The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1870-05-05
Terrible Calamity in Richmond.


Richmond, Va, was the scene Of terri
BILE disaster on Wednesday, the 9th ullimo.
The contest for the Mayoraliy Of the city.
between Mayor Chohoon on one side and
Mr.. Ellyson on the other-had attracted q
large crowd to the chamber Of the Court of
Appeals, which is situated o.. HE second
floor Of the State Capitol building. immedi'
ately over the Hall Of the House of Dele
gates, About eleven O'Clock the floor of
the Court room gave way beneath the dense
weight, precipitating the crowd TO the room
below. where caucus of the Democratic
members of the Virginia Legislature was in
session. Over seventy persons were killed
aud about one hundred injured, many of
them seriously. The disaster was caused
by the defective construction OF the iioor
aud its joining with the wall, and It's weak
ness has been for some time apparent
enough to have called the attention to it
that would have prevented the disaster
The funerals of the killed took place on
Friday. all the hearses aud carriages in the
city being in use, and several funerals fire.
qnently taking place at the same time in
one church. All business was suspended,
aud the city plunged IN the deepest mourn
ing. A mass meeting of citizens was held.
and steps taken to relieve the distress that
prevailed.
At the time ofthe accident il was estimat
ed that not more than three hundred per,
sons were in the courtroom but these filled
it to its utmost capacity. The room was
about twenty by twenty five feet. A portion
of the Judges had arrived, and, suddenly,
while awaiting the arrival ofthe others,
report as of smolhered gun under the floor
was heard, followed Immediately by another
similar report, aud everybody started from
their seats and looked towards the centre of
the room, from whence the ominons sounds
seemed to issue. In an instant down went
the floor with terrible crash, with its llv'
| ing, breathing aud irightenedhuman freight,
dragging with il the gallery and its living
mass, and down they went distance OF
nearly twenty five feet to the floor of the
House of Delegates. Then, with the de.
sceuding mass, the ceiling above, which was
somehow attached to the gallery also, came
| down with another fearful crash, smother
ing and crushing the living and struggling
mass of victims beneath. The scene which
followed Is utterly beyond description. Be.
tween the two bodies of the floor and ceiling
was the mass ofpeople, the force and power
of the latter, with the gallery falling upon
them, forever silencing their cries Tor help.
Hooks and ladders were at once brought
into uctive requistion, aud the work of ex-
Treating the dead, the mangled, the wound
ed and the dying was commenced. The
dead and wounded were brought forth from
the mass Of debris through ,he windows and
doors and were deposited on the grass plots
of the square, which soon resembled the
scene after battle, with afflicted relatives,
male and female, wandering about in search
Of some one missing since the announce
ment Of the catastrophe. From the mass
of fallen timber and debris many Of the
arms and legs of the wounded and dead
projected, and it required the work ofhour'
10 extricate them but the citizens and fire
men worked vigorously throughout the en-
tire morning until the last one was brough
out and consigned to the keeping of friends
and relatives.