Evening journal., 1918-12-28
FRUSTRATE Plot
TO DAMAGE PLANT
Explosives at Washington
Park Endangered by
Time Bomb
DU PONT co. SLEUTH
OBTAINED CLUE

A time bomb, secreted under a car
loaded with munitions at the govern
nent's bag-loading plant, Washington
Park, N. j., would have set OF several
million pounds OF concentrated powder
II agents Of the American Protective
League hadn't found the Internal ma
chine. ninety minutes before 1t was set
10 go of.
This disclosure was made yesterday
by Frank N. Gaskill, assistant chief OF
the A. p l.. In Philadelphia. and A. b.
Smythe, former Secret Service head OF
The government plant on the Delaware.
Both men explained that owing to the
termination OF hostilities they were
permitted to tell the story.
on the suggestion of Major c. N.
Green, OF the u. S. Engineers, In charge
OF the bag-loading plant, Mr.. Gaskill
explained that the American Protective
League was asked to put a force OF
loyal operatives in the plant, as the
workers feared the plant might be
damaged Mr.. Smythe was sent TO or
ganize the secret operative force OF the
plant.
On the night OF October Major Syl-
vester, In charge Of the powder plant
Of duPont's at Carney's Point, tele-
phoned 10 Chief Smythe and said he
had been Informed that an attempt
would be made to blow up the bag
loading plant by the setting OF time
bombs under powder trains. AT that
lime the dupont plant was supplying
The bag-loadlng plant with powder. A
powder train for Washington Park left
81 ~
Chief Sylvester telephOned at 2-30 A.
NJ. and by that time the long train had
been shunted on a siding In the bag
loading plant between two powder mag
azlnes. each containing In concentrated
form 100000 pounds Of powder As
soon as he received the information
Chief Smythe reused a score Of men
from their beds and ordered the train
backed from the siding. Then every car
OF the train was carefully examined.
Under a car at about the middle OF the
train. time bomb was found. II was
loaded with INT, and the alarm clock
10 which the explosive was attached,
was timed to go or at i30 A. NJ The
man who placed the machine had 10 set
for the time The powder train would
be halted between the two magazines.
They contained smokeless powder.
This class OF powder does not explode
out urns. so the greatest damage would
have been financial II the bomb ex-
ploded.
Chief Smythe ripped the bomb from
the underside OF the car. where II had
been fastened with straps, then ordered
more searching Investigation. Under
the flooring OF another car in The same
train was found stick OF dynamite
carefully wrapped In oil waste. Spon-
taneous combustion was counted on 10
set of the explosive. Efforts were made
10 trace the maker OF the bombs, but
they proved futile.
On another occasion raid was made
In the plant and 200 suspicious char
acters arrested. On a second occasion
lhlriy-nve members OF the Industrial
Workers OF the World who were work.
ing there were removed from the p~emi-
ses on sim another occasoln batch
OF 40 Austrlans and Germans were
caught while a further raid later
brought 20 more allen enemies into the
dragnet.
Another attempt 10 cripple the plant
almost succeeded. said Chief Smythe,
and was frustrated only by the vigilance
OF a guard In the entire operation. It
was explained are 81 buildings, Three
OF these were used for tho making OF
iTnitor fuses, while one OF them housed
the only blower gun in the plant. This
blower gun blew the powder into the
ignition fuses
Three attempts were made 10 fire this
house. on the fourth occasion an armed
guard detected man ns'ds the house
in the act OF llGhtlng a match. At his
feet was ouqntlty OF oiled waste and
gasoline-soaked wood. The guard f~ed
four shots from his army rifle, but the
intruder g-i over the barbed wire fence
md disappeared.