The Washington times., 1901-08-30
ACCIDENT AT THE CAPITOL
A Temporary Roof COllapses Over
the Supreme Court Room.
Three Lnborcrs Injured by Being
Precipitafed to the Floor Below
Visitors Narrowly Escape Falling
Debris-The Disaster Anticipated.

At the Capitol three colored laborers
were injured yesterday shortly after noon
| by being precipitated with a mass of
| heavy building debris to the floor below,
| by the collapse of temporary roof over
the United States Supreme Court cham
Der. The men miraculously escaped death.
| The injured men, with three others,
We're clearing away pile of planking and
| plastering which threatened disaster
when the accident occurred. The fact
| that it was lunch hour and that the work
men in the Supreme Court room proper
had ceased work for the time prevented
more serious results. party of
sightseers, who We're just about to
enter the Supreme Court cham
Der under the escort of Albert Dougherty
a Capitol guide, barely escaped being en-
tombed under the falling debris.
Those injured are:
w. Poindexter colored, thirty years old,
of 1884 Pierce Place, right shoulder dislo-
Gated and bruised about the arms and
back
Dallas Jones, colored, forty-one years
old, of Arlington, Va, hip and back sew
erely bruised.
E. Minor, colored, twenty-eight years of
age, of Charlottesville, Va, right hip
sprained. and right leg bruised.
The injured were taken to the Elmer
gency Hospital in the hospital ambulance.
None is in a serious condition, and it is
expected that they will soon be able to
leave the hospital. Jones, it was supposed
at the time of the accident was hurt in
ternally, but it was learned at the hospital
that this was not the case.
The Supreme Court room is on the east
side of the Capitol. on the top floor,
just north of the east entrance to the
building.
Extensive alterations to the Capitol
have been in progress for some time.
Richardson & Burgess being the contract
ors in charge of the work. The Supreme
Court room had been entirely cleaned out,
and the original roof had been removed
and replaced by a temporary one, sup
ported on by u inch beams. These were
supported by upright scaffoldings and
by the walls of the room. A thin
planking formed the roof itself.
During the forenoon the laborers had
been working on the east side of the
building, clearing out the roof on that
side. The plastering, planking. beams.
and iron Orders had been carried to the
east side, where large shute is situated,
"
rial to the ground. The debris had col
lected faster than it could be disposed
of by the shute, and was allowed to ac-
cumulate upon the temporary roof over
the Supreme Court Room.
Shortly before noon a boy called the at
tention of ]. r. Fain, an engineer In the
office of Assistant Architect Woods, who
was experimenting the work. to the fact
that one of the beams supporting the
temporary roof was cracking. The dam
ger of a collapse was realized by Mr..
Fain, who decided at once to relieve the
pressure.
Taking six laborers with him he started
the work of clearing the roof of the de-
bris. While the men were working the city
clocks struck twelve, and most of the
workmen stopped. Mr. Fain determined
to work through the noon hour in the
effort to clear away the debris. He warn
ed the men not to walk on the weak
parts of the roof, but to pull the large
pieces of lumber from the side OF the pile,
where the support to the roof was strong
er, and the weight from above less. Most
of the workmen observed this. direction,
but some of them found it more conven-
lent to take the beams from the top of
the pile than to pull them out from I'M
derneath.
One of the workmen, whose name is
Poindexter, is understood to have seized
hold of a huge piece Of lumber from the
pile. and thrown it down on the Temporal
~ roof. The roof Immediately collapsed
without further warning and the three
men were precipitated below.
Policeman Woertendyke, of the Capitol
force, who was duty at the door of
the Supreme Court, Immediately notified
Lieut.. Fred p. Lincoln, in charge of the
Capitol police, and an ambulance was
The injured men were helped
out of the mass of plaster and woodwork.
and il was thought that Jones was most
injured. On the arrival of the
the men were taken to the
Emergency Hospital.
Mr. Fain, who was experimenting the
the Capitol, stated that when he observ-
cd the cracked beam he had anticipated
the accident. and hoped to prevent ii by
promptly having the weight removed. He
expected that a collapse would have brok-
en- through the floor of the Supreme
Court room. and have done incalculahle
to the Supreme Court library
which Is located In the room Immediately
below.
Colonel Snow, n wcll-known Capitol
guide had but a moment before the acct
dent been standing below the unstable roof
with "a large party of strangers The door
TO the Supreme Court room had just been
opened by Albert Doughcrty. guide, who
had with him "A party consisting OF three
gentlemen two ladies, and three children.
when the accident occurred, and number
of the party barely escaped being struck
by falling bricks and timbers. 1t Is stated
that one of the gentlemen of this party
AT the time was focusing Il pocket ''kodac''
and snapped the catch at the very moment