Evening journal., 1902-05-28
ONR MAN KILLED
SCORES BADLY HURT
By The Collapse Of a Tem-
pOrary Sidewalk
Accident Happened While Crowd
Watched Military Parade-COn-
tractor Is Under Arrest

New York, May 2S.-Elvin L. Cool
idge. circulation manager OF the New
York Commercial, was almost instant
ly killed and about 100 others injured
last evening by the breaking down Of
Q temporary sidewalk at Fifth avenue
and Eighteenth street. Some Of those
injured may die. Those who fell We're
part of the crowd gathered to watch
the parade of militia in honor OF the
visit of the French Rochambeau com
mission to this city.
Two hundred persons were on the
sidewalk when it gave way. They were
precipitated 20 feet into an excavation
for a new building, and fell upon piles
of building material.
The accident occurred just as the
head of the parade had passed the
corner. The French visitors had gone
past. and knew nothing of the accident
until some time later.
Troop c had Just ridden by and the
Twenty-second Regiment was passing
when the crash came. The officers in
command at once gave the order to
break ranks, and 80 militiamen were
detailed to the work Of rescue. Hurry
calls were sent for police reserves and
ambulances, and in a very short time
those who fell We're assisted out Of the
excavation, and the work of binding
up wounds and conveying those most
injured to hospitals was in full swing.
The authorities are busy cndeavoring
to discover who was to blame for the
accident. Coroner Scholer says the
sidewalk had not been built of material
strong enough to stand such a great
weight as burdened it last evening. He
said the real cause of the accident was
the giving way of an upright timber,
12 by 12 inches in dimensions,
that extended from the bottom of the
excavation to the cross beams on which
the sidewalk rested. About three feet
Of this timber, he said, was rotten and
very weak. Considering the nature of
the accident and the number of per-
sons in it, the hospital surgeans ex-
press surprise at the few who received
serious hurts Many were able to so
directly home after having their in
juries treated by the ambulance sur
geons. e. L. Coolidge, who was killed,
received a fracture of the skull. He
leaves a widow and four children.
Early in the afternoon the police Of
ficials became suspicious of the
strength of the sidewalk and a detail
for hours kept the crowd from col
lecting upon it. But as the time for
the parade to pass came near the
crowd became unmanageable, and in
spite of force on the part of the police
crowded onto the forbidden sidewalk
and there stayed until the breaking of
the support landed them in the ex-
cavation.
The coroner ordered the arrest of
Contractor Cowan and Of ]. G.. Miller,
the sub-contractor. Mr.. Cowan, how
ever, had heard of the accident, and
went to the police station, where be
saw the coroner. Cowan explained that
he was not responsible for the acci-
dent and promised to appear at the
inquest in case he was wanted. James
Lawton, foreman of the work at the
building, was arrested by the police
and later allowed to go under bail OF
$1,000, a charge of homicide having
been placed against him. The con-
tractor, sub-contractor and foreman in
sist that they warned the police tc
keep the crowd off the sidewalk as il
was not built to stand so great 9
strain.