The San Francisco call., 1905-03-08
TRAVEL IN
NEW YORK
DISORDERED
Green Men Are Cause
OF q Disastrous
Collision.
Accident in Which Twenty.
Nine Are Hurt Ma::kS the
First Day Of Strike.
More Than a Million People Dependent
on Rapid Transit Lines Suffer
Inconvenience.

NEW YORK. March with one
collision in which twenty nine persons
were injured and none killed, New
York has passed through the first day
Of the general strike on its rapid tran
sit system. BY this accident and some
minor casualties due to the abnormal
conditions, the sum total of the day
was annoyance and vexation to a mil
lion ror more people usually dependent
upon the Interborough's line for trans
portation to and from business. So far
there has been little disorder Sporadic
encounters between individuals, some
bad language and the action of a few
hoodlums in throwing missiles at pass
ing elevated trains tell this phase of
the strike. The annoyance to the null
titude was increased by a wet snow
which began falling this afternoon
Service on the elevated roads and sub
way, while not tied up, was crippled
badly. Trains were run on irregular
schedules in the underground, begin
ming with the early morning. but the
elevated lines did not fare so well. On
the East Side practically no attempt
was made to institute a service. while
the Sixth and Ninth avenue lines which
serve the West Side were run in a
fashion woefully inadequate In fact,
the elevated system of the INTERIOR
ough's lines was pretty we'll paralyzed.
The company's entire energy seemed
to be directed to an effort to maintain
service in the subway, and in this il
was partially successful. Strike break
er Farley and his crew of 700 or 500
men were thrown into the tunnel; Off
Gals of the company gave this system
their personal attention and an enor-
NOUS number of policemen were de-
tailed to the trains and stations. The
attempt to run express trains was
abandoned early in the day Every
available man was put on the locals
and fairly good schedule was main
tanned during the evening rush hours
until the accident at Twenty-third
street took place. This upset things.
but after strenuous effort they we~e
Strengthened out and a service Wa re-
sumed on headway of from five to
seven minutes.
The accident at Twenty-third street
was in the nature of rear-end colli-
sion, due, it is said, to the inexperience
Of the men on the trains Two cars
had their ends smashed in and there
was a panic among the scores of pas
sengers. OF the injured fifteen were so
severely hurt that they had to be sent
to the hospitals. Traffic was delayed
for more than two hours, from 5 o'clock
II
bound uptown had just drawn into
Twenty-third street station and some
Of the passengers were about to alight
there when there came a crash as a
train which had left the bridge only
thirty seconds after the first train
dashed into the first train standing
at Twenty-third street. The rear car
on the first train was forced into the
rear Of the car just ahead. All of the
iehf ~ he GrSf IN,
a moment later were heard the cries
of the injured and panic-stricken pas
sengers. Those who were standing in
the two rear cars of the rear train and
the first two cars of the second train
were thrown to the floor. The passen-
gers standing on the platform of the
last two cars of the first train were
caught as in a wise. It was here that
all Of those who were hurt received
their injuries.
Policemen and firemen were sum
moned to chop the cars apart and
rescue the imprisoned. 1t was fifteen
minutes before the first of the victims
were released. Meantime, some of the
cooler of the passengers in the train
had lighted matches in the cars and
were assisting the women to the doors
at the unbroken ends of the two cars
and IN few minutes men and women
were being passed through the broken
windows TO the platform. Some of
them were carried across the tracks TO
the downtown station
The fremen worked for more than an
hour before they were able to remove
the last of the injured passengers from
the car.
Mayor George b. Mcclellan late this
afternoon reached the conclusion that
the transportation question had as
sumed such serious aspect that 1t