The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-06-07

A
accident occurred in the very centre of the city
which rs certainly without parable IN It's paSt
history. The only affair OF the kluu Wulch
approaches It in any way was the explosion u
Professor Jackson's pyrotechnlcaI manuiacsory,
at the corner of Tenth and Reed streets, In
1859 The loss of life in both cases was a0out
the same, but the peculiar distress ATTENDING
the accident of Yesterday afternoon was ar1 IN
great measure lacking in the former case, %here
the wounded we're rescued from the rulneo Duuu,
ing without delay, and received all the care ana
attention that was possible, SO long as ine
breath of life still fingered m their manged
frames. ..
of Yesterday is represented in the accompanying
cut The building was located about midway
between Tenth and Eleventh streets, In the
bIock bouu0ed on the north by SAMSON street
and on the south by Medical street, havlng a
font on both. The SAMSON street front, Ne.
1CA, was ouly two stories IN height, the lower
story being used as su Office, and the upper one
IS q wareEoom for the storage OF manufactured
articles.
open .sgace, .aboHt twenty by thirty feet in
dimensions by which the main building was
separated from it. This last, as well as the
one fronting on SAMSON street, was substan-
italy built OF brick, and, as far as is known,
wss I'm every wav sac. 1t was five stories in
height, and had frontage of forty feet on
Medical street, and depth OF eighty feet.
The greater P0Ition OF it has been occnrled,
since February last, by Messrs. Geasey & ward,
planners turner's and manufacturers OF fancy
scroll-work for cabinet-makers. The fourth
story was occupied by Messrs. Miller, Reaier &
-Co,,.engravers OF calico printing plates. The
Schumacher Piano Forte Company also occu.
pied portion of the building.
The BUILDINGS to the east of the scene of the
explosion are quite substantial, and did not
suter materially from the disaster. The centre
of the lotto the west was filled with plles of
lumber, situated but a few feet from the build
ing. The waN, in falling, was broken a few
feet from the base, by coming in contact with
the lumber, and in this wav the whole mass was
crumblsd into atoms. Otherwise the upper
portions, in their descent, would have reached
large hve-story building on the west side OF
Juvenal street, formerly Juniper lane, and the
destruction of life and property might have been
even greater than it was. The southern corner
ofthelOt, at JuVenal and Medical streets, was
occupied bv small frame stable two stories in
height, which was crushed in and almost Gov
cred by the debris The corner at the junction
of SAMSON and Juvenal streets lie the site of two
or three small frame tenements, one OF them
used as iager-beer saloon. These al escaped
material injury.
THE EXPLOSION OF THE BOILER
In the open space between the two buildings
nd;&diacent to the north wall of the maiI
building, was the boiEer house, sort of base
men!, IN when me were located ,t Two oShefS iO
About half-Past O'Clock the enR1de wa
stopped, to give an opportunity to repair th'
cylinder, the packing of which was out OF ordeE
A hoy was despatched to the machine shop o
Mr. William il. KING, on SAMSON street, neafl.
onposite for soue mechanics, who were re
onested TO assist the engineer, Mr.. Thomas
Jenkins, IN making the repairs. When thes
were completed il was found that there was no
more than pound of steam on, and as 1t Wa
not desirable to permit the steam to get an
lower an attempt was made to revive It, which
at half.past O'clock resulted in a terrific eS
piosion, one of the boilers being fractured fror
end to end.
porteIs visited the Pennsylvania Hospital, an
through the courtesy of DR.. Hare, the physicia
in attendance, was permitted 10 nave an lntel
view with Mr.. jenkins, the engineer, who mad
the following statement concerning the dii
THE ENGINEER's STATEMENT.
''About twenty minutes to o'clock the pack
ing wings of the cylinder got loose, and W
stopped the engine Immediately. l sent over t.
Mr.. Kings for man TO help me fix them, a
we were in hurry, and wanted to start agail
as soon as possible While doing this we shu
off the steam from the engine. When we Wcr
although we did not want to start up that mic hi
but wanted 10 raise ten or fifteen pounds O
steam, to see if the engine wo1
work right, ard to make sure i0
next mornipg, so as not to delay the hand
any more. The man who was running tn
planing-machine asked nae ii it wouldn't be bet
ter to throw in a few shaYings. told him
would be best to start few pounds OF steam
He then asked me If he couldn't throw in som
coal. / told him no, that it wasn't necessary
and that the shayngs would raise as muc
steam as we wanted. Shortly after he cam
into the engineroom and informed m
that she had only one pound of steaT
on as vet. / thought it somewhG
strange that she did not have more; 50 ,ger
TO look. thought he was mists.saeu, But O
gong 70 the steam. guage found that il WI
true' .aen went TO work to stuff the packinl
Jox. / was about doing it when she blew u
1t was near o'clock, should judge, at Il
time"
This statement was made at Intervals, Il
narrator suffering so greatly that he was fr
quently forced to pause. at the close he W
quite exhausted. But we are happy tJ sta
that his general condition is much Improved
THE EPFEoTs OF THE EXPLOSION
were disastrous in the extreme. The repo
sounded like the discharge of whole battery
artillery, alarming and startling every one
the neie ehboThood, and audible at the distan
of macy squares from the scene OF the disgste
So great was the conclusion that all the an
rounding buildings were shaken to tb,
foundations. Men who were standing
the DaVement of Chestnut sire
were fairly lifted from their feet; others W
were seated in their stores and offices W,
thrown TO the hooT aud scarcely pane of Ell,
in the windows of the neigbbOrng buidm
remained whole A dense mass OF smoke, dll
with fragments of masonry frame WORK. a
machinery, was lifted high into the ar a
scattered over the vicinity.
The roof Of the ST. Lawrence hotel, VIII
Fronts on Chestnut street, and extends back