f
ALL MERCHANDISE
ADVERTISED IN THE
TRIBUNE IS GUARANTEED
Vol. LXXX No. 26,973
First to Last?the Truth: News?Editorials?Advertisements
(Copyright. 1620,
New York Tribune Inc.)
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 1920
* * *
t
THE WEATHER
Cloudy to-day ? enaettied to-morrow r
moderst? ?md variable winds.
**D psport ?aa Ust -pas*
1
TWO CENTS 1 THREE CENTS 1 TOtTR ?CEVT?,
In Greater New York | Hithta M0 MUm I KlMwhe? i
Smith Urges
Building ?id
And End to
Rent Gouging
Housing Situation Called
Menace to Health of
the Gty and Commer?
cial Welfare .of State
Legislature Asked
?c?
For Relief at Once
Suspension of Dispos?
sess for Year Sought;
Tax Exemption for
New Buildings Needed
From a ?Staff Correspondent
ALBANY, Sept. 2Q.?Governor
Smith declared to-night that the
housing shortage was a menace to
the health'and welfare of the com?
munity and threatened the commer?
cial and economic supremacy of the
state.
This declaration was embodied in
a special message to the Legislature
which met here to-night in extraor?
dinary session to consider the hous?
ing problem.
The Governor suggested that the
Legislature immediately pass laws
to meet the emergency. He grouped
his recommendation into three
parts:
Strengthening the so-called anti
rent profiteering laws passed by the
Legislature last winter.
Would Aid Building
Laws to stimulate building con?
struction.
Laws to provide for a permanent
state housing policy,
He declared that the selfishness and
greed on the part of a considerable
number of landlords in New York has
brought about indescribable confusion
in the municipal courts and that there
were now pending before the courts
more thud 100,000 dispossess cases. He
si-id that the Health Commissioner was
authority for the statement that
chaotic conditions caused by adjourn?
ment?in which the courts have no
choice?wore menacing the health,and
welfare o? the city.
The Governor charged that these
practices of the profiteering landlords
bave caused the breaking up of famil?
ies.
Real Payers Helpless
He said the1, decent and honest land?
lords coula ..ot and would not object
to strengthening the anti-rent prof?
iteering laws. He said -the willful
deliberate profiteer ?rmong the land?
lords was so intrenched ti.at the people
were helpless to deal with him.
The Governor suggested that the dis
possess remedy be suspended at leasl
fora year and that no increase in rents
be allowed by the courts without the
landlords proving that it was neces?
?ary.
He said that all cities in the state
were affected by the housing shortage
and quoted figures showing that ir
New York City this summer there were
271 dwelling houses less than last year,
due to the fact that more house? were
torn down to make way for business
buildings than were erected for dwell
ing purposes.
Mortgage Exemption Opposed
The Governor went on record agains
exempting incomes from mortgage:
from the state income tax, holding tha
this proposal offered but little induce
ment for investors. He suggested tha
the home rule act of 1913 be amende?
ao as to enable cities to build homes o
to lend their credit to home builders
He suggested the extension of th
credits of the state land bank as th
creation of a new agency to administe
the money. He says that some im
mediate relief could be obtained b
the state selling or leasing land ownc
for the erection of dwellings.
With respect to the proposal tha
the state adopt a permanent hou?in
policy, the Governor declared that i
was not a new departure. He sai
that such a policy would not nece?
aarily mean the building of house
bjr the state, but the establishment c
hou*ing standards, not only to tak
care of the present emergency bi
with a view to the future. He recorr
mended that in each community t
10,000 or more a local board be estai
{?shed charged with the duties of fine
ing a xolution for the local housin
?situation, the proposed state ageac
to coordinate these, to act <ts a sort <
clearing house, to which' 4he loci
board? would report. This state houi
mg communion would recommend legi:
l*tion, and, like the local board
w?ould consist of unpaid members.
The Governor said that a large po
?on of the population of the state w?
oeing forced back into houses of
"??dard helo* that which the peop
WW accc-pted as a "decent Americs
f-ome."
A? a means of making more mon?
available for building purpose? tl
Governor suggested that savings bani
and mutual insurance companies inve
? greater portion of their incomes ai
?urplu? in bond and mortgage.
The chargea made before the Loc
wood Housing Committee that t
building material mtn had entered in
? ?conspiracy to fix and maintain prie
?nouid be investigated by a speci
!*gi*lative committee, the Govern
urged.
The Governor'? Message
The Governor's message follows
part;
"1 have ?xercised the power vested
***?? by the constitution to ?call t
legislature into extraordinary ?essi
?e-cause i am ?convinced that an em?
fency confront? the state and beeau
???! that we eannot wait uut?! t
?fwiar ?ess ion to And rene*/1*.-? '-...';
?relief.
"In the period of reconstruction mm
problem? nave been pressing for sol
tion which ?re not ordin?r/ in th?
nature, but ?re the direct result of w
conditions. None ot thern has so tax
th* agencies of government a? the qu?
tion ot proper housing facilities,
"in January of 1918 I charged 1
reconstruction committee with the dt
*[. making an exhaustive inquiry is
w? ?subject to trw end that the iegi?
tCawUtv?e -em ?>??* ???swell
Oath Given Socialists
Declared To Be illegal
Officials of the Board of Elec?
tions were surprised to read yes?
terday that Francis M. Hugo,
Secretary of State, already had
administered the oath of office to
t**? five Socialists who were re
t elected to the Assembly last week.
If he, had done so, they said,
the oath was not administered
according to the law, which pro?
vides that rvs-ly elected members
shall present themselves with
their certificates of election to
take the oath of>office. The new
Socialist Assemblymen^ it was
pointed out, scarcely could have
obtained these documents yet, as
the Board of Aldermen, which
issues them as canvassers, will
not meet for that purpose until
to-day.
MacSwiney Said
To Read Papers,
Talk Creat Deal
London Evening News Says
Lord Mayor's Condition Is
Different From Reports
of Weakness by Friends j
__________
Prisoner "Very Sulky";
-,- !
Home Office Denies He Is |
Being Fed ; Declares Doc- j
tors Would Know of Act:
From The Tribune's European Bureau
Copyright. 1920, New York Tribune Inc.
LONDON, Sept. 20. ? The Evening i
News to-night says it learns from a ;
trustworthy source that "the condition !
of the Lord Mayor of Cork differs from
that given out by h?3 friends, who re?
port him extremely weak."
The newspaper says the hunger- ?
striking Mayor slept most of the night,
drank hot water and was able to sit
up and be washed and assist in the
operation, read newspapers and talk a ;
great deal. The News said he was
"very sulky."
-
LONDON, Sept. 20 (By The Asso?
ciated Press).?The question whether
Lord Mayor MacSwiney is being fed is
answered by the Home Office with, "If ?
he is we do not know it."
Physicians Would Know of Feeding
In this connection it is pointed out
that it would b? impossible for any one
to administer nourishment without the
attending physicians becoming aware
of it, and, the government officials
argue, if the doctors ascertained that '
the Lord Mayor was getting any food
whatever the entire effects of his '
earlier starvation would be nullified.
The government physicians and gov?
ernment nurses have ,done everythingl
they can think of to induce MacSwiney i
to eat, and if their efforts had met <
with any success, the officials say, they
certainly would report it to the Home
Office, which they have not done. !
Although a little brighter this eve?
ning than he was in the morning, there
is no material change in the Mayor's
condition, according to a bulletin
issued at 10 o'clock to-night by the
Irish Self-Determination League. He
is still conscious.
Mrs. MacSwiney said her husband
was able to say a few words to her
this afternoon.
Is Reported Very Weak
Mayor MacSwiney had a bad night
and was very weak this morning, ac?
cording to a bulk-tin issued by the Irish
league. The bulletin said that Annie
MacSwiney, his sister, had just left '??
Brixton Prison and declared his condi?
tion was unchanged except for the'
weakness incident to his long fast.
In his report to the Home Office the
physician at Brixton Prison reported
that the Lord Mayor's condition was !
unchanged.
The case of the Lord Mayor, who to
day passed his thirty-ninth day of
hunger striking, has dragged so long I
with such similarity in the reporta
from the bedside daily that most of
the London papers confine their ac?
counts to paragraphs, some on the in?
side pages. ?
Writes Message to Irishmen
Lord Mayor MacSwiney last night
wrote a message to Irishmen through?
out the world on behalf of himself and
the hunger strikers in Cork jail. After j
thanking them for their sympathy and
prayers, the Lord Mayor said, accord-1
ing to The London Times: , ?
"If this cold-blooded murder is j
pushed through it will leave a stain
on the name of England which has no I
parallel (even in her history) and
which nothing will ever efface. It
will rise before the English people
whenever they offer another people
friendship. We feel singularly
privileged at being made instruments
of God for evoking such world-wide
expressions of admiration and sup
port for the cause of Irish indepen-j
dence and recognition of the Irish |
republic. If we arc to die, we are
called to that even greater privilege i
(Cetitiiui?* ?R ?it? **?>
In Fairness to De Clairmont I
The Cirant Never Accused of
Complicity in German Spy Plots I
The Tribune on Sunday, September
12, published an account rt activities of
Mme, Victorica and others slated to
hev? been accused of complicity in Ger- '
man spy plots, in whjch mention was
made of Count Robert de Clairmont and \
his photograph published.
Olcott, Bonynge, McManus & Ernst, '
counsel for the count, in a letter to The
Tribune state "Count de Clairmont has
never been accused of complicity in
any German spy plots. No such accusa- j
lion against our client has ever been ,
made by any responsible authority."
The Tribuna, upon further inquiry, ;
has ascertained that the statement that
Count de Clairmont has ever been ac?
cused of complicity in any German spy :
plots, or other activities against the
cause of the Allies durjng the late war, j
waa entirely incorrect. No such accusa- j
tions have ever been made against him ?
by any governmental agency. The Trib- ?
une regrets that the publication was
made, and In justice to Count de Clair?
mont publishes this statement. 1
15 Socialists
, Seated; New
Ouster Fails
Resolution Offered by
Gillette, on Behalf of
Cuvillier, Buried in
Committee on Judiciary
Sweet Gets Laugh;
!6Quitter,'SaysM'Ciie
??-__
| Republican Leaders Re?
fuse to Back Speaker
I as Legislature Meets
From a Staff Correspondent
ALBANY, Sept. 20.?The five Social?
ist Assemblymen, August Claesacns,
Charles Solomon, Samuel De Wett,
; Louis Waldman and Samuel Orr, were
permitted to take their seats to-night.
Speaker Sweet himself acknowledged
their right to sit and to be heard, after
reading a statement which had been
handed to him by counsel for the Lusk
Committee justifying the Lusk-Sweet
ouster of last winter and the seating
of all five to-njght on the ground that
changes in the Socialist constitution
had purged the reflected members of
their former disqualification.
'?'Quitter!" shouted Assemblyman
Martin G. McCue, of Tammany Hall,
when Speaker Sweet finished and shut
off any discussion by moving to ad- :
journ. j
Ouster Resolution Offered
Tho Cuvillier-Giilette rerolution, call- ;
ing for the ousting of the five Socialist
Assemblymen, was read. Majority j
Leader Adler killed it by having it re- j
ferred to the Judiciary Committee. I
Cuvillier objected to this action.
"I ask for a slow roll call."
"I rise to a point of order," said I
Louis Waldman, one of the Socialist I
Assemblymen. |
"State your point of order," said ,
Speaker Sweet in a voice little above a I
whisper.
This was an acknowledgment of the !
rightful presence of the Socialists in !
the chamber. <? j
"I object!" shouted Cuvillier. "You j
cannot recognize the gentleman. He is j
not a member of the House."
"If the gentleman has taken his oath I
of office he is a member of the House,
unless a majority of the members de.
cide otherwise."
Adler asked that the Gillotte-Cuvil- j
lier resolution' be referred to the Judi- !
ciary Committee.
"Slow rollcall," demanded Cuvillier.
"AH in favor of a slow rollcall will
rise," said Speaker Sweet. Only Cuvil- ?
lier rose. i
As they passed the sergeant-at-arms
at the entrance they nodded to him and
he returned the njpd. They then ;
marched to their seats, from which
they were taken by the same official
on the opening night of the regular
session last winter. The five were all I
smiles. Many Assemblymen walked ??
over to their chairs and shook hands
with them.
Eight hours before the five Social?
ists had presented themselves at the !
office of the Secretary of State, who
swore them in.
During those eight hours Speaker :
Sweet, who had caused the expulsion
of the five, was trying to persuade
the Republican'leaders to stand by him I
and bring about another expulsion of :
the five. But man after man, with few !
exceptions, told Sweet that they would ?
not support him. 1
Cuvillier Plans to Act
Yet there were some of Sweet's sup
porters who busied themselves among '
the Assemblymen, urging that even if :
the Socialists were not expelled at
least something be staged to save the
Speaker's face. But up to 8 o'clock no
one could be found except Louis Cuvil
lier, the Tammany Assemblyman, who
could be relied upon to make a hostile ;
move against the Socialists.
Failure of friends of Sweet to get a ;
single Republican of prominence to act;
was due to the expression from Repub- i
lican leaders throughout the state that;
Sweet be left to look after himself,
having taken it upon himself last win- <
ter to oust the Socialists.
While it was generally agreed among !
the members that the Socialists would
not be expelled, a number of Assembly
men of the Cuvillier type announced i
they would not let the occasion go by
without starting a row.
Sweet May Issue Statement
"Has Sweet run out on himself?" I
asked Cuvillier before the session
opened and when reports reached him ?
that the Speaker had permitted him- !
self to be persuaded to issue a state- j
ment defending himself, but not to in- ;
troduce another ouster resolution.
"Well," added Cuvillier, "no matter '
what Sweet may do, I will try my best
(Continuad en p-io tlx)
Nicky, in Contempt,
Rides to Jail in Taxi
Chauffeur Told He Needn't !
Wait; Arnstein To Be Prison
er Until He Answers Questions j
Jules ("Nicky") Arnstein rode to Lud- \
low Street jail yesterday in a taxi. Af- I
ter he had paid the tariff the deputy
from the United States marshal's office
who accompanied him told the chauffeur I
he need not wait, ?for his passenger !
would'be inside for some time.
Judge Martin T. Mant?n, who com- )
mitted Arnstein to jail for contempt of |
court, was more explicit as to the dura- I
tion of "Nicky's" stay in jail. He said i
it would be as long as he persisted in I
refusing to answer questions in the
bankruptcy proceedings against him in .
defiance of an order of Judge Hand. j
Arnstein yesterday again refused to ?
answer the questions which Saul S. ?
Myers, counsel for the surety companies, !
has been asking him since February, j
The defendant said he acted upon advice
of counsel. Judge Mant?n thereupon ;
signed papers for Arnstein'? commit-1
ment, with the information that he could ?
purge himself of contempt and leu'vo
jail when he was ready to answer.
As Arnstein entered the United States
marshal's office, h<* lost his calm for a
moment and said to'Mr. Myers:
"I suppose you are happy now that
you have separated mo from my wife
and child ana have finally succeeded in
putting me in jail."
William Fall?n, Arnstein's counsel,
will apply to the United States Supreme
C?urt Tor hail pending an appeal.
Scottish Reds to Seize
Mines, London Hears
LONDON, Sept. 20.?Extraor?
dinary rumors are in circulation
throughout Lanarkshire that the
leaders of the Scottish Com?
munist movement have planned
j a sensational coup to be sprung
j at Blantyre, eight miles south?
east of Glasgow, says a dispatch
j to The Westminster Gazette from
Hamilton, Scotland.
! "It is asserted that the cashiers
and officials have been bluntly
j told that; seizure of the coal pits
is imminent, and that it is pro?
posed to establish a Soviet sys?
tem of mining controls," the dis?
patch adds. "The authorities are
not skeptical of the rumors, for
j they are not unmindful of the
undercurrent at work." s
?Wilson Likely
To Take Stump
To Help Party
Politicians Believe Presi?
dent Will Break His
Retirement to Share in
Final Spurt of Campaign
Health Is Much Improved
_____________
Physicians Are Expected to
Limit Activities to Ad-i
dresses in Washington
Special Dispatch to The Tribune
WASHINGTON. Sept. 20.?Rumors
that President Wilson before many
weeks will emerge dramatically from
his retirement for a brief but active
participation in the Presidental cam
pagn persist in well-informed quar?
ters, in spite of efforts to prevent any
premature announcements concerning
his plans.
It was said a month ago that it was
well within the realm of probabilities
that the President, before the cam?
paign ended, might make one or two
speeches in behalf of the Democratic
ticket. There is good reason to be?
lieve that this suggestion is still be?
ing considered, and that the President
himself, who has improved in health
to an extent not generally known, is
revolving tba proposition in his mind.
Confident in his strength, the Presi?
dent would even like to make a speak?
ing tour through several states, al?
though it is probable that if his
physicians yield to the extent of per?
mitting him to speak at all, they will
insist, on the side of caution, that he
confine himself to one or two addresses
in Washington. Some of his advisers
would prevent him from undertaking
over, this, not that they believe him
unequal to the task, but because they
fear that he would be tempted to over?
do and risk a setback.
The fact that the President several
days ago received in person a dele?
gation of officers of the Veterans of
Foreign Wars, which held a conven?
tion last week, indicates the extent
to which he has overcome his sensi?
tiveness to meeting people, and it is
to be expected that from now on he
will receive other visitors. His weight
is now normal. He moves around the
White House with comparative ease,
though still using a ?fane. So far as
the duties of his oifice arc concerned
he has nearly reestablished his old
routine and works daily at his desk in
the White House library. His drives
through the parks of the city have
brought a glow to his cheeks and his
conversation is animated by flashes
of dry humor.
That the President is wrapped up in
the outcorw2 of the political campaign,
particularly with regard to its effect
on the League of Nations controversy,
is shown by the fact that within the
last few days ha has given his O. K.
to a collection of "hints for Demo?
cratic speakers on the League of Na
tions and Democratic achievements,"
which was prepared in the White
House office.
One of the most effective portions
of the pamphlet is riven up to a com?
parison between the arguments made
against the league and the arguments
set up against the Constitution when
it was up for ratification in 1787.
-?
"Hide King" a Suicide
Special Vispatch to The Tribune
DETROIT, Sept. 20.--Despondent over
the issuance of warrants charging him
with embezzling nearly $50,000, Biar
Crohon, of Grand Rapids, president of
the Great Western Hide Company, of
Boston, took poison on the Detroit and
Cleveland steamship Western States
just before it docked here to-day and
died half an hour later.
Crohon, who was known during the
war as the "Hide King" through his
reputed cornering of nearly the entire
American- hide market, was arrested in
Grand Rapids on a warrant issued in
Boston, on complaint of the Anglo
South American Bank, as a result of
Crohon's dealings with it and with the
International Trust Company, also of
Boston.
Senators to
Let Cox Fund
Charge Drop
Kenyon Announces No
More 'Leads' Will Be Ta
ken Up; Adjourn Satur?
day Till After Election
Wet Contributions
Subject to Inquiry
Carroll To Be Questioned
on Alleged Democratic
Canvass in New Jersey
From The Tribune's Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON, Sept. 20.-Senator W.
S. Kenyon of Iowa, chairman of the
Senate committee investigating cam?
paign expenditures, made it clear on
his arrival here to-da.v that, while the
committee is anxious to .run down
stories of irregularities in campaign
funds, it will pay no further attention
to "leads" of the kind furnished by
Governor James M. Cox and his pre
convention campaign manager, Ed?
mond H. Moore, the Ohio attorney.
It was suggested to Senator Kenyon
in this connection that the reorganized
German-American Alliance is taking an
active part in the campaign. He took
down the name of George Sylvester
Viereck, head of the organization, but
has not decided whether to summon
the former editor of The Fatherland
before the committee.
The committee is preparing to con?
clude its work. It will meet here
Wednesday and suspend operations
Saturday night until after the elections
November 2, Senator Kenyon said.
Last-Minute Session Possible
There is a possibility, however, Mr.
Kenyon added, of a two days' session
of the committee immediately preced?
ing the election in case circumstances
at that time warrant it. This is re?
garded as a sort of warning to both
Republican and Democratic managers
that they may be called on the carpet
at the last minute.
Both Republican and Democratic
leaders are anxious to drop the investi?
gations and give all their time to the
campaign. Senator Kenyon, it develops,
?3 anxious to get on the stump himself,
and has decided to follow the courte
urged by his party assocutfceju .
"The committee will coneh-de itj
work for the present Saturday night,"
said Senator Kenyon. "The other mem?
bers, I understand, are anxious to get
into the campaign. As for myself I
leave Sunday and will begin speaking
in South Dakota Monday."
Senator Kenyon expects to go from
South Dakota to Oklahoma. In fact he
wants to devote the next month to
speechmaking.
The committee's session here is to
gather up the loose ends left at Chi?
cago. Little more attention will be
paid to the Cox charges. Only two
witnesses are to be heard on this
subject. They are William Barnes jr,
whose book on Republicanism in 1920
is under fire, and William Boyce
Thompson, chairman of the Republican
Ways and Means Committee.
Barnes to Explain Book
It is not expected that either
of these men will throw any new light
on the Republican fund. It has been
contended that the Bar.nes book has no
connection with the Republican na?
tional campaign. The Albany boss is
expected to prove that the book is a
orivate enterprise.
As head of the Ways and Means Com- ?
mittee Thompson is supposed to know j
things that Fred W, Upham, the Re- ;
publican treasurer, Chairman Will H. ;
Hays and other Republicans did not ''
divulge at Chicago. Republican lead- j
ers say it is a waste of time to bring :
Mr. Thompson here.
Other witnesses summoned are:
George T. Cnrroll, head of the N_sw
Jersey Federation of Liquor Interests
and also head of the National Retail
Liquor Dealers of America.
Charles McDonald, chairman of the
Democratic State Central Committee
of New Jersey.
Edward C. Stokes, chairman of the
New Jersey Republican State Central
Committee.
James W. Gerard, former Ambassa?
dor to Germany and chairman of the
Democratic National Finance Commit?
tee, j
Herbert S. Houston, treasurer of the
League to Enforce Peace.
Wet Contributions Sought
Carroll is the man who wrote letters !
to members of his New Jersey asso- j
ciations urging contributions of money ?
to help Cox, spying that "Cox is a pro?
nounced wet." Whether the committee
will go further into the question of
the wets helping Cox remains to be de- I
termined. The Republicans have evi- j
dence, but they want to get the hear- '
ings over with. The proposed visit to ;
(Continuo, en page three) j
Millerand Agrees to Accept
Presidency of French Republic
PARIS, Sept. 20 (By The Associated
Press).? Premier Alexandre Millerand
to-day agreed to be a candidate for the
Presidency of the Republic to succeed
President Deschanel, who has tendered
his resignation.
M. Millerand formally announced his
candidacy in a statement reiterating
his declared policies. He expressed
the belief that he could best serve a?
Premier, but if Parliament preferred
him as President he would "not evade
the call."
M. Millerand's decision came after
an hour's conference with Aristide Bri
and, former Premier, who said at the
conclusion of the meeting that he was
working for Millerand and would ask
his followers to work for him. While
the Premier is the almost unanimous
choice, there is strong opposition, even
among his most fervent supporters, to
any revision of the constfution such
as Millerand is understood to be in?
sisting upon. The slogan at Versailles
will ba: "Elect Millerand, but don't
tamper with the constitution."
M, Millerand conferred with Presi-i
dentTXMsehanet at Ramboillet this after-, <
I noon. On his return to Paris the Pre?
mier sent copies of the President's
i message of resignation to the presid
j ing officers of the Senate and the Cham
? ber of Deputies, who to-morrow will
j present it to Parliament.
? M. Millerarrd's acceptance as a can
! didate for the Presidency has virtually
| solved the Presidential crisis, as it is
j conceded by all sides in the Chamber
I of Deputies and Senate that his elec?
tion is a forgone conclusion. He would
receive more than 700 votes, es no other
candidate has officially entered the
field.
The Premier's opponents have de?
cided to lefiain from voting and ex?
pect to muster about 100 blank ballots.
The question uppermost in the dis?
cussion among the Deputies and Sena?
tors at present is the formation of the
new C-binet tu replace that headed by
M. Millerand. At least two ministers
of the Millerand Cabinet are slated to
go. M. Briand probably will become
Minister of Foreign Affairs, with M.
.lonnart as Premier. Ex-President
Poincar?'s name has been mentioned
as Finance Minister, in place of Fred?
eric Fran?ois-Marsal. There is strong
opposition to M. Poincar? In the Cham?
ber, hut he in popular with the Senate.
-?.-?
PowderMagazine Found ;
On Deserted Houseboat
i
In Bomb Plot Search
'Fischer Will
Be Sent to
Sanatorium
Bomb-Warning Author
Agrees to Commitment,
Providing Police and
Not Family Make Move
After examinations by the police and
the District Attorney had failed to
shake his assertion that his premoni?
tion of the Wall Street disaster had
"come to him from the air," Edwin P.
Fischer, who sent numerous warnings
I of the catastrophe several day3 before
] its occurrence, was temporarily con?
fined last night in the psychopathic
j ward of Bellevue Hospital. It was in
\ dicated that he would be committed to
! an institution as soon ss arrangements
j are completed.
Immediately upon his arrival yester?
day morning from Hamilton, Ont.,
where he had been detained at the in?
stance of his brother-in-law, Robert A.
Pope, of Forest Hills, L. I., Fischer was
taken to police headquarters. Here he
was greeted affectionately by his
! brother-in-law, who had met him in
1 Canada last Friday night.
An examination conducted in the of?
fice of Chief Inspector William J.
i Lahey, the inspector afterward said,
j failed to shed any light on Fischer's
! surprising premonition of the bomb
j hoiror.
Predicts More Dire Things
After being briefly questioned by
the chief inspector Fischer was inter?
rogated by acting Inspector John
Coughlin. All questions concerning his
premonition or knowledge of the dis?
aster drew the response that it was
inspired.
"And," the prisoner admonished,
'''miMre will happen in the near future.
? baye ? premonition of further dire
things."
When taken to the District Attor
| ney's office in the afternoon Fische?
was examined at length by Assistant
District Attorney Alfred J. Talley. At
the conclusion of the interrogation Mr.
Talley made- arrangements by which
he was sent to Bellevue for the night.
District Attorney Swann <;ook the pris?
oner and his escorts. Detective Ser?
geants McCoy and O'Hara, to the in- j
stitution in his own car.
Family to Select Sanatorium
It was said Fischer has agreed to be I
committed to an institution perma
nently, or pending an improvement in
his mental capacities, providing the
proceedings be initiated by the police,
but that he would resent any action
begun by his family. The family has
consented to this arrangement, Mr.
Pope said last night, with the proviso |
that his relatives be permitted to des
ignate the sanatorium. To this the po- j
lice have agreed, he said.
All the officials concerned with the
examinations of Fischer yesterday
characterized him as "mentally un?
balanced," and expressed the gravest j
doubt' that he had any actual prior
knowledge of Thursday's bomb outrage. I
At the same time they acknowledge
his specific fixing of date and place
to be beyond their comprehension and
admitted he is not a factor to be dis?
carded in the investigation.
The onetime tennis champion's latest
prophecy, hazarded yesterday in Mr.
Talley's office, is " that England and
France will be at war within three
months. His buses, Mr. Talley said,
were too involved for him to attempt
to repeat. _
How He Fixed Time
After the hearing in his office Mr.
Talley said Fischer had insisted his
premonition of the disaster was the re?
sult of an inspiration, but had offered j
an explanation not heretofore presented !
as to the manner in which he fixed
the time of the catastrophe in advance.
"After I felt the pain in my head
and had the premonition of an impend- ?
(Con?lnufd ob next P-8?)
_? !
Negroes Hide in Church,
Priest Pleads With Mob
___________________ i
1,000 Chicagoans Besiege Build
ing an Hour to Seise Slayers
of White Man Who Saved Girl I
CHICAGO. Sept. 20.?Three negroes ]
were besieged in Sr. Gabriel's Church
on the South Side to-night for more ;
than an hour by a mob of a thou?
sand persons after the negroes
had killed Charles Barret, a white man. I
Barret is said to have gone to the res?
cue of a white girl who was insulted
by the negroes. The negroes were
rescued and placed in jail.
Chief of Police Garrity ordered the
entire police force mobilized and placed
several hundred extra policemen around
the scene of the trouble t8 avert a race ;
riot. Several thousand negroes are em- ;
ployed in the stockvard neighborhood, |
where Barret was killed.
Shortly after the murder three
negroes were dragged from a streetcar
two blocks away and severely beaten.
The negroes who killed Barret, cut
ting his throat with a razer, were
chased several blocks by a continually ;
increasing crowd, and finally ran into j
the church. Two hid in the confes
aional and one ba^k of the altar.
Sticks and stones were throw? at the
church and frequent yells of "Lynch !
them!" came from the crowd. Father
Burke, pastor of the church, appeared
at the entrance, and ror several minutes
E leaded with tWe crowd to disperse,
ut without avail. Only when police?
men armed with rifles appeared did the
mob brea't up.
The South Side "black belt," the
scene of disastrous race riots a year
ago, was placed under heavy guard, as
*a* the stock yards quarter.
Injured in Explosion,
Sues City for $50,000
James O'Brien, of Mount Ver?
non, N. Y., filed notice of a claim
yesterday in the Supreme Court
for $50,000 damages against the
city of New York because of in?
juries sustained in the Wall
Street explosion. It is the first
action undertaken as a result of
the explosion.
J. Milton Smith, Mr. O'Brien's
attorney, said that he expected to
file several other claims for other
clients if Mr. O'Brien's action
should be successful. It ?is his
contention that city authorities
received sufficient warning of the
disaster to protect the public from
injury.
British Miners
Renew Threat
To Call Strike
| Negotiations Between Gov?
ernment and Union Chiefs
in Deadlock After Con?
ference Lasting 4 Hours
Wage Raise Is Refused
Neither Side Gives Evi?
dence of Yielding Point;
Both Claim Justification
From The Tribune's European Bureau
Copyright, 1920, New York Tribune Inc.
LONDON, Sdpt. 20.?Representatives
of the miners and the government
failed to reach an agreement at a
four-hour conference this afternoon,
and, as a consequence. ,the prospect of
preventing a coal strike is dim.
When the miners entered tho con?
ference. Robert Smillie, president of
their federation, made a statement
that they had not taken up any new
j position since Saturday's discussion.
The negotiations which ensued were
much in the nature of a deadlock, both
.sides adducing old arguments.
Sir Robert Home, president of the
Board of Trade, definitely refused
Smillie's final appeal for an in?
crease in wages of two shillings a day
and likewise refused to submit the
question to arbitration, though Sir
Robert admitted that an increase prob?
ably would be granted following the
convening of an industrial court.
"I think that our executive can an?
nounce, with a perfectly clear con?
science, before the conference to-mor?
row that we have done /everything in
our power to avoid a strike," was
Smillie's last shot.
The attitude of the miners indicates
that they will advise a strike when the
labor delegates meet to-morrow. The
transport workers will meet the
miners to-morrow, and the triple alli?
ance, including these two trades and
the railway men, will meet Wednesday
to consider joint action. The strike
| notices will expire Saturday and the
strike will begin Monday, unless there
i is a last hour settlement.
Arrangements already have been
I made to ration the country in the
event of a strike. Many factories
have announced their intention of
! closing without waiting for a coal
I shortage to develop, and a general
dislocation of industry is predicted,
following the actual stoppage of
mining. The government is said to
, feel that the miners' position is weak,
! but the outlook to-night clearly indi
! cates a showdown. The miners, after
abandoning their demand for a reduc?
tion in the domestic price of coal, evi?
dently are determined to refuse fur?
ther concessions.
?
Italian Workers Ordered
? To Quit Occupied Plants
Confederation of Labor Issues
Instructions That Normal
Employment Be Resumed
ROME, Sept. 20.?The Messagero says
to-day it learns that the General Con?
federation of Labor has ordered the
workmen to leave seized plants and
resume normal work, 'The confedera?
tion has guaranteed that order will be
preserved, the newspaper adds.
Following a conference with the Min?
ister of the Interior to-day, represent?
atives of the employers and -Aorkmen
reached an agreement whereby the in?
crease granted the workers should be
retroactive to July 15. This, however,
does not include salaries for the days
the plants were occupied by the em?
ployees.
Giolitti's conference with the em?
ployers and workmen was prolonged
chiefly owing to the difficulty of reach?
ing an agreement whether workers
guilty of attack? on property aftd per?
sons during the occupation of the fac- '
tories should be reinstated. After a
long discussion the Premier proposed
that all the workers be reinstated, but
that accusations against any individu?
als should be taken under consider?
ation by a commission composed of two
representatives from each side. The
employers strongly opposed this, but
Signor Giolttti intimating that he would
impose it, they submitted.
The arrears of wages to be paid from
Jiily IK were also fixed, and it ia ex?
pected the factories will be handed
back to the masters to-morrow.
I.ORTt FOITKD?
Did you loae something or were you a
lucky flmtar of sorae valuable article? In?
sert a Lost ?ml FY.unit Art./fe to-morrow?
Tribune. Telephon? Btekmeit 3000.?Ailvt.
t
300 Pounds of Explosive
in Yellow Sticks Located
in Craft at Plum Beach i
Previous Case Recalled
\
Custom House Is
Warned of Blast
Witness Describes Three
Men Who Fled Scene
Just Before the Blast
The authorities In searching tot
the source of the explosive that
caused the Wall Street disaster last
Thursday, yesterday found three
hundred pounds of smokeless powde?
in an abandoned houseboat at Plum
Beach, L. I.
The cache was discovered by Ser?
gr?ant James Gegan of the bomb
squad, who went to the place with
Inspector Henry Campbell, of tue
United States Bureau of Mines, on
an anonymous "tip." According to
Gegan, the houseboat appears to
have been deserted for some time.
i How the powder got there is a mjw>
tery.
Explosive in Sticks
Samples of the powder were taken
! to Police Headquarters last night.
' The explosive is in short yellow
! sticks, resembling crayons. The rest
I of the three hundred pounds was
! turned over to the army authorities
at Fort Lafayette, off Bay Ridge.
1 A similar cache was unearthed
I about six months ago at the same spot.
! The houseboat in that instance was
the property of a German namci Rich?
ter, who, it was then thought, had col
I lected the powder for sinister pnr
I poses involving injury to this govern?
ment. The police later gave--out the
story that it may have been part of
! large quantities of powder that were
set adrift in the neighborhood shortly
j after t^/e Black Tom explosion.
The police, however, were not to
[ ready to believe that tlie present msg
I azine came from any such souroe, and
; are making every effort to find out who
i occupied the houseboat last and where
j the powder came from.
A postcard warning that an attempt
j would be made at _ p. m. to-day to
i blow up the Custom House was re
| ccived through the mail yesterday by
; William B. Edwards, Collector of In?
, tcrnal Revenue.
Warning Signed "A Citizen"
I The postcard was signed "A Citizen*
I and was turned over to the Collector
; of the Port, Byron it. Newton. Mr.
| Newton, while inclined to look upon
I the matter as a hoax, said he was
; taking no chances and had called upon
\ the police. Department of Justice and
? the army officials at Governor's Island
i for protection.
j Great importance is being attached
j to the stories coming from various
! sources that three men were sr-en run
j ning away from the scene of the trag?
edy just before the explosion. Some
! idea of the character of these men was
! obtained from Samu*l B. Wellington,
j president of the West Indies Trading
j Company, of 39 Cortlandt Street, who
| was slightly injured in the blast. Mr.
j Wellington says that he was leaving
the offices of a lawyer at 37 Wall Street
a few minutes before 12 o'clock when
I he heard two men near him calling to
la third man across the street to "Hurry
I up. Beat it. Get out of here." The
i two men, he said, looked like peddlers,
| were middle aged and were calling to a
j man near the Assay Office. The third
! man was watching a tottering wagon
| with a top, but with open sides. The
| horse attached to the wagon, as he re
; members, was an old ro-an. The third
I man was about sixty years old, accord
? ing to Mr. Wellington.
The three men walked hastily toward
j William Street. Wellington says ha
| thought they might havo been ira
! plicated in some bond Thefts and ex?*
! pected to see them chased by a pol?fio+?
{ man. As he neared Nassau Street ;&g?:v?
j was knocked unconscious by the 'ftjwl
i plosion. *?
i The description of the three mil.
! coincides with those of Matilda Schless,
! a stenographer of Gay & Godard, law?
i years of 52 Wall Street, and Thomas Le
i Boutillier, of the same firm, who fi?y
! that just before the explosion they
? saw three men of this type get into a
| car in frent of the National City Bank.
Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer
declared at Stroudsburg, Pa., yesterday
he is firmly convinced that the ex?
plosion was the result of a criminal
plot. His statement definitely discarda
all theories attributing the disaster to
accidental explosions. '
"I am firmly convinced that a bono
placed by criminals was the cause of-,
the fatalities in Wall Street," he said,
"I believe we will be able to handle the
situation."
Edwin Fischer, the mentally incom?
petent tennis star, who sent several
postcard warnings of the explosion "to
! friends in Wall Street, arrived hare
yesterday from Hamilton, Ont. After
a r.bort session with the police and
members of the District Attorney's
staff it was agreed by the authorities
that he was insane ar>d that his warn?
ing was a mere coincidence.
The District Attorney's office, how?
ever. 5s maicing arrangements to hive
Fischer committed to an institution
agreeable to Fischer and his relatives.
Two Inquiries Besomed
The death last night of William
Peterson in Broad Street Hospital in?
creased the number of victims of th?
explosion to thirty-four. Peterson
wJM.--tVi.ntjr;elfh* ye*re S* an<- -????l
at 32 Chestnut Avenue. Bogota N_ 3
The grand jury and the District At?
torney's office resumed their Inoaiiy
yesterday bv summoning t*entvY__??
witnes.es. only six person. w?T?J
amined by the grand/jury nth??, x r ?
questioned by ??iJffT, &%to8 ;