The state chronicle., 1893-06-10

| '"0 "ouuucO quickly traVers
ing the city in every direction.
Those who we're early on thu
scene found the body of a colorea
man in the alley in the rear of tn,
building where John Wilkes Bootl
mad his morse hitched the night b.
killed Lincoln This was GeoroE
NJ. Arnold, a we'll known colorei
clerk appointed from Virginia. II,
mad been seen at the third stor,
window. He was warned not II
Jump, but despite the protestation,
OF a number of people, he climeG
out, and lowering himself from the
Sill, let go. He fell upon the GOV.
ering at the lower floor and slided
OF into the cobblestoned allev
striking on his head, Instantly xiii.
ing him
| One OF the bravest and most dar.
ing incidents connected with the
calamity was performed by a colored
BOY - or 20 years of age named
Basil Lockwood. As soon SIS the
floors collapsed and the dust had
cleared away, realizing the danger
OF those 6. the rear windows who
were wildly climbing out and callin o
1or aid, he climbed up the telegraph
pole as high as the third story and
iashed ladder to the pole, putting
the other end in the window. Bv
this means ten or fifteen were assis-
ted down the ladder in safety.
None Of those who escaped ininrv
could tell which OF the floors first
gave way. To the occupants OF each
floor there wss brt one crash heard
ana Instantly the whole building
was filed wicb: binding lime dust,
Krnning directly through all of the
| noors and in the middle of the
building was light well ten feet or
more long, and nearly as many wide.
the fatal area was in front of this.
leaving space Of six or seven feet
IN width undisturbed on either side
Ihe entire back part of the building
containing moro than half of the
hoor space, remained intact. There
were many very narrow ESCAPES
from death. A number of clerks
whose desks rested directly upon
the line where the floors broke away.
saved themselves, while the desks at
which they sat were precipitated
down the awful chasm. Others who
were walking across the room heard
an omlnous sound and stopped just
at the very threshold of death
When the crash came, those who
survived heard mi lightly scream of
anguish from their comrades as thew
sank out of sight, and then cropping
IN darkness they found their way to
safety trembling in every joint, with
the palor OF death in their faces.
No women were admitted in the
building, out IN few minutes after
the crash came, the wives, mothers
and daughters Of the victims began
to arrive.
Within q very few moments hun
areas or more men, stripped for hot
work, jumped into the building and
began throwing out the wreckage in
front and under the floors which re-
mained standing in the rear.
Most OF those first taken out of
the ruins were carried to Emer-
gency Hospital. About 1896 o'clock
the dead and injured began to ar
rive faster than the corps of sur
geons could attend to the injured.
Carried in on stretchers, they were
dumped at the most convenient
places, Those who were most seri-
ously injured were attended to,
while the others groaning and cry
ing from the pain of broken limbs,
lay limp beseeching the doctors
to dress their wounds. Shortly
after the arrival Of the first unfor-
tunates the crowd began to assem-
bic IN front of the hospital. many of
them being wives, daughters and
relatives of the dead and injured.
Their weeping and frantic cries for
information were heartrending.
They greatly inter fered with the
work of the physicians, and DIR.
Kerr, in charge OF the hospital, de-
termined to put them out. Load
after load OF wounded, blind from
debris, with their limbs broken and
m aimed, were dumped at the door.
They had to remain outside for
sometime as the force end facilities
of the hospital were unequal to the
emergency. AS quickly as surge ons,
who were shortly reinforced by
young men graduates of the city,
could do so, they examined and
dressed the wounds and they
were then sent upstairs to more
comfortable quarters It was with
great difficulty that the policemen
could keep the relatives of the in
jured out of the building, and
while outside their agonizing cries
could be distinctly heard by the
unfortunates who lay helpless.
Priests and ministers were soon on
the spot and at once admitted they
repaired to the cots of the injured,
where they administered spiritual
consolation. Two men reached the
hospital in dying condition, so
badly injurei ! that they were taken
from the dressing room and sent to
the morgue where they shortly ex-
pired. Charles S. Miller and J.
Brad Jones were among them, while
&ha other WAS q VQllnp man of