Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1888-08-29

| HENRY KNoELKE cooper; arms and legs broken
and mangled. Leaves d family.
| JOHN WEBER. cooper, mangled about head
and arms. Leaves a family.
GILL MIRACLE foreman at Charles Smiths
| cooper shop skull broken Leaves a wife and
five children.
JAKE VETrER, cooper skull crushed and
| right leg broken Leaves wife and five chill
| cren.
| VIM. BUBLITz. JR., IA year old boy; skull
| crushed.
LOUIS RoEsCH cooper; left leg torn of. right
| leg broken and top of head off, Leaves wife
| and four children.
JOSEPH EUL laborer skull crushed left arm
| and right leg broken. Unmarried. Parents live
| at Shawano.
| JOSEPH BRUEGGEN, laborer at Webster Manu-
| featuring Company; skull crushed, both arms
broken, left leg broken. Leaves a wife and
| child.
! Among those badly injured are:
THos JoURDAIN, an old resident; side crushed
IN. Given UP to die by physicians.
| NJ. C. FISHER, OF the firm of Bachelor & Fish
| er, wholesale crockery the island severe
! fracture of the right leg above the knee.
| An 11-year-old son of Michael krause; leg bad
| ly fractured; will be amputated
| AUG. HECKNER, laborer; badly cut about the
head; may die. but case is considered hopeful
| CHAs KING, laborer: cut about the head, seri-
ously but not dangerously.
| CARL sCHAFFER. right arm broken.
FRANK BURROUGHS
JOHN FELLNER, slightly injured.
- TUCHsCHERoR, boy burned and cut
- EGGER, boy cut and bruised.
- SwITZEE, bruised and cut slightly.
| The immense mass of iron shot out
into an open lot 200 feet away. In its
passage it struck the heads of tho on
looking bystanders, as nearly all the
! killed and injured were hit on the head.
The scene was indescribable. The
blow, so sudden and crushing, stunned
those it did not kill and main. But
presence of mind soon prevailed, and
strong men fastened to the relief of
the wounded and cared for the dead.
A jury was impaneled by Justice
Felix McCabe, consisting of II. Barlow,
Torpher, John McCandless and Walter
Fields. The wounded were conveyed to
their homes and the dead to the City
Hall. At this hour the city is silent in
its gloom. The factories are deserted
and the flag on the City Hall hangs at
half mast.
The cause Of the awful calamity is
traced directly to the iron bleach. It
is said that this was full Of steam and
rags and had become superheated.
When the cold water from
the fire engines struck it
the explosion followed instantly. AS to
the origin of the fire it looks trife bad.
Nelson, the fireman, had been absent
during the evening on an excursion.
He says he was sleepy and sat
down to read. He wanted
some water and started after it, looking
at the steam guage-but, as he admits,
not looking around at the shaving pile
before the furnace. When he returned
and discovered the blaze it was creep
ing over the great pile of fuel in
the boiler room. The hose was small
one-inch affair, and valueless, even had
he time to use it, Nelson then rushed
through the smoke and pulled the
whistle slightly three times, and this
was the first alarm given.
The NeenaE FIRE department did not
arrive on the scene until after II o'clock,
too late to render aid.
The coroner's jury concluded review
ing the remains of the dead at
noon, but having a number of wit
nesses to examine, will not return a
verdict for day or two. It is probable
that the formal verdict in such cases
will issue. as there are no suspicious of
criminal negligence on any ones part.
The body OF the unknown man re-
ferred to in early dispatches was this
afternoon identified as that of Frank
Schiller, an unmarried young man.
The bodies Of the dead were this af-
ternoon removed in collins from the
City Hall to their respective homes, and
the city is desolate, quiet and lonely.
The funerals will be held within the
next two days.
The destroyed mill was built
by William Gilbert, of Chicago,
and Geo. A. Whiting, Of Neenah, in
SS2. 1t stands near the government
ok on the canal. The firm name
as Gilbert & Whiting, and it
was understood at the time
the mill was built that it
cost between $4,000 and $4,000. The
members of the firm had business diff
ferences and dissolved about two years
ago, Gilbert retiring. It is impossible
to learn what the mill was valued at then
by either party, but it is surmised
the figure $4,000 is about right. O.
Whiting bought the mill, and as part
of the purchase price gave mortgage
to Gilbert, who is secured by the insur-
ance.
Col. J. Harrison, for the past two
years bookkeeper for Whiting, was seen
this morning, and in answer to inqui-