The Washington herald., 1906-10-30

vorce.
of the watchers were people who believed
that some Of their loved ones were down
! in the cars, and d few OF the bodies that
were taken up were Identified before they
were taken to Atlantic City When dawn
broke the crowd on The shores had
thinned, for most CT the anxious folk had
tramped down the dark roadway into
town and to the old theater building
The first bodies to arrive in Atlantic
City were taken 10 police headquarters
and others were distributed among the
various undertaking establishments. But
before midnight. on the orders OF Coroner
Gaskill. all the dead were taken TO the
Empire Theater.
IS fast as they were brought in they
were ranged in rows along the right side
Of the bare han, and the out clothing and
wraps were piled in the orchestra trench.
Identified by Numbers.
At the scene Of the wreck Prosecutor
Albertson. and Police Chief Woodruff,
tagged ali the bodies and removed all
valuables. placing these in separate bags
with corresponding numbers. Many iden-
]
jCwelry that was put in these little sacks,
Hardly had the first body been brought
10 the dingy cid building when q throug
CT people gathered outside OF the placa
and began to clam0r for admittance.
Some were hystericaL others kept silence
with lips drawn thin, and hands cIeuched
One woman sat upon the curb across
the street and rocked slowly back and
forth. half droning and half mumbling
some sort O1 q song. while her eyes were
kept fixed on the door. through which
her son had passed in search OF his
brother.
So great did the crowd Of the afflicted
and the curious become that the police
had 20 shove back the people from the
doors, rope Oft the sidewalks. and rigor-
ousiy examine every one seeking admit
tanee, as to the nature OF the errand that
brought them there. All plight and all
to-day this police guard had 20 be MAIN
tanned against the hundreds of morbidly
curious that sought to get entrance
through the lines.
One wagon that drove up to the door
of the theater contained the bodies Of
three children. One was that Of a little
girl Of five, Olivia McElroy She had long
yellow CurlS. and she was dressed in a
neat coat OF gray She lay in the wagon
next % the body OF colored boy, and
they took both bodies out together, laid
them next TO each other on the floor OF
the theater, and tagged them with num-
bers in succession.
Recognizes BaBy's Ring.
When Andrew AIcElroy. who lives a.
2)29 Green street, Philadelphia. and who
had waited for the arrival OF his wife
and two children at the station in At
lantic City on Sunday, came into the
dimly lighted room and passed down the
aisies- Of the dead, he stopped short at
the sight of one red-mitted hand tina.
showed from beneath the sheet He stop
ped and picked up the hand, drew of
the mitten and turned over the fingers
until he could see the tiny baby ring that
was on one Of them.
Don't show me the face; oh. don't show
me the face" he screamed. I know.
oh, God, 1 know" and then ne dropped
to the floor in 2 faint.
When they had taken him out and re-
vived him he came back and recognized
his wite's body without the trcmor of a
muscle in his set face. Then he hunted
all down the rows for the body of his
baby, but he could not discover It. That
is Probably one Of the bodies washed
down the channel by the tide.
William Hayes, when he found the
corpse Of his sister. Gertrude Hayes. went
into violent Mysteries. He rolled on the
floor in the lane between the bodies,
shrieked and laughed. He had 10 be
forcibly calmed by three men. and was
afterward treated by a physician.
The helpers brought in the body Of Dr.
Alvan l.. Hudders. a prominent physi-
clan ot Philadelphia, who lived at Ly-
ceum avenue and Mitchell street Rox-
borough. DR. Hudders had numbered his
many friends in the clubs and summer
places by the scores. He was tagged
number =. and as g he lay on the floor
OF the theater for several hours. until
Mrs. German, of 1873 Pacific avenue, this
city, stopped before his body and spoke
his name TO the coroner's assistant. who
sat on the stage and took down the rec
ord or the dead in his book.
Diamonds on Dead Woman.
Mrs. Hudders had been found by the
side OF her husband. On her fingers and
in brooch at her breast, there were dia-
monds. which had been removed and
tagged by the watchers at the waterside.
During all the night and until the
smoky gas jets in the bare theater began
TO pale before the gray light OF morn
ing. the rows Of dead We're made longer,
and the man sitting of the stage IN front
Of the back drop painted to represent the
hall of some palace Of dreams, made en-
tries in his book. During all the night
and even early in the morning, before the
Identification Of all the victims had been
made complete. there was the shuffilng Of
feet and the occasional quick scream Of
recognition.
As TO the cause Of the accident there
seems 10 De only one answer possible:
THE drawbridge mechanism did not lock
properly. and the outside rail on the draw
span was not in alignment with its mate
on the solid span" The Pennsylvania
Railroad officials have been trying to dis
prove this ali day. Over and over they
have operated the draw TO show the cor
oner's jury and other Investigators how it
was mechanically impossible for the
draw not to have locked.
And each time they worked their levers
and hydraulic lifts, the bridge did lock,
CONTINUED ON THIRD PAGE.