Evening star., 1934-09-25
Heard Loud Explosion Either
in Writing Room or Lobby
PassageWay.
TELLS OF ALLEGED PLOT
TO SMUGGLE ALIENS
Informs Board First Officer Sus-
pected Alagna Of Setting Fire
on Previous Trip.
By the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
NEW YORK. September 25-Arthur
j. Pender. night Watchman on duty
aboard the liner Moro Castle at the
time it burned at sea with a resultant
loss of 1872 lives, told the Federal board
investigating the disaster today that
he thought the ship was bombed.
He told of an explosion. loud and
intense that came either from the
writing room or the passageway for
ward of the lobby, and declared that
in the light Of everything that hap
pened, think the ship was bombed"
Pender, who said that he was the
one who discovered a fire in the hold
of the Moro Castle on a previous trip.
testified that he understood that the
first officer suspected George Alagna
FIRST assistant radio OPERATOR of set
ting the fire in the hold on the pre-
vlous trip"
Capt. Willmott, Pender added had
taken him INTO his confidence and told
him ne intended to get rid Of Alagna
Testifies TO Smuggling Plot.
Pender also told the Inquiry Board
of an alleged plot to "smuggle" aliens
into the United States. The plot was
discovered in a Havana pool room by
his watch partner. Pender said. and
they intended waiting until they found
out the identity of the smuggling ring
before they told Of it so they could
gain promotion.
Earlier Pender testified that when
he first went to the lobby he saw "a
young man in a gray suit who seemed
to be -terrOr-Stricken' Pender said
that he had never seen the man be-
fore and that he knew he was not a
member Of the crew. He testified that
he first saw him about 25 minutes of
3 O'Clock before he looked into the
writing room and saw another mem
| Der Of the crew open the locker from
which the fire came.
Dickerson n. Hoover. assistant di-
rector of the Bureau of Navigation.
| and Capt. Karl Nielsen conducted the
| questioning of Pender.
Saw Mysterious Man.
Pender told the board his first
knowledge of a fire aboard ship was
the sight OF smoke issuing from
cargo hold ventilator on the hurricane
deck.
He later saw a mysterious young
man in a gray suit. terror stricken"
in the lounge Just before a steward
opened locker in the writing room
from which burst white flame"
The first l knew of any fire at all
was when l was on the hurricane
deck. I saw what I thought at first
was steam issuing from a ventilator TO
the cargo hold. 1 found later it was
smoke coming from what I thought
then was No hold. but which I
have since learned was No. hold"
What did you do?" asked Capt.
Nielsen
Il did the only reasonable thing. I
went to find the source"
Did you report to the bridge?"
NO, sir, I went directly underneath
toward the hold. I smelled what !
thought was burning rags
Did you get to the hold?"
mo, sir. l got as far as b deck,
where a lady stopped me to question
me about the weather.
rs that what made you stop?"
Smelled Odor of Gasoline.
"I smelled a strong odor of burning
rags. While walking with the lady, I
smelled something like gasoline or
naphtha coming from two suites on
"A deck"
What did you do about that?"
Nothing, sir l dismissed that from
my mind. because it was not unusual
for stewards to clean things as we
entered port I was on my way then
to the source of the smoke from the
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