Perth Amboy evening news. [volume] (Perth Amboy, N.J.) 1903-1959, 1924-04-07
ONE MAN HELD
IN JAIL AFTER
ODDEXPL0S|ON
Authorities Say Men Were
Stealing Lead Coils and
Tanks at Time
ONE DEAD; TWO INJURED
Dry Picric Acid Residue May
Have Been Detonated by
Hammering
)NE DEAD; TWO INJURED


One man is dead, two are in local
hospitals suffering from serious and
painful injuries and another is in
jail as the result of an explosion
Saturday afternoon in the factory
building of the Analine Dye Com
pany in Allen Lane, on the outskirts
of this city. The investigation now
being carried on as a result of the
explosion is particularly interesting
at this time because of the explosive
probe which has been conducted
since the catastrophe at the Ammo
mite plant, Nixon, March /, which
took a toll of at least twenty lives
and did thousands of dollars dam
age.
The cause of the explosion has not
been definitely established as yet bur
Chief of County Detectives Ferd A.
David is working on the theory that
O residue of dry picric acid in some
coils was detonated when the men
started to break up the lead coils
with hammers, hatchets and
wrenches. According to an admis-
sion made by the man who is under
arrest, the four men visited the
place with the intention of stealing
the lead tank and coils which were
left in the building following its
wartime activities.
The dead man is John Pasprana,
twenty, of Ward street, this city.
He died at O'Clock Saturday night,
following the amputation of his left
haF a "
ing been badly mangled. The right
side of the mans face and body was
injured and he sustained internal in
juries.
August ufogle, eighteen, of s
Howard street is in the Middlesex
General Hospital, he having had one
foot broken, nose fractured and sus-
tanned a possible concussion OF the
brain in addition to numerous lacer-
afions. The force of the explosion
blew him several feet.
Angelo Marachi, nineteen, of
Reservoir avenue. is in St. Peters
Hospital. The explosion burst both
his ear drums, burned is face and
resulted in severe contusions of the
lower limbs.
Clifford Eden, eighteen, of Haz-
elhurst street, was uninjured as he
was posted outside the building to
keep watch while the others tore
down the tank and coils, according
to the authorities. Eden was jailed.
charged with breaking and entering,
bail being fixed at $1,000, which he
was unable to furnish. Eden is said
to have admitted that the four men
MANNED to rob the plant of the coils
and tank. He has had additional
charges of breaking and entering
made against him upon his admission
that he had entered the building on
a former occasion and stolen lead.
Houses in the vicinity of the
building were rocked by the force
of the explosion, which occurred at
1:15 o'clock and many persons ran
to the streets, believing IL was an
other big explosion in the vicinity
of Camp Raritan and Nixon. No
fire followed the explosion and the
injured meu were quickly taken to
the two local hospitals.
The Analine Dye Company con-
Quoted a wartime plant in the
building, making coal tar dyes.
After the war operations were dis
continued and the building was sold
to the Metallurgical Chemical Com-
pany which used it to carry on ex-
periments in smelter send.
Detective David declares that this
explosion is of particular interest at
this time baceuse of information
gained by him in the recent Am
monte explosion probe. He learned
during the investigation, he said,
that chemicals extracted from shells
had been sent to Japan Cos use in
manufacturing 1yes and that the
commercial use Of picric acid was
in the manufacture of dye products.
Chief David points ont that p.cric
acid must be kept ten per cent
moist in order that it might not
explode. He believes that some pic
ric acid might have been used in
the dye manufacture in this factory
that residue in the coils, becoming
dry during the time the coils were
not used, was detonated by the
pounding and caused the explosion.
Chief of Police Michael O'Connell
and Patrolman Charles REILLY were
the first officials on the scene, both
having started for the place as soon
as they heard the blast AS the fac
tory was outside the city limits, they
advised the prosecutors office and
the county authorities took charge.
The New Brunswick police placed
Eden under arrest shortly after the
explosion,