The Penn's Grove record., 1897-07-23

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From Unknown Cause-AwfuI Scenes.
New HAVEN, Conn. (SpeciaD.-The most
serious explosion in the long history of the
Winchester Arms~Company occurred at
twenty minutes 10 ten O'Clock Wednesday
morning in the loading department of the
cartridge factory. Foul women and three
men were killed almost instantly.
TIL list of the lead is: Edward Dardofl,
twenty-one years old, left hip blown of
and side badly mangled, died in hos
pital; Mrs. Nellie Bauermeister, sixteen
years old, Hamden, killed instantly;
Julius Borman. Jr., seventeen years old,
powder boy, killed instantly; Josephine
Brennan, orphan. eighteen years old, killed
Instantly; Mrs. Ida Brown. thirty years old,
head blown of; Theresa Connolly. sixteen
years old, left arm blown Off. head burned
and thigh crushed. died on the way to the
hospital; Walter Hill, twenty years old,
powder boy, spine broken and right
shoulder crushed.
Those most seriously injured are: George
]. Bardof ,twenty-three yearsold, brother Of
Edward, right eye turn out, forearm broken
In two places and bruised md cut; in hos
pital and may recover. Miss Glass, left arm
almost torn out. Edward Lehr, badly
burned; arms filed with shot.
TIL cause of the explosion is not known.
The cartridge factory is about 100 feet long,
twenty feet high and thirty feet wide. II Is
constructed of light timbers. The roof was
OF canvas and the entire construction was
made SO as to lessen the danger from fall
ing debris In the event Of an explosion.
About $50 persons are employed In the
shop, two-thirds of whom are girls, whose
ages average from sixteen to twenty
IUknn kIn axY-1,atnn Nnn, rrnl t1..
shop was in full operation. The cartridge
machines were filled with paper cartridges
in which black powder is used. Theload-
ing machines are complicated structures
and very heavy. The powder is poured
into the hoppers from the roof.
A single grain of powder getting out Of
its place and being crushed in the machin-
cry Is likely to cause n spark that may re-
suit in an explosion, but u small quantity
of the powder is poured into the hopper
at a time and the machinery is arranged
SO that In case of an explosion 1t would
probably be blown through the roof.
Such accidents have happened without
loss Of life.
This explosion, however, did not follow
this rule. Instead Of the force of the, pow
der going upward, it spent itself in all di-
rections through the factory. The explo.
sion came without any warning.
Dozens of employees were knocked sense
less at their benches seventy-flve feet from
the loading machine where the explosion
occurred. When they got to where the tim
bers of the building had fallen in, the room
was black with smoke. Girls went scream
ing through the shattered walls, and never
stopped in their flight until they were safe
In their homes, blocks away. Some tainted
as they reached the open air and lay hall
~lifeless.
The explosion set off charges. of shot and
shell right and loft, which, together with
the burning powder, were embedded in the
arms, bodies and faces of the workmen who
CHANGED to be nearest the death dealing
machine. Many Of these men rushed back
to the building as soon as the dense smoke,
cleared away, and, with blood streaming
from their wounds, were the first to rescue
the living and carry out the dead.
The wrecked building took fire, and had
1t not been for the prompt work of the en-
gines the dead would have been burned.
Alarms from the factory brought ambu-
lances and a half dozen physicians, and
everything possible was done for the relief
OF those who still suffered.
Gray-haired men and women, mothers
with babies in their arms and little chill
dren, struggled, begged and became hys-
terical for news OF their friends. As names
OF the dead was sent through the police
lines, women tainted in the street, and
men, benumbed by the awfulness OF the ac-
CiuVubs Wulht uN1l ahu LOi6pb " Sihp
assistance. From every department OF the
great factory employees rushed pell nell as
soon as the gates wero opened. Terror
seized every one and the entire factory was
shut down for the day.
Those who had been at work in other de-
partments joined the terror-stricken crowd
In the street and added to the pathetic
side OF the scene. Several times the half
maddened crowd tried desperately to break
the police line. One pale-faced woman
with clinched fists, rushed up to n sergeant
and screamed: "My God, man, my child is
therel tell you l will so inl'
With a wild rush the crowd started to
force the gate andthe police had to call the
nremen to their assistance. As the ambu-
lances came through the gates with their
loads of dcad the crowd fought for a
glimpse of the bodies. As each one Of the
dead was identified heartrending scenes
were enacted in the street.
Nearly all the bodies were terribly man
gled. When the flremen reached Theresa
Connolly the flames had burned her clothing
of. Fire Chief Hubbard stripped off the
clothing and helped to carry her to the
street, where she died. The others, with
the exception OF Edward Bardotf, were dead
when taken from the debris,
Nellie Bauermeister, sixteen years old,
was married to Fitch Bauermeister only a
month ago. Her husband Is mere boy,
He was at work on the machine next to
that at which his wife was killed. He was
knocked down and rendered unconscious
by the explosion. As soon as he got to his
feet he found his young wife lying dead
beside him. His grief was terrible. Mrs.
Bauermeister was the daughter Of William
Martindale, of Brooklyn. She had been
working In the Winchester shop only a few
days. She had gone to work there in order
to earn enough money to buy a bicycle. 1t
is estimated that a dozen persons were in
jured by Shot. The damage to the factory
Is estimated at $40, 900.