Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1898-07-13
generally believed ne stands In need OF
ready cash to meet his sons obligations.
TERRIBLE EXPLOSION.
Eleven Men Killed and About
Twenty Wounded.


| NEW YORK, July l2.-Two explosions,
which killed eight men, wounded about
twenty others, and wrecked two buildings,
occurred at the plant OF the Laflin-Rand
Powder Works. at Pompton, N. j.. this
morning. The first explosion was in the
house where gun-cotton was being made.
and the second, presumably superinduced
| by conclusion, was in the drying-house.
close by. Three men were in the mixing
room when the explosion occurred, and
they were blown to atoms. Chief-En-
gineer Craig, who was in the engine
room, had his head crushed TO jelly I'm
the wreckdge of the boiler-house, the
side of which was blown out. John Phil
lips was standing near a tree some dis
tance from the miXing-house. His head
was blown from his body, and was picked
up eighty feet away. The foreman Of the
drying-room was blown to pieces. and a
number Of Italians, who were digging
trench in the rear OF the building, We're
killed. The most seriously injured was
William III. Emmons, n private Of Com
pany l, Third New Jersey Volunteers.
1t is not likely that he will recover.
Charles Lukes. Of Butler, was also pro-
badly fatally injured.
DANGEROUS FIRE.
The explosions were followed by a fire
which threatened to spread 10 the other
buildings Of the plant, in which tons OF
the highest explosives were stored.
Five companies of the Third New Jersey
Volunteers have been stationed at the
plant since the war with Spain began, and
they were ordered under arms ana went
to the scene OF the explosion at double
quick time. Within ten minutes the sol
diers bad formed a Gordon about the
works. The fire was soon quenched. and
the search for other dead and missing
was Immediately begun.
The Lafiin-Rand Company has been en-
gagged in the manufacture of brown pow
der, nitro-glycerine gun-cotton, and
smokeless powder under contract to the
government. The loss to the company
Will be great, but IL is said that recon-
struction Of the wrecked buildings will
begin at daylight tomorrow, and that the
plant will be in fun running order in two
weeks.
TALK OF A spy.
After the explosion there was some talk
of n Spanish spy being implicated in the
attempt TO destroy the powder-mll. but
the theory of the men connected with the
works is that a grain OF gravel or sand
got into some powder which was in pro-
cess Of handling in the mixng-room, and
that as IT, went through the machinery
the foreign substance came I'm contact
with a metal surface and threw out a
spark, which ignited the explosive
THE KILLED.
Following is a list OF the Killed:
JOHN CRAIG 35 years old. chief en-
gineer OF the works.
WILLIAM BRENNA. So years old, cart
driver.
JAMES PHILLIPS. 45 years old, mar
ried, and leaves a family.
DANIEL FREEMAN, 30 years old, boss
Of the drying-room
WILLIAM FISHER, an inside worker |
WILLIAM FISHER, Jr., helper.
JOHN BONATTA, laborer. OF Butler.
CASPER CoZZINo, 50 years old, Italian |
laborer; married.
GUIDO MARINO, fragment OF body
found. In a pocket of the clothing on It |
was found a due Slip for work done
for the company
JOSE CAsENNE. italian laborer; killed |
I'm the ditch.
A canvass OF Pompton Plains shows |
that c.. J. Carrigan. an employee of the
company's, IS missing. |
BODY 1000 YARDS AWAY.
About o'clock in the evening, while
the night guards were being posted. they
came across a body, or rather a portion |
of one. This made eleven killed This
man appears TO have been working on |
the side Of the mountain. a thousand |
yards from the works. His head was
blown off. Who he was no one seems to |
know.
Working I'm the gun-cotton when the |
explosion occurred was q man named |
Fisher. The body found on the mountain |
side may be his, as his remains have not |
been found A boy. son Of Fishers, is |
also missing. lie was working with his |
father, and he may have been blown to |
pieces.