New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1921-07-26
Light Wi Tres at
Prizefight Cut;
$1,000 Stolen
Robbers in Darkness Smash
Ticket Window Glass i'm
Ebbets Field Rotunda
and Escape With Money
Thousands i'm Near Panic
Gates Hurriedly Closed and
Throng Hemmed I'm 20
Minutes; Plot Suspected

few minutes before time was called
III the boxing bout between Joe Lynch
and Pete Herman at Ebbets Field,
Brooklyn, last night, in which Herman
regained the bantam title, robbers cut
the light wires in the big rotunda,
seized $1,000 in currency from ticket
window No. 13, and started a near
panic among 1000 men who were mill
ing about in, the adrk trying to leach
ticket windows.
The robbers worked on a carefully
prearranged plan, the police think. be-
cause although heavy iron gates that
enclose the rotunda were slammed to
Immediately after the robbery, pen
ming shouting mob in the enclosure.
no trace of bandit could be found.
The police made a thorough search of
the rotunda enclosure and took the
ticket seller at Window 13 to the police
station for examination, but at mid
night were nowhere near n solution
OF the robbery.
Close Doors, Pen in Crowd
Not only did the management close
the big rotunda gates, making prs-
cners of prospective ticket purchasers
ccrned, but doors leading from the
ratunda into the arena wee shoed IN
from the arena side so that there was
no escape from either direction The
rutunda crowd was held imprisoned in
the dark until inspectors Conboy and
Davis, Of Headquarters police, sent for
i Fire Department search light appa-
ratus, which threw glare through the
gratings of the gates, lighting up the
interior.
As an added prccauton against a
raid by the big crowd outside awaiting
admission, the MANAGEMENT of the field
closed the big shutters at various en-
frances about the field. These shut
down hermetcally like department
store window shutters. 1t was ad-
raitted by Inspector Conboy after the
near panic that ensued that big chances
had been taken in closing the gates
There were fifteen or twenty anxious
minutes, when the possibility of a
panic was felt to be imminent.
Ticket Window Smashed
According to testimony OF witnesses
who were examined by inspectors Con
boy and Davis on the spot, all rotunda
lights went out at once. The big chan
dclier in the center of the roof which
contains several hundred lights, and
all smaller lights round the sides
were extinguished, but lights still
burned in some of ticket windows.
Others on another circuit were dark
One OF these was window No t3. AS
soon as the lights died there was a
crash. A voice yelled "Gey il get it!'
The window gratings were dashed out
of window 13 and the ticket seller
was shouting stop those crooks-I' m
robbed"
Charles n. Ebbets, manager of the
field, told Inspector Conhoy all lights
and apparatus had been inspected dur
| ing the day and that he could not ac-
count for their failure. He declined to
commit himself Ebbets admitted the
risk run in closing the doors ana seal
ing in the big crowd, but told Inspector
| Conboy he was choosing the least Of
two evils. If he opened the gates, he
said the outside crowd would try to
rush the arena and there would be d
! panic.
Police reserves, hastily summoned,
at last succeeded in restoring order.
/ Ticket holders who were unable to OBJ
/ tain admission owing TO the confusion
were invited to submit their paste
/ boards to-day for a refund.