New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-04-12

Above the crash could be heard the shrieks Of
the injured and the cries Of others for help.
The accident was witnessed by many people on
both sides of the river and on the Thrd-ave.
bridge. A great crowd quickly gathered. The
river was filled with small craft. and the work
Of rescue begun at once. The tugboat Com
mander did excellent service. and many men In
rowboats also rendered valuable aid. James
levin, one Of the workers caught in the
wreck beneath the surface and was drowning.
when a fellow-workman. Edward Brooks. him.
self painfully injured. saw his plight. Brooks
dived beneath the water and extricated levin.
who was soon resuscttated
SAVED BY BOYS BRAVERY
A foreman named s. C. Wolf was similarly
caught in the wreckage. and but for the bravery
of a boy employed on the sand scow moored
near by. would undoubtedly have been drowned
Perceivlng VOLTS predlcament, without sec
onds hesitation the boy plunged over the side
of the scow and, swimming quickly to the spot
where Wolf was pinned down. by heroic work
succeeded in getting him TO the surface Just as
he was on the verge Of unconsciousness the
same boy also helped 10 rescue Thomas Luckey,
who was caught In the debris and was IN dan
ger of drowning. The lad would not give his
name, and declared he had done "nothin, at all
The report OF the accident spread with rapid
ity and reached the big tenement-houses IN
Willis-ave. where many of the men lived
Wives. mothers and sisters ran screaming
through the street and to the waters cage cry
ing for news of their relatives who had been AZ
work on the bridge. There were many pathetic
scenes I'm the meetings between the women ana
the saved More pathetic was the scene when
some relative was deprived of all hope by recog-
nzing m1nged body as it was brought OUT OF
the water and to the shore. The crowd grew so
large that the police reserves were called out
from the East One-hundred and twenty sixth
St and the Alexander-ave police station
Three ambuanoes were called from the Har-
lam, FOL nd
on the ground in a few minutes. The surgeons
could do little for the injured save 10 prepare
them hastily for removal 10 the hospital. The
injured men were taken from the wreck TO the
freighthouse of the New York. NewHaven and
Hartford Railroad near by, and then placed in
the ambulances. Many Of the men were pain
fully injured. but insisted upon being taken to
their homes
Walter Delaney's body not taken out OF
the ruins until after nightfa and Thomas
Grady's body was not found until IN hour later
Before the bodies Of any of the killed could be
reached the men had to do much work with
saws and axes and it made especially diff
cult since the rescuers had to work under the
surface of the water.
Soon after the finding Of Grady's body the
timekeeper compared his list with that made
by the police and said everybody had been ac
counted for. He was greatly excited, however
and II may be that the opinions Of some OF the
men that more bodies Will be found are well
grounded.
The contract for the erection of the bridge was
originally awarded TO the Leonard Foley Con-
struction Company and by them almost immedi-
ately assigned to John p. Rogers & Son. of No
$40 East One hundred md twenty ffth-st.
The contract for the span or bridge proper
was awarded by Rogers & Son to the Edgemore
Bridge Works of Wilmington Del. Ii is said
however. that the superstructure was built by
Rogers q Sons and that the Wilmington firm
had nothing to do with II and is not RESPONSE
bic. The work was Immediately under the SUI
perintendence of James Headrck, of No. 101
NlS-aNe. He is emplOVpd hV Rogers e. Son
and was placed under arrest.
AN INSPECTOR THERE.
William Maloney Buildings Department in
srector. was on the superstructure and gave
some orders to the workmen about two minutes
before the collapse. James Thornton of the en-
gneer corps OF the Bridge Department, said the
oaisson for Pier No. 8 had 10 be sunk ninety
feet to reach bedrock, over thirty feet more
than had been expected. He thought IL posi-
bic that the men had not driven the piles deep
enough before erecting the superstructure
Others said there was much quicksand at that
point and that II is impossible to drive piles so
as to sustain great weights
Coroner Lynch, of The Bronx and his physi-
clan, DR.. Riegeman. were among the first Of the
city officials TO reach the place. and they at once
began an investigation and will continue 1t
until the responsibility is placed.
No member of the firm of Rogers & Son could
he found last night at the office. in one hundred
and-twenty -fifth-st.. nor elsewhere. young
man was found in their office and said he rep
resented Mr.. Rogers. He said Mr.. Rogers would
probably be able TO say very little on the sub
ject The work intrusted to the best men
we could find" he said. and we had perfect
confidence in them. We are very sorry that such
an accident should happen"
The injured men in the Harlem Hospital were
all resting easy at late hour last night, and all
are expected to recover except Charles Pursley.
His skull is fractured. and the surgeons regard
his condition as critical