TEXAS FIRES ATTRIBUTED TO PROTEST

RANGER, Texas 96 Twelve fires were set overnight in this small old oil boom
town, and the police chief said they might have been related to a protest
against his no-tolerance policy on drugs.

Several people peacefully demonstrated at City Hall on Monday night to air
their complaints against Police Chief Tom Million, who said he's cracked
down on drug manufacturing and sales in this town of 2,800 since taking
office a year ago.

"We had a large number of individuals that we had arrested on drug charges,
and they were picketing, wanting me to resign and leave town," Million
said. "The City Council would take no action on that, and once that was all
over is when the fires started breaking out."

The first fire was reported about 7:20 p.m., before the City Council had
adjourned but after it had refused to take any action against Million.

Before the night was over, eight vacant houses and a barn filled with about
$150,000 worth of hay had burned. Three small grass fires were also
reported around Ranger, which is 85 miles west of Fort Worth.

"I've been here all of my life, and I've never seen anything like this,"
said Manuel Hernandez, 73. "There was a protest at City Hall, somebody got
mad and started these fires."

Three of the burned vacant houses could be seen from the small house
Hernandez and his wife have lived in for 38 years. One of the fires was
directly across the street and caused the vinyl siding on their home to
melt and peel back, even as he cooled it with water from a hose.

Fire Chief Darrell Fox said all of the fires, as many as four of which were
burning at one time, appeared to have been deliberately set.

Everyone in town had an idea of who was to blame, but no arrests had been
made Tuesday.

Don Adams, whose barn was still burning Tuesday, said he's sure it was a
deliberate target because of its location, on a hill near Interstate 20.

"This was retaliation to Ranger," Adams said. "Everybody around here knows
everybody; there's nothing accidental here."

Robert Rains, an investigator with the Eastland County Sheriff's
Department, said three sets of motorcycle tire tracks led up to the barn,
then away.

Million said police patrols would be increased, with the help of state
troopers. He also said the fires would not change his crime strategy.

"If they honestly believe that this is going to stop our war on drugs, it's
not," Million said.