said that on October 4
there were 80 guards on duty, divided
into three shifts. with a reserve always
at hand from fifty to 100 guards. The
plant was divided into five zones with
two guards at the main gate on two
shifts and one during the early morn
ing. At rush hours there were five to
seven more guards at the gate. There
were at the same time, five to eight
guards stationed at the various units.
The chief then explained the rules
with regard to the search for matches.
There were so many employees
that If we had searched them all, we
would not have been through until
noon," he said.
From his testimony IL was apparent
that the search for matches was cur
sorry and the so-called safety matches
where the only ones allowed inside the
reservation.
In three instances, where searching
parties found matches on workers In
units, the men were discharged.
Chief Haines, who was at the plant
on the night of October 4, toni of
turning out the guards at that time
when from 110 to 120 men were on
post and eighty-flve were In reserve.
The men were detoiled to the various
units, wharves and warehouses and
gates.
He made a round of the units and
posts of duty and found them ull COW
cred by guards. After a long tour
of duty at the plant the chief was
taken to a Lakewood hospital, over
He described his return to duty and
gave detailed figures on the number of
guards at the plant from October 9
to the end of the month.
Troops guarded the Cheesequake
road from October to about the first
of November. when the Gillespie
guards again took up the guard. The
company's men. he said. were pre-
vented from returning to the plant
by the troops.
Senator Frelinghuysen took up the
questioning of them and brought out
that military drill regulations In re-
gard to sentinel duty were not given
to tho men by Haines. The guards
were equipped, Haines said. with
..t1 IAN
given some military drill by others
from the guard. The guards also car
ried clubs and revolvers. There were
not sufficient arms to supply the full
strength of the guards with ordnance
as there were but about 80 rifles and
shotguns at the plant. The chief
could not recall the orders of General
Williams that all clubs be replaced
with rifles.
But one guard was stationed at
three magazines, the senator brought
out, and these magazines were 500
feet apart, which made each man
cover 1900 feet. When the guards
were at the extreme points OF their
posts, they were 5000 feet apart.
Now, the senator said. there is one
guard, q United States soldier for each
magazine. Haines said he did not be-
lieve there were sufficient men at the
pid1lL 10 properly bustIu IL oltpS nNAc
being taken, the chief said. to increase
the guard 10 700 men.
In the magazine section. there were
twenty-three posts in the storage sec
tons there were twenty-six men
guarding including units operating and
five not working.
Senator Frelinghuysen drilled the
witness searchingly on the disposition
of the guards. In the administration
posts there were thirteen guards ana
in the entire manufacturing section
there were but sixty-iour guards.
Haines admitted that. in his belief
there should have been double the
number of guards that there were.
Judge Lyon cross examined the
chief as to the circumference OF the
plant. which Haines estimated at f1ve
or SIX miles.
AT the time of the explosion bar
racks were being erected to care Tor
the additional guards, which the chief
was trying TO obtain.