The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1902-02-12
DYNAMITE SPREADS HAVOC
Explosion in a New York Tunnel
Causes Heavy Damage.
SIX KILLED; OVER 100 INJURED
A Lighted Candle Sets Fire to Shant,
whe-e q Quantity of Dynamite Rested
Two Hotels Ruined, Hospital
Wrecked and Residences Damaged
Property Loss Estimated at 81 900 900.


Wrecked and Residences Damaged
Property Loss Estimated at 81, 900 900.
New York City. - Dynamite car.
tridges in q frail shanty on platform
over the west shaft Of Section Of the
subway tunnel in Park avenue, just
south of Forty-first street, exploded
through fire which started among
paper in the shanty just after noon on
Monday with fatal, manning and In
juring results and wide destruction of
property. Six persons were killed by
the disaster and more than 125 were
Injured. few, however, Of them hav.
ing more serious hurts than cuts in.
f1icted by glass or wreckage.
The list of the dead Is as follows:
Cyrus Adams, cigar man, at the Muir.
ray Hill, Hotel; James Carr, waiter
employed at the Murray Hill Hotel;
Lawrence Hine, twenty years old, OF
Ansonia, Conn; J. Roderick Robert.
son, of Nelson, British Columbia, a
guest at the Murray Hill Hotel; John
II. Thompson, assistant engineer, and
Thomas Tubbs, master mechanic.
Moses Epps. one Of those injured
seriously and who is prisoner in the
Flower Hospital, made a statement
which fixes the cause of the accident
and places the responsibility for the
presence in the shanty Of more dyna.
mite than the law permits more or less
directly on the contractor for the work
in Section 4, Major Ira A., Shaler, who
was arrested shortly after the acct
dent. Epps stated that while the law
permitted only sixty-two pounds Of
dynamite to be kept at one time in the
shanty there were in it when he dis.
covered that paper on the floor was on
fire 5S5 pounds Of the explosive.
The explosion practically wrecked
the Murray Hill Hotel, killing a guest
and two employees, ruined the facades
of the Manhattan Eye and Ear Hospi-
tai and the Grand Union Hotel, and
seriously damaged the Forty-second
street front Of the Grand Central Sta
ton.
Minor damage was done for blocks
around, chiefly in the item of broken
glass and plastering, and the effects
Of the explosion were experienced In
this way over large area in the
neighborhood. The total Of property
loss is about $1,OOO,OOO. The damage
to subway property was comparatively
slight, and may be repaired within q
week.
The explosion was spoken Of by all
who heard it and who saw its imme-
diate results as the most violent in
point of noise, force and widespread
destruction that has occurred in the
United States from any cause. Sew.
eral had experiences in disasters Of a
similar nature and with fearful acci-
dents from gas, high explosives and
gunpowder.
One said that in many respects it re-
sembled the explosions due to gas
mixed in explosive proportions with
air in mains in the Tottenham Court
Road, London, in July, 1880. Another
said that the only parallel to it in
point of force exhibited and fatalities
and damage was the explosion on the
steamship Mcsel at Bremerhaven in
DeCeulDSI, IOto. 1dio CdLhS VI SiiLi
inal design, and the explosion was de-
tonated by clockwork devised by one
Thomas, who committed suicide.
District Attorney Jerome was prompt
In beginning an Investigation Of the
disaster. The investigation will be
thorough, and one Of it's results is like
ly to be the discovery that high eXplo-
sives have for long time been stored
along the subway where rock-blastiag
operations are conducted without re-
gard to legal limitations as to guam
t.ty.
There wac a clash of the authorities
whose duty it is to investigate the re-
spo1sibility for the disaster. Coroner
Coldenkranz, on hearing of the explo-
sion, empanelled a special jury to de-
eide what should be done with the
three men who first were placed un-
der arrest. District Attorney Jerome,
after leaving the scene Of the accident,
insisted that the Coroner was proceed
ing illegally. AS result Of the dis
pute there was personal encounter
between the District Attorney and a
Coroner's clerk.
Of the five persons who were placed
under arrest two arc held as iEpor-
tant witnesses. The others ere Ira A.
Shaler, who has the contract for that
section Of the subway; his foreman
and his assistant foreman. Pending
the result Of the inquest they were
held by the Coroner, each in $4,000
bail.
sURIEO TREASURE FOUND.