Hutchinson gazette. [volume] (Hutchinson, Kan.) 1895-1902, 1896-06-04
KILLED AT A FEAST.
THREE THOUSAND ARE
TRAMPLED TO DEATH.
The People Were Gathered for an Open
Air Feast in Honor of the Cars Cor
onatiOn-- without Apparent Reason the
Vest Crowd surged Forward.

Moscow, June Ia terrible panic,
resulting from the great crush of peo-
pie at the popular feast here Saturday
in honor of the coronation of the ear,
caused the trampl:ng to death of
1900 people.
On the Hodynsky or Khodijinskoje
plain, long lines of rough tables,
tlanked by rougher benches, had been
erected. In the distance these lines
Of tables looked like immovable regi-
ments Of immovable soldiers in the
trenches Of some extensive series of
fertilization. It was at first arranged
to accommodate 100000 people, but in
view of the immense crowds assembled
in and about the city at the coronation
fete, extra tables and benches were
hastily erected and every effort was
made to provide seating room and =
hearty meal for 100000 people. Twice
that number was DESTROYS of taking
part in the feast, but the authorities
decided that there must be limit to
the number, and ~ figure was fixed
at 100000
By dawn the mass n peasants about
the tables was really enormous, and
they were all desperately hungry,
some of them having tasted, by choice
or necessity, for nearly twenty-four
hours. The police did everything DOS
sible to keep back the crowd, but
suddenly the masses, controlled by
some inexplicable impulse, or impa-
tient to get at the food, pressed for
ward, swept everything before them,
and overturned tables and benches as
if made of grass, trampling hundreds
under foot and crushing the life out
of great number of people. EEe
oldest, weak naturally, suffered the
most, and one poor woman, who gave
birth to a child during the excitement,
was trampled to death. The fate of
the infant is not definitely known.
The car has given orders that the
sum of l,n00 roubles be given to each
bereaved family and that the victims
be buried at his expense.
1t is now said the fatalities will
amount to between 1000 and 5000, but
it is impossible as yet to learn exactly
the extent of the disaster. An official
statement places the number of dead
received at !, 1886 and the seriously or
fatally injured at 2SG. But, in con-
trast with this official statement, there
are 1872 corpses lying at the ceme-
terry, besides the many dead and dying
who are known to have been removed
from the Inflated field by friends.
Saturday evening, after receiving
Populations, the car and czarina at
tended and danced at the brilliant
ball at TIE French embassy. Prepar-
atoms had been made on q most elab-
crate scale for this ball, and it is as
serted that $4,000 was expended on
the supper alone, rare viands and de-
licious fruits and vegetables being
brought from the most distant climes
to add to the delights of the feast,
while France furnished the costliest
and most elegant fabrics and furniture
to set off the beauties of the palace
where the embassy is lodged The
c2arina was not informed of the disas-
ter, owing to her very delicate condi-
tion.
hulAC lnc uduCC III LlC Il I6uCH CIl-
bassy continued amid all the accom-
paniments of luxury and gaiety, dis.
consulate friends and relatives wan
dered over the desolate plain, amid
the dead and the suffering dying,
looking, often in vain, for their miss
ing.
There were no English people nor
Americans among the victims, Many
of those who came for the coronation
had already left the city and. in any
event, tourists attended the fete only
in the afternoon. Very few of the
victims belong to the well-to-do
classes Nearly all are Moujiks, or
peasants, and a large proportion Of
the dead are women and children.
The car and czarina yesterday, after
attending the requiem mass in the
chapel of the Kremlin, paid visit to
the injured survivors in the hospitals.
passing from cot to cot and addressing
words of sympathy and comfort. Both
of the imperial pair were deeply af.
fectrd by the scenes OF suffering they
witnessed.