Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1922-08-31

men stationed NJ hA tower ut van
dcvcr avenue. where the railroad
crosses that street and about one block
from the Fourteenth street bridge.
They fixed the time, as they immedi-
ately ran down the tracks to the
bridge when they heard the blast. All
thay found WAS the twisted. shattered
and splintercd iron and wood work
and cloud OF dust, but no one was
In sight.
The railroad and tho city police have
Joined forces To hunt down the person
or persons guilty OF the act, but no
arrests have yet been made and offi-
cials of both departments stated this
morning that tbSy have no clues on
which TO work and no evidence that
might be considered helpful in their
Efforts to locate the guilty parties.
There was not a splinter OF anything
found that would indicate what the
dynamite had been contained In and
n there was n bomb every vestige OF
Il has been completely destroyed.
At the south end OF the bridge and
on the east side of the railroad tracks
there is n small space under one OF
and the top OF the granite abutment
wall. This is right under the out
side track. which leads from what
railroad men term the high line" or
the main right of way on the elevated
road into the yards OF the Pullman
Company At Twelfth street. 1t was
In this small space the bomb had been
placed and exploded. That 1t was a
time bomb there is no doubt, police
officials say. Railroad officials claim
there were no trains due at the time,
So that tho belief prevailed today that
the bomb was not set TO go off when a
train was passing over the bridge II
is therefore the conclusion of all those
working on the case that the purpose
OF the blast was to damage the tracks
and possibly Tie mp the entire right OF
way over the main line of the Mary
land division.
When the dynamite did explode the
force OF Il went down. tearing away
tho big section OF the solid block of
granite In the abutment wall. II also
shattered the wood and sheet iron
coping under the bridge, which is
there TO prevent coal and water drop
ping from passing trains upon persons
walking along the sidewalk under the
bridge. This coping, or apron. is OF
heavy wood. but the boards In the end
OF IL We're splintered as IL they had
been match-stems. The iron strips
and supports holding the end were
twisted and broken. The heavy planl,
walk along the side OF the track was
shattered and blown 10 pieces for a
distance OF several feet. The iron
railing along the side OF the bridge
( was ripped up and the heavy piping
was bent and twisted in fantastic
shapes. IN, railroad ties under the
rails We're torn up and splintered and
; the tracks themselves were bulge6
and moved several inches. so tina,
that particular line could not be used
today. The sidewalk and street under
the bridge and 10 the side in Bowers
street We're strewn with the wreckage
The bomb had evidently been ur
against heavy girder under the
bridge, which sent the force OF the
blast out and away from the bridge
proper and down East Fourteenth
street and this, railroad engineers es-
umated today. probably averted much
more serious damage 10 the bridge
and caused SO much OF the wreck
age to the houses on Fourteenth stree,
and east OF the tracks,
Balbach Heard Prowlers.
1nNthe first house on the corner O,
/ Fourteenth and Bowers street. and
just across Bowers street from the
bridge. lives Andrew Balbach and his
aged mother. Mrs. Elizabeth Balbach
aged about 75 years. There was moth
Ing 10 protect this building but the
side brick wall and the shock OF the
blast war felt more severely there
than at any other place. Mr.. Bal
bach said this morning that some
time during the night he heard men
talking in the street at the side OF his
house. in Bowers street He could
not distinguish what was said, but he
judged from the sound Of voices and
the maudlin remarks that the men
were under the influence OF liquor
Not knowing what they were doing OF
contemplating and fearing they nigh,
be planning TO do some damage to his
own house he started TO get out OF
bed 10 make an investigation. He had
just put one foot on the floor when
the dynamite under the railroad
bridge went off. The force Of the
explosion was 90 great tha. It nearly
Continued on ra-5 IL
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