The Washington herald., 1906-10-30

most twenty hours Of cropping in the
bottoms Of the three submerged cars Of
the Atlantic City electric line that lie at
the bottom of the Thoroughfare. a mne
from here, the divers reported that no
more bodies were to he found. Fifty-one
corpses had been brought 10 the light 10
register the tally of destruction, and one
Of those injured in the crash of cars on
Sunday afternoon died in the hospital
here this afternoon.
Though al Of the victims OF the wreck
had been identified by o'clock this after
noon and the work of removing the
bodies had been commenced, the swarm
Of humanity that had battled with the
police ell day in front of the old Empire
Theater. which has served as a temporary
repository for the dead. persisted in an
effort TO swarm into the building and
range the aisle Of sheeted bodies in NOR
old curiosity. The officers had to use
their clubs and rope of the sidewalks
10 stem the tide of curious sightseers.
Come 10 Find Relatives.
Al day long the streets in the vicin-
ity of the theater have been crowded
with people. Every train from Phila-
deiphia brought new additions to the
crowd There were some who came TO
ind their dead in the number Of swathod
forms that lined the side Of the theater.
The majority came to look. When
they We're debarred from the theater by
orders OF Mayor Stoy they fingered in the
street or walked out to the bridge across
the Thoroughfare, where the heavy
wrecking cranes were straining to drag
the three steel death traps out OF the
oOze of the muddy channel.
Though the divers had been through
each OF the three cars many times since
the last body was raised 10 the surface
ine bciief persists that there are fully
dozen more whose bodies have been
washed out Of the broken windows of
the cars and carried down stream by the
strong tide.
There = q list Of seven names Of per-
Sons yet unacccGnted for. In search tor
these possible victims OF the wreck there
arc now several boats with grappline
hooks and oyster rakes plying tho chan
rei both above and below the spot where
'iic cars took the leap. Before morning
tie iist ot the dead may be added TO-
watch Divers at work.
Last night was a weird night out along
the muddy shores Of the Thoroughfare
and in the dimIy-lightcd interior of tho
Empire TTeater building. In both places
The stamp OF the tragedy was set heavily.
Through the long hours Of darkness hum
dreds OF folk banked each side of the
ffty-foot stream Of water, silently watch
ing the bright spot IN the middle OF the
stream where the headlights of two loco
motives, drawn up 1T each end of the
trestIe, had been directed.
In the center Of the circle Of yellow
light, white bubbles rose to the surface
and broke with a phythmetic precision.
he diver was down there.
For minutes the regular puff-puff of tn.
air pumping machine on the divers float.
would punctuate the stiffness and mark
The tension of the watchers. Then a mis-
shaped bulb of metal would rise 10 the
circle OF light, and the head and should
ers OF the diver break the surface of the
water into ripples.
\ man stood on the edge Of the float
With rope This he would pass 10 the
srotesque figure IN the water. One hitch
the diver would make OF the henr,
around the heavy bundle in his arms, and
Lhen the dripping body would be drawn
onto the float and huTriedly taken ashore
m z skin, 10 be ranged along with others
in the wagon.
Placed on Special Train.
Hour after hour, night passed. thus. The
tally OF the dead rose with each breaking
of the yellow waters by that misshaped
bulb Of copper, and those on shore kent
count under their breath. As fast as the
srisly freight from the sunken cars was
brought 10 shore it was taken in a cart
10 the tracks of the Reading Railroad.
few hundred yards down the stream.
md tbere the transfer 20 the special train
was made
At o'clock the divers. who had been
relieving each other by turn. dropped on
the floor Of the float exhausted. At 4:9o a
special train from Camden brought three
fresh divers to the scene. and just as the
morning was breaking they resumed the
work that had dragged through rhe night
IT was perilous work
The men in the heavy lead fimmed
suits had 10 pTy their way int the cars
through the window caseme-tsf rand in
some Instances batter in thu ss to
make way for their bodies. ss side
the cars they found Jagged ir, nd
twisted brackets to foul their pipes and
threaten them with the same death that
had come to the shadowy figures piled I'D
at their feet.
Diver Tells OF Sights.
one Of the divers signaled that his he'll
met should be unscrewed when he had
come to the surface with the body of a
little yellow-haired girl in his arms.
IT'S like pulling cOrdEOOd out Of
fallen pile" he said, when his face was
free ''They are piled up at the end OF
the first car so thick that su have 20
climb over them to get a hold
At 2:45 O'Clock the last body 10 be taken
from the wreck was passed out 10 the
men waiting on the float Yet the divers
continued searching under the seats of the
submerged cars and in me ooze about the
sunken trucks for the bodies Of others.
who have not yet been accounted for.
All during the day the divers al times
went down in further search Of the bot
tom about the cars. but with no result
Any bodies that might have been washed
out OF the windows Of the cars by the
tide arc believed TO have been carried
some distance from the cars.
Crowd Lines the hanks.
During all the night and until the FIRST
1frhf of Taxvr, tho crowd 0f black ohapas