The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1859-11-03

self there until o native swan to her ana carrieo
her off on his back. Miss Pratt also feii with ner
horse and managed to keep her seat. but the
horse. a spirited animal, kicked and plunged 80
badly that Mr.. Frederick Lyman went to her,
took her from the horse and swan with her to a
piece of the bridge and sustained her there until
the natives could reach her. Mrs. Henry Burdett
fell among the horses and wreck of the bridge,
and went under water, and was for q time IN eA-
treme peril, from which she was rescued by Mr..
David Lyman, who extricated her and sustained
her until the natives came to the spot, when she
was carried to the shore unhurt, though a good
deal exhausted. Mr.. Dana was in the middle OF
the bridge where it broke, and went into the
river with his horse, keeping his seat in the sad
die, but both becoming involved in the wreck OF
the bridge. Mr.. Dana got a blow on the foot
which fractured a bone and bruised him some-
what. Leaving his horse, he swan to a part OF the
bridge, but that breaking down he swan to the
upper rail and came over that by hand to the
shore, which he was the last to reach. Mr..
Lyman's third son, a youth ofthe Punahou school,
was near Mr.. Dana, and likewise involved in the
broken timbers, from which he extricated him
self with some difficulty.
lHuS III buIS pdltJs " WAhOh
injury was SO imminent, were saved. They all
felt it to be a great deliverance, and on the Sun
day following they united in a request to the Of
floating clergyman, Rev. Mr.. Coan, to return
thanAs for them in the public service.
We give no opinion as to the cause OF this dis
aster. if the architect for his own satisfaction,
or the public for theirs, desire an investigation,
we presume it can be had. 1t is plain that a
bridge which is to serve as the only means OF
transporting merchandise, produce and animals,
from a large district to a commercial port, and
which breaks down under the weight OF some
eight or ten horses with their riders without
any luggage, passing it on a walk, and well dis
tributed along its entire length,-it is plain that
such u bridge was not strong enough for its pur-
pose; but whether this arose from some unknown
flaw in the chain, or other cause subsequent to
and independent of the original design and ex-
~ecution, or, on the other hand, from some mistake
in the principle of its construction, or want of
strength in the materials, we do not pretend to
know. There has been a great deal of discus
sion about the bridge at Hilo, since it was COM
pleted and opened. All that we know certainly
is that the bridge sagged in the middle, making
a declension of about five feet from a straight
line. Thus the wood structure gave no support
to itself, but left its support and that of every
thing upon it to the chains alone, and not only
so, but by reason of the declension in the middle,
the support fell chiefly upon a small part of
the chain.
But our concern is now chiefly with the future.
We trust that those in authority will be diligent
to see that TIE bridge is Immediately rebuilt, and
not allow a commercial town to be without fit
communication with its back country a day long
err than is absolutely necessary. The people of
Honolulu can form some idea of the Importance
of this bridge to Hilo, if they will imagine that a
deep river separated the lower part of this city
both from the Nuuanu Valley and from the
region about Punahou and Waikiki, and that the
river could not be forded. The necess ity for the
bridge has been recognized by all parts of the
kingdom.