Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-05-31

down. With a desperate effort officer
Richards got upon his feet once more
dragging the woman after him. She
screamed again in despair and fright. and
the crowd above and below pressed tO.
ward the spot to discover the cause of the
cOmmOtiOn.
The crush immediately became fear
ful. Those on the approach below tho
steps were carried forward in a solid
mass, many stumbling and being unable
10 resist the pressure from behind. The
crowd passed over them from above.
Ihe crowd coming from Brooklyn was
carried to the edge of steps the and then
fell over and down upon the strupoIino q
mass below. A terrible struggle for life
began. Men and women fought with the
strength of despair against each other.
Escape was impossible with the pressure
from both sides growing at every shout
OF anguish that went up from the diving
and those who saw death before their
eyes. Fear and despir on one side and Gu
rloslty on the other, fought for the mas
terry.
The frightful crush was denser than
ever when after nearly fifteen minutes a
score of militia men of the Twelfth Regi-
ment, led by Lieutenant Hart and Ser
geants COulderick and CASTILLO marched
up the approach toward BROOKLYN. The
yells of the crowd attracted their atten-
tiOn and at the foot of the steps wall OF
human bodies was piled high. The dense
mass surged about it, and in it the sol
diers saw two policemen vainly strug-
Cling against it.
Sergeant Coulderick took in the situa-
ton at glance, and at his word of com
mand his men scaled the fence and rail-
road track separating them from the foot
walk and wedging into the mass of people
near the scene of the disaster, drove back
the crowd at the New York entrance at
the muZzle of their guns. 1t fell back
slightly. and the militia men, following
up the advantage gained, forced it back
uutil the approach was cleared, then
forming a front across the fOOt-walk, they
prevented the crowd from passing back,
while as many of their number as could
be spared ran toward the scene of the
accident to help in eXtricating the dead
and saving the living.
An alarm had meanwhile been given at
the bridge entrance and a general call for
all hospital ambulanceS was sent out, and
policemen were hurried over upon the
bridge from their station beside. the City
Hall. The tiremen of hook and ladder
company followed to assist. The
crowd on the foot walk above the steps
was constantly receiving accessiOns and
still pressing on and over the heap on
the anchorage. The bodies of the dead
and dying lay here so firmly wedged to-
gether that to eXtricate them was next to
impossible. To beat back the crowd was
equally impossible. Relief was possible
only by making room for tine crowd to
spread the sideways. 1t was quick
" done. Willing hands tore away
the iron railing dividing the fOOtway from
the railroad track on both sides, and
dragged those who were nearest in the
crush through the opening. Room was
made for the policemen to reach the fright
ful heap of human flesh, and the work of
clearing it away began as soon as pOr-
ton of the obstruction was removed from
the steps. The crowd was eased and a
portion was let through to the New York
station. The rest was forced back until
all the bodies had been taken awOy.-
Along the iron fences on the fOOtway, on
the railroad track and on the carriage way
on both sides of the bridge, dead and
wounded were laid. Many were dead
when eXtricated from the heap. Others
were more or less terribly injured. They
Law six. eight and ten feet deep, those in
the lower tier long dead. Clothes were
torn from the body of more than one i'll
the attempt to get them out. All We're
hatless. many shOeless, and others the
clothes hung in rags. Five women, all
dead and trampled into unshapely masses,
were taken from the bottom of the heap.
one woman had been seen in the crush
holding a screaming baby above the heads
of the crowd as she herself went down.
some man near took the baby. 1t was
not found. and it is said that man had
been seen carving dead baby away, but
the OOlice has no account OF 1t. BaDys S
clothing scattered about gave evidence
enough that a weak infant had been In the
rush. ,-,.
The woman Bridge Officer Richards had
helped to her feet in the beginning OF the
crush was saved, Officer Richards also
escaped death by a desperate effort. In
sneaking of the occurrence afterwards he
said that there was no chance of restoring
order from the first. That the one hrst
scream was the death knell OF many III
that crowd. 1t grew at once utterly uh-
,rovernabIe. and so dense that movement
of any kind was impossible. Inc crown
forced by the pressure and accession from
the Brooklyn side went over the steps Ilhe IKE
a cataract, and once started fell uhtll tne
walk lay piled with bodies to the ne n9iShi en-
of the steps and then went over ana lell
down beyond it.
dead Chinaman, All LO Sing, was
taken from the bottom of the heap.
Carts were pressed into service on the
New Y Ork side as soon as they arrived,
and the dead and injured were hurrledly
driven out to the City Hall, where they
were laid in the police station III the DaseI
mpnt. Ambulances- then arrived ana
those who could be were taken to hospltaIs
Crowds of people besieged the station
and ambulances to learn the fate of miss
inc ones dear to them. There were heart
re1ding scenes at the police station when
n bodv was recognized by friends,
An ample force of police took posses
sion of the New York entrance as
soon as possible after the accident
Tho middle fOOtway was closed 10 CrdNel
and the current of those anxious 10 cross
was turned into the down stream wagon
track. ...,,o .ol,on at
Apparently no measures were tdhcn ~. ., .,
tho RrookIvn end to stop traVel LOT al
List n time. On the New York approach
tLie travel was also diverted from Ihe
coatv-av and turned into the wagon Fodu
TDetoad of decreasing, however, 1t gre"
ls,etantIv as rumOrs of the disaster De-
o,om 70 dy through Brooklyn. Ihest
TTnmors had it that the bridge had Iallen
and that hundreds had been crushed.
The dead that were pulleu out nm IN
underneath the human aValallche on 'r,e
ancbora0e were black in the face, snow
;n% that fhey had died from sufiocatlon.
11obn sfeeck. a Grand Army man o.
Uottn's post. helped five girls from tne
nrowd. 1O where they were jammedd = II IL
tiohtiy. A big man, apparently TeI'
nan nan was pushing them and Struggling
ni;t nlitb them ON the bridge, as if has only
Tnrnose miTT was to get them down TO save
liiH9er1; crowd of roughs pressed on behind I'M
orowd. coming from Brooklyn, ana lougn ~
fboMV; tLoir IaV through it, with oaths anq n !
haIdrv IaIiI y and over the bodies OF the deau ..l
u Paig as said that thieves profited by the I Ip
affinity ~ and helped preclpllabe n vn'
POI Ppootsstro1he. Their chances were u'i
limited. .,ot 1vas cleared at las
Il vas " I literally covered with articles hcndoU y
nIot5ing and personal property apahGon l;n1ve,
edOin al in the struggle. They whre WE'VE we
SG eSitb III amazement ma by people coming ove We
from rom Brooklyn who had not heard oi :"
In the excitement of the crush va W -
oxford, aged A. years, drunken llr;doa ,1'aI or
deliberately jumped from the prlqgG; go;pa a1
urnach into william street, and recei'e
esevere internal injuries. oo
The nlaee in the bridge where tile a1I ~
dant Occurred is q danger spot IL III "
4