Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1891-09-03
THE NEW YORK DISASTER.

No Traces OF Their Remains Found
Among the Ruins--A Probability That
Their Bodies Were Completely Incin-
Grated. Leaving Nothing to Mark Their
Identity.
NEW YoRK, August 27.-The last
shoyelful of dirt was removed
from the Park Place ruins at 100 o'clock
yesterday afternoon, and Battalion Chief
Reilly Of the fire department said that
all the ground had been gone over
thoroughly. Sixty-one bodies have been
taken out. The number is far below
that of those who are certainly known
to be missing. Where are the others9
Is the question that was asked by the
crowd at the ruins yesterday. "Where
is my hushand?" cried the wife of
Theodore Hemmerich of 1888 East Ninth
street, who has watched and waited for
the body to be taken from the collapsed
and burned building. "Where is
FrankP" cried sister of Frank Dodd,
who had been all the morning at the
scene of the great disaster. Both mourn
ers had also been to the morgue and
spent much time In examining the
clothing on the bodies brought to the
dead house, and they were sure that the
missing relatives were not among those
taken out.
There are twelve persons known to
have been employed in the fatal build
ing and who went to their work last
Saturday who have not been accounted
for. According TO the firemen the
entire ruin has been gone over. The
cellars have been cleaned out and
examined, and still the discrepancy be-
tween the number of missing and the
number oil bodies remains
The only apparently credible theory
is that several bodies were calcined or so
burned by the flames as to have become
charred as the wood and timber, and
that in the taking out of the wreckage
they became mere part of the debris.
Officials of the health board who were
present yesterday said that they did not
believe the fire was hot enough to reduce
bodies to that condition, but they had
not been present at the fire, nor had they
seen the smouldering mass again burst
out into flames as late as Tuesday when
the air was let in on the heated mass in
the cellars. at requires a fierce and
peculiar fire to burn to ashes the human
body" said one of the inspectors.
The Park Place fire was long and
hot fire. For hours the great Telegraph
ing presses were so hot that steam arose
from them when water was poured over
the metal of which they were con
structed. 1t is a well-known fact that
in similar accidents the numbered bodies
taken out did not equal the number of
those known to be lost, In the fire in
the old World building the bodies of all
who were known to have lost their lives
in the fire were not recovered. That at
least rs were lost in the recent calamity
is beyond doubt.
CURIOSITY was as strong yesterday
morning as it has been since the acct
dent II was necessary TO keep the
police lines as strict as ever. From all
parts OF the city the people came. Men
on their way to business turned out of
the direct path to their offices to go near
the ruins. Those coming down on the
elevated trains got off at Park Place
and from the Ninth avenue line at Bar
clay street to inquire if any more bodies
had been found and to see the men at
work.
The work progressed rapidly during
the morning, owing to the presence OF
gang of men from the department of
public works, who, with carts and
wagons, were engaged in removing the
debris piled on the street, which had
blocked the thoroughfare almost from
sidewalk to sidewalk. The debris was
removed to West Washington Market.
Some of the portions of machinery and
iron material is worth saving. More
systematic work was done BY the firms
who were burned out or had their stock
carried away in the fall of the building.
A number OF workmen were sorting over
the posters and theatrical bills that had
been hurled down in the general col
lapse from Liebler ~ Mas place, and
many were found to be only slightly
damaged. They were carried up into
the top of an adjoining building. The
condition of the ruins was much i'm
proved, the health department having
been more liberal in the use of disin-
fectants. Instead of carbolic acid a
solution of bromine was used.
Those bodies that were found after 2
a. m, were in a condition to render II
doubtful il they could be identified. AT
$50 the body of woman was lifted out
badly burned. Her clothing was in fair
condition, consisting of black cashmere
and lace waist and black skirt and
white stockings. A little before 5 a. m, ,
the body of Morris A. Herring was
discovered. A brother-Charles @. Her
ring-identitled it. The brother had been
present at the ruined buildings since the
accident happened, and said that he
would not leave till the body was found.
A book in the pocket Of the dead man
settled the identity, for in 1t was
stamped the firm name of Osburn &
Burke, for whom Herring was a sales
man. There were also some memoranda
found in lierring's own handwriting. A
gold watch and two rings that he was
known to have carried were missing.
The 5lth body was that of young
man apparently not over II years Of
age. At 7.45 a. M, the body of an
elderly man was found, clad in striped
trousers OF Light pattern, brown cloth
vest, tennis shirt, and congress CATERS.
Fifteen minutes later another body was
taken out where the restaurant had
been. The man had sandy hair and
moustache, and had worn striped shirt,
congress gaiteB, gray wooden socks,
white cotton underclothing, and dark,
striped trousers, He was feet 7inches
in height, and apparently 45 years OF age.
The sixtieth body was also that of a
man apparently As years old, weighing
1876 pounds. For three hours the
digging was continued without finding
a body. The ground where the res
taurant had been was gone over and not
more than ten bodies had been there.
The last body to be taken out was that
Of a woman. Her neck had been broken
in the fall of the building. A white
skirt and black stockings were the only
articles of clothing that could serve for
Identification.
1t did not take long to clear up the