The New York herald., 1921-09-20
BOMB GANG Caught;
EXPLOSIVES SEIZED
Chicago Police Find Suf-
ficient INT and Dynamite
to Wreck Half City.
FIVE UNDER ARREST
Chief of Detectives Takes a
Hand in Roundup After
Explosion.
ACCUSED LEADER is SHOT
Confession Bares Details of
War on Shoe Repair Shops
Sixty Places Blown Up.

Spcciof Despatch to THE New York HERALD.
CHICAGO, Sept. 19.-In an amazing
recital of bomb throwing and terror
ism William G. Smith to-day con-
fessed to Chief of Detectives Michael
Hughes that he and three others dam
aged or wrecked sixty or more shoe
repair shops in Chicago with dynamite
and INT.
Chief Hughes and nine Of the off,
GERS at the detective bureau had shot
Richard Burke, accused by Smith as
the ''brains" of the terrorists, cap
tured Smith and three others and
seized enough dynamite and INT to
blow up and fire half the buildings in
Chicago.
Immediately following Smiths con-
fession detectives made raid on the
headquarters of the United Shoe Re-
pair Union. Part Of the unions books
and records were seized for investiga-
tion.
All the places bombed were owned by
members Of rival organization. the
international Shoe Repairers Associa-
tion. The shooting of Burke and the
seizure of 1.400 sticks Of dynamite, 100
sticks OF INT and a basketful OF per-
cussion caps. wires and bomb parapher-
MALTA in the lair of the bombers In a
ramshackle house followed the explod-
ing of a bomb at 4 A. NJ. to-day that
smashed the front Of David Kremen's
shoe shop in the Stockyards district.
Bomb Band Captured.
Kremen, his wife and their four chill
dren were thrown out Of bed and win
dows III buildings for nearly a block
were shattered.
When the bomb exploded with great
roar at the shoe shop detectives, headed
by Chief Hughes, leaped from places OF
concealment where they had been
awaiting the arrival of the men and de-
ment there was a wild scurry as the
bombers dashed for openings to escape.
One man had broken through the cor
don when Chief Hughes stopped him
with bullet in the leg. The others
surrendered. PNE @FM"
A frame dwelling at 7544 Kimbark
avenue. the address given by one OF
the captives. was raided. There the
officers found what they suspect was
the principal cache of explosives col
lected by labor terrorists who have
bombed workshops throughout the city
in the last few months.
Two trunks were filed with dyna-
mite. In two boxes were 100 sticks OF
INT and 100 sticks Of dynamite.
Burke. the leader of the gang, Is
said to have confessed maintaining
we'll organized bomb supply house. He
would supply bombs. and according to
the police. IL the customer desired. men
to throw them.
Like Setting to Melodrnmn.
The Kimbark avenue house is ar
ranged as spectacularly as setting In
melodrama. The bomb factory and
supplies of explosives were in second
floor room. On the first floor of the
adjoining apartment the partitions had
been torn away to make large ga
rage. There is a sliding door opening
on South Chicago avenue for quick de-
parture and return of automobile
bands. When the door closed there was
nothing suspicious that casual OBJ
server would notice.
Burke hired me to help pull off the
bomb jobs" Smith confessed He was
the head guy. / was to get $50 a
week. He never came through with
the dough. / was well fed by Burke.
We never worked any places except
shoe repair shops. and then only on an
order from Burke"