Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1920-09-17
Without Warning
(centinued from PAGE One)


newal Of bombing outrages was SEN
less than month ago to all eastern
clients of the William ]. Burns De.
tective Agency. according to a state.
ment by Mr.. Burns, who stated he was
convinced that today's explosion was
a premeditated attack.
Mr.. Burns, who said he had been
| engaged by the Morgan firm to make
an investigation of the accident,
said that his personal investigation
convinced him that a wagon con-
tanning a bomb or bombs was left in
front of the sub treasury building
with a timing divice SO fixed as to
cause 1t to explode precisely at noon.
/ No trace Of the driver of the wagon
has been found, he said. and added
that in his opinion the man escaped
a few moments before the explosion
occurred.
Fire Chief kenlon and officers from
the Bureau of Combustibles also ex-
pressed the belief that the explosion
was caused by a bomb after exam
| ination Of fragments of metal found
In the street in front of the Morgan
offices. Dr. William F. Doyle, chief
! of the Bureau of Combustibles
pointed out that the small hole
found in the street near the Morgan
! offices and the widely scattered
scars on the facades of nearby
buildings also indicated that the
blast was caused by bomb rather
than by an explosion of a quantity
OF dynamite OF other explosives.
Five members of the Morgan firm
! were in the building at the time of
the explosion. Thomas w. Lamont.
Dwight w. Morrow, Eliot C. Bacon
and George Whitney were in a con-
ference on the Broad street side of
the Morgan building. They We're
shaken up by the force of the ex-
plosion. but all escaped injury.
Junius Spencer Morgan, son of J..
P. Morgan, head of the firm, who
now is abroad. was at his desk on
the lower floor when the explosion
occurred. 1t shattered the glass par
tlnons of his Office, showering him
with fragments. He received slight
cuts on the hands and arms.
The explosion threw the confer
ence upstairs into disorder" Mr.. La
mont said I'VE were Jared by the
conclusion and rather excitedly ran
down to the main floor, where the
most confusion prevailed. There
were about so employees who we're
more or less injured and those clerks
who had miraculously escaped injury
from falling debris were courageous
~ devoting their attention to assist
ing those who were less fortunate.
'One of our valued employees.
William Joyce. was killed. He was
the son of Thomas w. Joyce, who
has been in our employ 30 years and
who was himself badly hurt. &
All our large windows on the
first floor and some on the second
floor were blown in. The office will
be ready for business tomorrw
morning."
There were between 400 and 500
employees in the Morgan building at
the time Of the accident.
A letter giving warning of today's
explosion was dropped Wednesday
morning through the mail slot in the
door In one Of the Offices in the
French High Commission at IS
broadway, it became known tonight.
This letter. apparently written by
man formerly in the employ of the
commission. was torn to small
pieces soon after it was read, and
dropped into q waste basket.
Today after the explosion. these
DTS OF paper were taken from the
basket, pasted together and turned
over to the police. The letter, which
was"addressed to Lieutenant Arnaud
Who is attached to the commission.
began with the word: Greetings"
The writer said he thought he was
rendering a service to the French
commission by advising Maurice
Casenave. minister plenipotentiarv
and his. assistant of the fact that a
catastrophe would occur in Wall
Street about $50 o'clock. No date
was mentioned.
The writer suggested that Lien
tenant Arnaud advise Minister Gas.
enave to have the offices of the COM
mission closed and unoccupied al .
O'CLOCK so that the lives of the office
stan might be spared. The letter
also mentioned between 2 and 4
O'Clock daylight time" as the probable
hour Tor the catastrophe.
II was lntimated in the letter that
some people had grievances and
wanted to take revenge"
Lieutenant Arnaud read the ,et+ar
several times. Feeling assured 49,
1t had been written by an aIarmist
ana should not be taken seriously be
tore 1t up and threw it in q waste
paper basket. He gave no furtber
thought to the letter until. after the
explosion today, when he rushed into
the once, emptied the contents of tho
waste paper basket in a bean IN hi.
DESK sorted the bits of the letter.
pieced them together and turned
tnem over to the police.
Efforts to learn whether the letter
oore signature proved futile.
Soon after the letter had been ham
ueo TO the police it was learned thar
detectives had been sent to an adj
dress in West s2nd street to seek a
man formerly in the employ of the
French commission. 1t was said
that he had left the service of the
French government on Sept. l. 1919
The writer of the letter. the police
believe, was familiar with all n,.ne
for the explosion and would be able
TO point out the reSponsihIa Ya,.;