, 1889-01-10
HUGE STRUCTURES FALLS.

lot. Then the storm proceeded on in Its
full fury.
HUGE STRUCTURES FALLS.
1t Carries with 1t Ovsr One Hundred Hu-
man Lives.
Directly in it's path at the corner OF
Twelfth and Marion streets, stood the
Reading silk mill. Here about l75 girls
were working. The building was a huge
structure and most substantially built,
four stories in height and basement be-
sides. II occupies an entire block Of
ground. The size of the building itself
was nearly 300 feet in length and about
150 feet wide. II was surmounted ny
massive tower, fully 100 feet from the
oronnd. The funnel-sha ped storm cloud
struck the building directly in the center,
on its broadest side. which faced the west.
IL fell to pieces as IL composed of so many
building blocks. Nearly two hundred
HUMAN BEINGS WENT DOWN
in an awful wreck. The walls gave way
and floors fell down, one on top of the 9TH
er and carried their great mass OF human
beings TO the bottom. Bricks were piled
up in the greatest confusion, while above
the hurricane and whistling, rushing,
roaring wind, terrible cries for succOr
were sent up to heaven. 1t was moment
that tried mems souls, and almost stimuli
tanaous with the fall Of the building came
the awful cries for relief. Girls with
blackened faces, bruised and broken limbs,
their clothing tattered and torn. dragged
themselves from the ruins. From seventy
five to 100 escaped or were dragged out by
their friends. These, of course worked
on the upper floors and were thrown near
the top of the debris. At some
places bricks we're piled twenty
feet deep, and underneath are
LYING TONIGHT HUMAN BODIES
BY the score. About $50 girls and young
women are usually employed in the mill,
but about 4 o'clock about eighty were re-
lieved from duty for the day. They re-
turned to their homes before the storm
came. The most reliable estimate to night
places the number in the building when 1t
went down in the neighborhood OF l75
and, as before stated, 100 Of these were
rescued by friends or dragged themselves
out Immediately after the accident.
An alarm for relief was Immediately
sent out and in a short time thousands of
citizens arrived to help out the dead and
dying. The scene was narrowing one
and beggars description. The mill Is sit
uated near the foot Of Mount PennsTlvania,
a high mountsin overlooking the city.
When the people arrived everything was
enveloped in darkness. Then huge bon
uIto WcTc Ouiit, WuiSu Nuco 'eAAN Si"AS
on the surrounding scene.
The entire police force was called out
and the ambulance and the relief corps
and thousands of people we're in among
the debris, carrying out bricks, pulling
away timbers and assisting wherever they
could, all at the same time, but their
work was slow, compared with the de-
mand for the rescue of the victims OF the
disaster.
kak kau ntf a III
bruised, suffering with cuts and bruises.
One body it was noticed as IL was dragged
out had its head cut of. Others were in
various positions, and all suffering from
the most terrible wounds and some al
most scared TO death An associated press
reporter entered what was once the base
ment Of the building. and cropping his way
through the debris noticed
FIVE BODIES OF YOUNG GIRLS
lying close together. He tried to pull
them out. hut they were pinned down and
it was impossible to get them out. They
were dead and beyond all human aid.
To 10 80 o'clock tonight probably the
bodies of dozen have been taken out.
while greater portion of the number
were still under the ruins. The work OF
rescue will he pushed all night, but it may
be far in tomorrow before all the bodies
are taken out. The rescuers still have
great hopes that some of those inside are
still living and hope for saving them,
and there are persons who be-
lieve that many are all right
All is chaos and confusion
around the mill. The managers are mis-
sing and the correct number is merely
guess work. Il may not be over forty and
then again at this hour there is a likeli-
hood that it will reach sixty or eighty. The
silk mill was built about tour years ago.
The buildings were owned by Reading
capitalists and the cost of putting up was
S63. 900. The mill was leased to Grim
shaw Brothers of Paterson, N j., where
they also operate similar mills and they
have been running it ever since. The ma
chinery they put in the mill cost $45, 600.
This IL a total wreck.
When an Associated Press representa-.
tive visited the scene of the wreck at III
| tonight. He found everything in the
greatest confusion. At that time about Il
dozen dead bodies had been taken out.
THE BODIES TAKEN OUT.
Among those who are dead are the fol.
lowing: -,
! Henry Crocker, foreman of the silk mill
and married, % years old, head crushed
! in, neck and arm broken was from New
| London, Connecticut.
! Laura kerschnere.
/ Eva Leeds.
Lille Grove.
! Katie Bowman.
Katie Leas.
Amelia Christmas.
Sophie Wenkleman.
Ella Long.
Willie Snyder.
William Robeson.
Rebecca House.
Kate Reidenaur.
Rose Clemmer.
These are all the wounded who hav'
hean taken out.