New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-01-10
ONLY A. WORLD SENSATION.
STAGGERED BY A REPORTERS rREsHEr.


FILLING TIE AQuEDUcr WITH wATxR BRvoRE rrs
TiMr-wHAr An INVESTIGATION SHOWS
The evening edition Of The New-York World"
yesterday contained the following startling no
count Of an alleged disaster on the new aqueduct
in an extra and repeated it in the later editions
lSpeesal to me World
CHAPpAQUA, N. Y, Jan. e.-For miles Italians and
mules buried In the Aqueduct Cut Eight which
broken into BY the Pocsnaco River early this morning
Two hundred Aborers are trying 70 stop the break using
trees timber and cedar bushes
Nothing viii succeed In stopping the break but bags
filled with clay.
The Aqueduct is nearly filed with water the entire
length.
b. D. Mclean telephoned along the line Of the Aoue-
duct TO be sure and get the mules out Must take care
OF our dumb animals"
The water poured in the Aqueduct down sixty feet,
more than enough 10 Gil 1t, drowning all the Italians and
Aqueduct nearly fn Of rocks, large tmbers,
wheebaows Italian shanies, blacksmith shops
and dump-cars.
large number OF Italians and mules have drowned
They had chance 70 escape
Large Quantities VI timber. vheelbarrows aud centre
carts came out OF the Aqueduct at the blow Oh In Cut NO
&, ng the river with all kinds OF materials used In the
construction OF the Aqueduct
The Aqueduct will have 70 b. taken down. AZ the large
stones have ground the cement from the bricks, causing
the water to force its way through the walls.
The brick walls very much shaken.
The river is liable TO break through again ct any hour
Contractors BrLwn. Howard Co. changed the bed OF
the river through made ground, which caused the break
pieces OF engineering In putterfDg new hean
house Cut B. to take the rock and sand out OF the Aqu
duct, is filed.
This break the OF dam Of the Tarrytown
waterworks four miles from Tarrytown
ALARM" CAUSED BY THE sgNaATIoN.
This article was published with striking head
lines in three extra" editions. The alarming
account was received with a good deal Of hilarity
in the Office of the Aquedpct Commissioners
Chief Engineer Church said that by no possibility
could such accident occur as was here described
at the point named. There was an open cut at
that part Of the Aqueduct. known as Cut 8, north
of Tarrytown, and the water from q dam built
near it had flowed into the cut the night Of
January l. washing in earth and stones, but not
to any large amount The water had simply
flowed through the tunnel and out Of the gate
house and spillway some distance below That
part Of the tunnel was finished, so that there were
neither men nor animals In it, and necessarily 10
one was drowned. The damage might possibly
reach 5000, the amount required to remove the
rubbish. In confederation of his statement, Mr..
Church produced the following report sent by
Division Engineer J. NJ Wolbrecht from larry
town, under dale of January A:
DEAR The dam built by the contractors at Cut
overlooked the night OF January l. and the water en-
tered Cut and flowed through the Aqueduct and out a. the
gatehouse Shaft o. No damage done the work.
but considerable OF earth and has been
deposited in the tunnel which contractors will begin
removing The accident Is ascr bed TO the fact
that the Pocantico Water Company which has large
lake one-eighth OF mile above Cut g. discharged the
water from it that ght without giving any warning
MIR. Church added that the division engineers
were ordered to report to him at the main Office
every accident and anything unusual rs soon
after it, occurrence possible. This so small
an affair that the division engineer had not
deemed it worth while telegraph an account.
Later in the day the Construction Committee Of
the Aqueduct Commission met. Some of the
members had read the account in The World
and asked Chief Engineer Church how much
truth there was in it. When told the basis Of
the story, they laughed heartily.
REFUSING To CORRECT rHE MEASUREMENTS
Contractors D. D. MacBean and Clinton Beck
with are the active members of Brown. Howard
& Co., the contractors who are doing the work
that part of the Aqueduct where the accident
was said to have occurred. They declared that
the printed statement was entirely untrue and
added that they called at The World office TO
deny it, but received no satisfaction. They asked
that the bulletin be corrected and the sensational
account be omitted from later editions, but TINS
was refused.
Mr. MacBean said that it might possibly cost
them $500 to repair the damage OF the washout
and the removal Of the earth and stones, but
that this was O mere flea bite in the matter OF ex
penditure. They considered the matter OF no i'm
portance whatever. There had never been mule
in that part Of the Aqueduct and the work was
completed some time ago, SO that there were no
men in the tunnel
vAISLY TRYING TO FIND THE ACCIDENT"
Tarrytown, the nearest place Of Importance
to the scene of the alleged disaster was partly
overrun with reporters yesterday. Each OF the
early afternoon trains brought a contingent of
reporters, until the town seemed transformed into
an abridged edition of Newspaper Row. Natu-
rally the peaceful citizens Of the place were as
founded Knowing no cause for such an invasion
they gazed at the small battalion from Newiork
wiah wonder and alarm, feeling sure that either
the dreaded burglars, who two years ago made
existence in larrytOwn such burden, had re-
sumed business some equally terrible aullcton
was come upon their historical, picturesque little
village
brown, Howard 81 Co.'s offices in Tarrytown
were in charge OF three or four bright young men
who had been kept busy Tor an hour or more
imaginary catastrophe. They had explained IL
SO often that they looked weary Of their task,
and out OF regard for them the reporters decided
to go TO the Aqueduct at once ana investigate
matters for themselves. A ride OF three or lour
miles the hills brought them to Cut no. ..
his is in little valley through which the focah
tico River" runs This stream when IN normal
condition is fully yard wide. but when It's volume
is swelled by contributions OF melted snow from
the surrounding hills, 1T cannot be stepped across
without some slight effort. 1t touches the line
of the Aqueduct near the open cut-that ls where
the tunnel comes TO the suriace-and the WORK
men had turned il OFF in new course TO prevent
the water from wettng their feet The old course
was damned up with few shovesful OF earth
and nineteen broken bricks, nineteen by actuaI
count
The storm of New Years day swelled the stream
so that il swept this monster dam together Win
a pair of cast-of boots down INTO the tunnel i
the open end of which only about two hundred
feet below. This happened about o'clock IN
the morning Of January 2 IL was discovered
by Inspector Jones and promptly reported, and as
repaired. Before, however, everything
had been put to rights again the contractor had
been to an expense of over sixty dollars. There
were neither men nor mules in the tunnel below
the dam, consequently the Italians remained qn-
washed and the animals uninjured; Some mules
were stabbed in the Aqueduct above the cut,
They were all hoisted out except two; These
with the perversity OF their race declined 70
leave their underground home, but from tne
latest accounts they were still alive, apparently
none the worse for the cold bath which they had
received The water came In where they were
10 depth Of over three inches.