Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1911-02-02
$4,000 Pounds of Dyna-
mite at New York Not
Ignited.
SAME QUANTITY WAS
Estimated That 80 Were Killed
and Property Loss of
100000 Inflicted.

New York. Feb. 2.-The total Of dead
and missing in yesterdays explosion
IS now placed at 80. The coroner has
q list of seven, and thai official be
Aeves most Of the % men missing
were blown TO atoms.
Property loss estimates vary from
$50, 900 to $1,000, 900.
MIGHT HAVE BEEN DOUBLED.
The dynamite that exploded is esti-
mated at $4,000 pounds. There was.
however, marvellous escape from a
bigger disaster. for there was another
30 900 pounds of the explosives in cars
within 100 feet of that which blew up
BOXES sTREwN ABOUT.
The cars which contained il were
twisted and torn and the boxes strewn
on every side, but the dynamite, thick
with the dust and debris of the explO-
sion, was unharmed and intact.
FIVE BODIES FOUND.
Only FIVE bodies have been recover
ed up to noon and the names of only
nine missing are known. Nearly a
score OF iaborers, names unknown,
who were on the pier when the explo-
sion occurred are unaccounted for.
PROBABLY DROPPED CASE.
The cause OF the explosion is at
trbuted to the dropping of a case OF
dynamite but just what was the direct
cause probably never Will be known.
Vice President Besler of the Central
railroad of New Jersey explained the
dynamite probably was being unloaded
by sliding the 80 pound boxes down
an inclined plane.
man stationed by the box is sup
posed to guide it and prevent its slip
ping down with dangerous force. The
probability is that one of the men so
employed might have lost his grip.
The Jersey Central terminal. $50
yards north, was wrecked; three ferry
tboats in the slips we're torn and splint-
,ered, lower New York city across the
qiver was shaken from the street level
10 the top OF the Singer tower: damage
was done in Brooklyn and Staten is
5and and TO the immigrant detention
etation on Ellis island.
FELT A. MILES AWAY.
The shock was felt at Amityville, L.
J.. 35 miles distant, and in New Jere
sey, at Long Beach. - miles away.
The damage is SO widely scattered
that It is impossible TO more than
roughly estimate it. but in Manhattan
St is placed al 100000 and on Ellis !
ISLAND at from 10000 10 $4,000.
The lighter receiving the dynamite, /
the Katharine w, owned by James
Healing of Jersey City, vanished utter /
ly with her crew of seven men. includ- (
ing the master. Edward Trayer.
Alongside was the lighter Whistler. /
which was so badly shattered ii sank /.
with its crew of two. while the Swed- .
Ssh steel harkentine Ingrid was strip
ped of its rigging and the lives of two
deck hands aboard snuffed out. Frag-
ments OF a mans head were. found
swinging on tangled piece of rope.
The Katharine W. was tied 10 the
outer end of the pier, and a crew of
deck hands was unloading so pound
boxes from two freight cars
IN PUFFS OF SMOKE.
With the explosion the Katharine /
w simply disappeared: not a splinter
jof it has been found Only the Whist .
1er's flag pole has been found. The
freight car went up in a puff of dust !
On the rear deck of the barkentine
Ingrid were found a pair of iron
trucks. They may be the trucks of .
the dynamite car or of one OF the other .
four cars standing near, that We're al .
so torn TO bits.
Fifty yards back stood another car /
OF dynamite The explosion ripped of .
Ehe roof of il and broke in the doors,
but the dynamite itself held true and
rested quiescent in its wooden boxes.
On board the Ingrid the steel miz-
Eenmast snapped of above the lower
yard. and the tangled 'wreckage went
sumbling about the decks Everything
abaft the mizzenmsst was leyeled fat,
but the steel plates OF the hull held
stoutly and showed not even mark.
LOOKED LIKE Old HAT.
For 100 feet the pier end itself was
utterly demolished. The plankinS
seemed TO have been ground TO pow
der. Thezfew splinters left were an
utterly inadequate account of its bulky
substance OF girders. planking, cross
stays and massive framework of a pier
built to uphold locomotives and loaded
trains =
over the broken edges twisted the I
steel rails of track. \ steel gOndola
car on the soUthernmost track looked :