The record-union., 1898-09-07
At Least Thirty Lives Known to
Have Been Lost,
While II Is Expected That the Death List
Will Be Increased When the Full
Accounting Has Been
Made.

HOGANSBURG On. V, Sept. g.
About noon to-day two south spans OF
the international bridge of the New
York and Ottawa Railway, now under
course of construction across the st.
Lawrence River, about four miles
above ST. Regis Indian village, fell
without warning, with at least sixty
men at work on the bridge all being
thrown into the river some sixty feet
below. Over thirty were picked up and
taken to Cornwall Hospital, and TWEEN
ty-seven are now missing.
The bridge consists of three spans,
of which two were completed, and the
third was nearly completed wnen the
south pier gave way at its foundation,
causing both spans to fall into the wa
ter, taking its load of human freight
with it.
The names of the killed and drowned
cannot at present be ascertained, as
they were mostly from Pennsylvania
excepting a few Indians from the st,
Regis reservation.
The scene of the accident is located
about four miles from Hogansbur2,
above the St. Regis Indian reserva-
ton. The bridge that gave way was
built across the St. Lawrence River
at the foot of Long Sault Rapids. The
water at this point is known to be as
swift as in any part of the river.
The immediate cause Of the disaster
and the giving way of the span of the
bridge seems to have been from the
washing away of one of the large piers.
Late reports from Cornwall Hospital
say thirty-three men have been taken
out of the river and transferred to the
hospital Eighteen of them have since
died. The latest information makes it
probable that the death list will reach
thirty.
As far as can be learned eighty-sev-
en- men were on the payroll, of whom
eighty-two were paid for work this
morning. OF this list only thirty-eignt
have actually been accounted for. All
efforts to get a list of the names of the
workmen and those missing have
proved futile as yet.
Following is a list of the known dead
made up to midnight: w. ]. Curry,
Paterson, n. J.; w. ]. Jackson, Colum-
bus. o.; Louis Banner, Johnstown, Pa;
r. l.. Dysart, Tyrone, Pa; /. D. Craig,
Detroit; Pat Murphy, Toronto; Thomas
birmingham, -; Dan Hughes, Cleye-
land; Frank Levigne, Ogdensburg, N.
Y: w. Sherman, Cornwall, Ont; w.
Saunders. Baltimore; John Clause,
Caughnawega, \. Y; II. Davis, Pitts
burg; Cyril Campbell, Cornwall, Ont.
STORY OF AN EYEWITNESS.
CORN w ALL ttJl(-t, toSP1' W. All y =
witness of the fall of the New York and
Ottawa Railroad bridge says he was
sitting on the banks of the river
watching the workmen, when there
came fearful crash. Two spans of the
bridge collapsed, and the immense
mass of timber and iron dropped. Then
he saw horses come to the surface, ana
the work of rescue began. This was
hopelessly inadequate, there being only
a few boats in the vicinity, and very
few men would undertake to swim out
into the turbulent waters. Many VINO
might have been saved were drowned
before help could reach them. Man
gled bodies came to the surface Tor Il
moment, and then passed out OF slgnt'
Even those who got to land alive were
in such a condition that many died on
the way to the hospital. Some h2o
their backs broken, others both legs
while others were crushed by the heavy
irons.