The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-01-04


suddepiy Fart or It. Including the Platform.
Fen-9O0 Persons Went Down and Crashed
Through the Floor below to tho Cellar
An Iron SAFE Foil Upon the struggling
Mnss-Mayor-Elect Wilson AmopE tho Hn-
Jured-The Victims Include . Number or
tho Best.Rknown Men In the Community.
LONDON Ontario, Jan. 3.-Twenty-six persons
were killed and over 100 injured by o portion
Of the City Hall floor giving way during an
after-election meeting tonight, The municipal
elections had been fought on strict party
lines, and when the returns showed that
the Conservatives had elected their candidate
for Mayor. DR.. John D. Wilson, and had secured
a majority in tho Council. the ~victors, with some
1000 supporters, adjourned to the City Hall to
listen to the promises Of the newly elected.
Tho hall was damned to the doors. People
were standing In the window seats and on the
stairs, and tho floor of tho hall was packed.
Tho speeches had gone along for an hour. and
about 10 o'clock the small platform on which
the new Mayor and his Cabinet were seated
was the centre Of attraction.
The crowd called for various speakers, and
while waiting for an acceptable man to como
forward there was q temporary lull. Barrister
Richard Toothe was loudly called for. and was
pushed forward toward the platform. Alder
man Carrothers and Mayor-elect Wilson stepped
to the front of the platform to secure quiet.
The good-humored crowd, flushed with VIC
tory. was j~ostling and shouting in iovisl mood.
Suddenly there was q cracking sound from tho
platform on which the speakers of the evening
were seated. The platform seemed to pitch for
ward. the floor around 1t gave way, and down
through the floor 200 persons were hurled.
Crashing down upon the heads Of the
doomed persons came a hugo safe and
an iron steam coil which were standing
In the northeast corner Of tho hall.
Jagged beams and timbers from the broken
floor were hurled down upon the mass of
humanity. Seen from above. all seemed strug-
Cling for life like the crew of o sinking ship.
| Some Of those least injured dragged themselves
painfully to the walls and endeavored to roach
the unbroken part OF the floor from which they
had fallen.
Down in the pit lay scores of motionless fig
ures. Many lads who had climbed behind the
Mayors chair as a coign Of vantage were among
tho victims. and screams for help in their child
ish treble added new horror to the scene.
With the frat swaying of the floor there was
q rush excited mon toward the doors.
Fortunately there were many exits, and, al
though many Of the weaker ones were crushed
and trampled by those fighting for freedom and
safety. no one was seriously injured.
A couple Of small boys rushed to safety BY
deliberately clambering upon tho heads Of the
thickly massed crowd and running over Thorn
to the doors.
Within a minute the hall was cleared. and
then a few white-faced spectators who had not
rushed to the street struggled back into the hall
and gazed down into the abyss.
The sight was a terrible one. Men cursed and
prayed. wept and laughed in delirium of ter
ror, all the while struggling to disentangle
themselves from the network Of beams and
girders which surrounded and was crushing
them.
There were cries for help and frantic appeals
to those above for aid. Alderman Neil Cooper,
who had been on the PLATFORM, was dragged up
ward by an improviscd rescue corps and with Q
half dozen others who were less seriously injured
conveyed to an ante-chamber. where they were
attended by surgeons.
Fighting and struggling in the pit continued.
Frantic men beat down those who were weaker,
and made of their bodies a stepping stone to
attempt to assure their own safety.
A couple of tho cooler headed, among them
Alderman Robert Carrothers. a giant In stature,
endeavored to restrain the frantic crowd.
Bleeding from scalp wounds, his clothes torn
and hanging from his back, Carrothers shouted
for room. and refused to move himself until q
boy who lay In front Of him had been saved.
Others shovel equal heroism, butt In the gen.
eral terror many thought only for themselves.
The fall from the floor above to tho Mayors
ofice was about twenty feet The weight of tho
falling mass crashed through tho floor Of tho
Mayors Office underneath and through into tho
cellar.
The greater portion OF the dead were taken
from tho cellar, having been Instantly killed by
the fall.
Tho Fire Department. police and ambulance
CORPS were quickly on tho scene and organized
In the work Of rescue.
The huge plate.glass windows Of the Mayors
office were broken through and tho broken
beams and timbers thrown through to the street
In the search for the manned.
The safe that had fallen and was even then
crushing out the life OF four people was at
tached to o rope. and a score of willing hands
lifted 1t from the victims.
Directly under the safe a man was imprisone cd
by fallen timbers. and as the safe was moved 1t
seemed for a moment to hover over his head.
His shrieks for help were pitiful. and finally
he was released, while the safe dangled on the
end of q frail rope not three inches above his
head.
Tho adjacent buildings were quickly extern.
porized into hospitals and morgues.
The committee rooms of the defeated candi-
date for the Mayornlty just opposite the City
Hall, and deserted as usual on the evening OF
defeat. were quickly brought into use and from
all parts OF the city doctors were hurried.
The city hospitals were crowded with the
wounded, while the list Of the killed grew larger
every few minutes.
1t was after midnight before any authorita-
tive list of the dead could be secured.
Then the worst fears had been realized. The
unfortunates comprised the bestknown men of
the city.
The list of the killed at midnight was as fol-
lows.