, 1869-07-08
ElalM.
Tho Falling Of the Bridge on the
A Heap OF Men, Women, Chill.
dren, md Horses.
The Cause Of the Accident.


| QUk SfECAL CORRESPONDENT
E1a1x, July 8, 1859.
The telegraph has ere this informed you Of the
accident that natrcd The Fourth Of July festivities
here on Monday.
From about 3 II. until the bridge felt at 10 80,
everyone bad enjoyed Themselves wonderfully xelL
At that hour there wAa to be tub race upon
the river for Prize Of q silver cup. Tha bridge
forming good place for \ lookout, WAS taken
possession Of BY many. There were two teams
and about 10 people upon the east spsn End rs
the tubs went unde1. the bridge the people began
TO move, when. with tn2sp c1ash, down went
that epau With its living freight It seemed TO
break 4ooHt ten feet from the abotmeut The water
was Of an average Of fonr feet At that place.
The fear was that The struggling horses (:here
blng four IN the wntez) or iron or pIaukln8 would
force persons uEdeE, or lpjuse them 80 that they
could not wade out The crowd upon the streets
rushed 10 the bridge, each fearing petsonal loss
and for few moments all was confusion. i cor
don Of ntemen Was drawn across the street, aod
tse crowd forced back At Last 10 that those upon
the bank could be Of service ia those who were In
the water The bridge had hardly struck the W.
ter when 20 men leapcd IL, and commenced eItn-
eating those who lad fallen. One team Of horses
was At once relea&sd, and danger from them
cleared. The other team WAS held last, indeed.
until one horse drowned, belonging to turner
named Sham.
Among those who vent down were q la7se
unmber Of children These were rapidly passed
ashore, and all but two or three Of the grown per
sons had naded out Nj. l. g. Tourtelotte, an
old man Of f3. was the most seriously injured,
kaT!hg such tp1unes to his spine that he ALI not
probably I've Quite unmhcr got settous and
painful brulses, and TWO or three hal either their
bones broken or dtslocated Iii. Shaw, his wife
and two children, went down With their waRon
oct were all rcscned.
Those IN boats and tnbs beneath the bridge
were knocked into the watcr, their vehicles
amashed, and all had narron escapes. They were
near the rrst pier, aud so escaped direct contact
with the falling nasz, or ther would have been
c1ushed IN an Instant. i Was miracle that
among the nftJ or sixty who fell into the water
{scme Of those on the bridge cLlngtng to the ral-
fnQ1 and so keeping out Of the watert, not one
drosned. This Tas In CREST measure due to
the earnest and strenuous elc.tlons Of those who
30 promptly rendered assistance
Everything W4s done well and promptly to aid
the endangered Work WIS at once con nence 10
put up the temporary span, and ut o clock 1t was
ieedJ FOR travel You Sec, since the other Tfues-
de0 brdge fell, the city keeps On hand the material
for Temporary bridge and number OF meo were
soon At work. Tho temporary apau, thc1gh built
Of p1anls and eight by eight inch timber has khe
entire confidence Of the public, although they are
ur!d aoout the rcst Of the iron bridge.
IAh E4CSE THE HAEAk.
That Is dif1cult problem to solye. 1t could not
Rave been the weight, for there vas not to exceed
seven tons upon 1t At the time It fell, There was
no perceptlbIe swing that could 1njure IL 1t
would seem that the principle Involved IN the con-
euuctiou Of the bridge Is correct one, and. II
good material IS used, 1t should sustain any re-
qulred or reasonable weight When the present
bridge was bulk much complaint WAS made at the
apparent mistake Of sending here lot OF lrrespon-
sible h1nds> and, in some instances, OF having
gang-bosses who have no more idea about the na-
lure Of Iron or the construction OF
bridge lhnn mule would have OF IN
oil painting One man told me that abe bossed
the construction Of a portion OF the very span
that broke, md that he knew everything went to-
gether ali right" Others ssy that the Norkmen
we're Obliged 70 heat and "dtnw- many Of the
Irons after they were partially tn place to make
them nt Is they should, aud ciatm that this had a
tendency to weaken the trun. 0thers claim that
bolts were not put In, or nuts put On othezp, a.
should have been done.
One thing ls certain: The Tfuesdell bridge In
E1gtn Is not d srccess. This Ia the second one
that has broken; and Il he cannot do better 1t Will
he necessary to employ come one else Here ls q
bridge that, according to ali known Laws, II prop
et1y bnilt, should stand twenty-five years, which
goes dorm in two. Another Is put up, and thai |
1tauds even a less time thau The nrbt 1t Is e1-
pccted that experts viii be called 1D and the cause
fully investigated
With this unpleasant exception the day passed |
on 1uely. EXCHANGE.