INFERNAL MACHINE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19736, 8 September 1927, Page 12

INFERNAL MACHINE.

WELLINGTON SENSATION.

£ DEADLY CONTRIVANCE.

OPENER'S LUCKY ESCAPE

PEATH CONCEALED IN A BOX

|by telegraph.—own correspondent. ] WELLINGTON. Wednesday. The man who received the infernal piachine on Monday containing seven sticks of gelignite was Mr. James Lord, a wealthy settler of the Masterton district, who was in Wellington for the day transacting business. The' package was addressed through the Post Office to him, care of Magnus Motors, Ltd. The handwriting, probably disguised, seemed to be ihat of a woman, in the opinion of the police, who are investigating, but they have not yet found a clue. The sender evidently knew Mr. Lord's movements. The infernal machine was skilfully contrived, and the chances of its going off en the lid of the cigar box in which it was enclosed being opened, were 99 times |n a 100. The parcel, done up in brown paper and neatly tied, was opened by Mr. Lord in the office of the manager of Magnus Motors, in the presence of several people. On the brown paper being removed, a cigar box was seen. There was no writing on the box, however, to indicate the brand, because it had been rubbed off with sandpaper, and the wood made smooth. To open the box, one had to undo a tiook on the side, which Mr. Lord did. On lifting the lid he was amazed to find a piece of paper on top, with the word gelignite printed in big letters. Under the top layer of seven bars of gelignite was a switch and some wiring. An examination of the infernal machine las been made hy the police, and'showed that it was set to fire as soon as the hook was undone and the lid lilted. This was to ihave been brought about by the re- , leased hook making an electric contact from two, dry cell storage batteries, the tvir.es of which were passed into a glass tube containing a . greyish powder. In the end of the tube, through the centre Of a small cork, a detonator was fitted. The .whole ingenious contrivance had teen packed securely in cotton wool to prevent any breakages or interference before.the catch had been released. The dry batteries were -bolted together in a compartment of three-ply wood to keep the switch from becoming foul. The fact ihat the machine did not fire when opened ■*vas because one of the storage batteries Bad been slightly disturbed during transit. The seven plugs of gelignite were Enough to_ demolish practically the whole fcf ,the three-storey brick building of Magims Motors, Ltd. Had Mr. Lord jerked the box open quickly, it would probably have gone off and resulted in a terrible loss of life. The bos was, it is believed, posted at the General Post Office on Saturday or Sunday. What finger prints were found on the box were too blurred to be photoj graphed for identification purposes. Mr. Lord said he knew of no one who Vould be likely to perpetrate such an ©atrage against him.