A Dynamite Cartridge Hidden in a Locomotive's Coal
Sympathizers with the recent strike are suspected after a fused explosive is found in coal loaded at Seattle and fed to a Northern Pacific engine in Tacoma.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
TACOMA, Aug. 3.—[Special.]—A dynamite cartridge has been found on a Northern Pacific locomotive here. It was concealed in coal taken on at Seattle. It is supposed sympathizers with the recent strike placed it there. Master Mechanic Warner says: "The cartridge could not do very much damage. It has a six-inch fuse attached, and when burned off it would have exploded, provided it was placed in the furnace. It is what we call a 120-pound cartridge, and would not have blown up the locomotive. If the furnace door happened to be open when the explosion occurred the shock would have frightened the fireman."
“It is supposed sympathizers with the recent strike placed it there.”
In the summer of 1894 the Pullman boycott turned railroad property into a target, and this small act of sabotage rode the coal cars from Seattle to Tacoma. Today's infrastructure-security fears echo a moment when labor anger and industrial machinery met in a single loaded tender.
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