The Montgomery advertiser. [volume] (Montgomery, Ala.) 1885-1982, 1902-11-05
II KILLED OUTRIGHT
SLAIN WHILE AWAITING ELEC
TON RETURNS.
Mortars Become Overturned and
Hurled Their Projectiles Into
Packed Crowds of Human
ity-Many Received
Fatal Injuries.

New York, Nov. by a series of ex-
plosions of fire works tonight among the
vast multitude gathered in Madison
Square to witness the ascension of an air.
ship and the display of the election re-
turns. eleven persons were killed out
right, many being blown almost topieces.
and at least fifty injured. many of them
fatally.
1t is estimated that at least 10000 per-
sons thronged the Square at the time of
the explosion. which were succeeded by a
frightful panic, in which hundreds were
thrown and trampled under foot
Five hundred policemen and all the am
balances in the city were instantly sum-
moned, and the dying and those most
seriously injured were removed to the
hospitals. In addition to these, many
of the wounded were taken away by
friends. Nine men in charge of the fire.
works display were placed under arrest
Immediately after the explosion.
The list of the dead is-Policeman Den
mis- Shea; w. G. Finney, George Ritzle;
Harold Robley, five unknown men; I'M
known colored man; unknown colored
boy.
The densest portion of the throng that
packed the square was gathered along
Madison Avenue, close to the place re-
served for the discharge of the fire works.
Along the Garden, facing the avenue,
was arranged two groups of cast iron
mortars, twenty in each group, and load
ed with heavy bombs. A few minutes
after 10 o'clock the first row of mortars
was touched off, but before the discharge
took place. one of them fell over on its
side and the next instant the bomb was
shot into the thickest of the crowd, where
1t exploded and hurled the people into
heaps.
The fall of the mortar and the concus-
sion of the explosion knocked down the
rest of the row of moItars, and a thun-
dering volley of huge projectiles plowed
through the crowd. Almost instantane.
ously the second row OF twenty mortars
about 100 feet further up the avenue, dis
charged their contents into the crowd
and a moment later the third group, evil
IDENTIFY ignited by the showers of falling
sparks, exploded.
In the panic that ensued, thousands ran
blindly across the square tripping over
the seats and benches. and, falling, were
trampled upon. The police IN duty were
carried along by the rush and for half
an hour the widest confusion relgned.
After the smoke of the explosion had
cleared away, sixteen persons were found
lying on Madison Avenue between Twen-
ty-third and Twenty-fifth Streets. Scores
of injured were scattered about the Ave-
nue. and the Square. Among the dead was
a policeman who was standing close to
the first mortar and whose body was
frightfully mangled.
A force of 500 policemen were soon on
the spot and upwards of 100 physicians
and 200 nurses were summoned from the
hospitals every available vehicle being
pressed into service for the transporta-
ton of the wounded.
The following persons connected with
the fireworks company In charge of the
display. were arrested: Perry Temple.
Frank Listvan, James T. Allen. Edward
Smith, Herman Rogers, Charles Holland.
John Fullan.
None of them could give an explana-
ton Of how the explosion took place.