San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1889-02-25
THE:HARTFORD HORROR.
An Eyewitness Tells His Story--
What An Old San Antonian
says of the Matter.


What An Old San Antonian
says of the Matter.
HARTFORD, Conn, Feb. 20, 'S9.
On the same day that the awful ac-
cident occurred in this city left New
York for Bridgeport, on business, and
getting through 1 concluded to go on
to Hartford and view the ruins of the
Park Central hotel. 1t is an awful
sight, ruin and desolation, the inte-
rior woodwork splintered and mixed
up with furniture, carpets, plaster,
etc. The city have employed as many
workmen and teams as can work on
the ground, and the streets leading to
the scene of the disaster are guarded
by special police, and none but teams
and those employed on the work are
allowed to pass. Yesterday afternoon
a large fragment of the boiler was
found which settled doubt which was
at first entertained as to whether the
explosion was from the boilers or a
formation of gas in the basement.
The search for bodies is continually
kepG up, although of course no hopes
are entertained of recovering any
alive from the ruins. Yesterday they
found a cha"red body at o'clock, p.
M, and thodght it was Mr.. Whiting.
This morning they found another
which some claim to be the night
clerk, Edward Perry, but it seems to
be all surmise.
Summary-At p. m, eighteen
dead; at hospital ten; known to be i'm
ruins four.
1t is difficult to arrive at any con-
clusion as to who is to blame, as by
some it is claimed that the building
was well known to be faulty in con-
strnction, and that it collapsed and
crushing the boiler caused an explo.
sion. From all the present indications
it will be difficult to locate the cause
of this terrible disaster, although the
authorities are dong all in their
power to get at the bottom facts. The
fragment of the hotel left standing
was pulled down yesterday afternoon.
The fine furniture remained in many
of the rooms, and some venturesome
fellows were willing to go up into the
building and carry the furniture
down, but were prevented by the
police. Alex Thuer and Amos Rsi-
ley, the engineers, are in Jail on
charge of manslaughter, having fail
ed to give 81 900 bonds. The citizens
here say that the engineers have been
drinking heavily for long time, and
that the hotel people knew it, saw
two large pieces of the shattered
boiler; one on the pavement
and the other sticking out
of the brick and plaster
tine rivets gone aud the iron twisted in
many directions, as a child might
twist piece of sheet tin. The annex
of the hotel is standing, but / noticed
the rear wall is fearfully bulged at the
back, and as the building is five
stories high l consider it imminently
dangerous. L examined some of the
bricks, and must say they do not
compare with Calaveras, and the NOR
tar was very poor, crumbling in ones
hand like sand-evidently not enough
lime in it. 1 will send you piece Of
the mortar, and you can let some of
your local builders see it. At present
there are twenty-five deputy police
men and the amount of bossing is
something big. Hartford is teeming
with people who are attracted thither
by the newspaper accounts of the dis
aster. Hartford business people are
busy but regret the fact that their
city should have been visited by
such misfortune, and that the old
and respectable city should be adver-
tised over such a horrible misfortune.
1t is said a new hotel will be COM
menced at once, but many incline to
the belief that no hotel will prosper
built upon the ground concentrated
by the most appalling disaster that
the history of Hartford can show.
Funerals are the order of the day, and
as fast as the undertaken can do so he
finds new victims to carry out to the
city of the dead. Yours sincerely,
J. NJ. EMERSON, JR.