New-York tribune., 1912-04-19
CROWDS EARLY ARRIVAL
KEPT POLICE HUSTL|NC
Sur1ing Mass of Humanity
Crushed Guards Back Near
" Over Rivers Brink.
STREAM OF TAXIS TO PIER
Friends and Relatives, with
Bowed Heads, Mournfully Wait
While Carpathia, in Drench-
ing Rain, Warps Into Pier.

4 seethng. surginP mass of persons. esti-
mated by the police at between ono hun
dred thousand and one hundred and ifty
thousand. was gathered between 18TH and
18th streets. north and south. and EXTENDED
as far east as Ninth avenue. on tho west
side Of this great square the crowd was
hemmed In nv doubled police lines, the
patrolmen locking arms and standing shoul-
der 70 shoulder in an effort to keep the
half crazed people I'm partial restraint
Between Tenth avenue and West street.
and 18th and 18th streets. again. only per
sons with special Cunard Line passes and
newspaper men with police cards were per
mttod The inner. and most rigid police
line. was formed on tho oasten side ~
West street, from 18th to- 18th street and
extended west az far as the North River
Here only those with relatives aboard the
Carpathia and persons who had lost friends
or relatives in the sinking OF the Titanic
were permitted.
Time and again the strong Gordon created
by the police was swept into a withering.
struggling line by the sheer lmmenSity of
numbers OF the thousands who struggled
| to get yet closer 10 the pier where the ship
was discharging her afflicted passengers
Although in tractable mood before tho
actual arrival OF the Carpat thia at her pier,
the great crowd lost all restraint when II
was known that the survivors Of the disits.
ster at sea were leaving the boat Rumors
| OF men and women who had survived the
horrors Of the Titanic's end only TO 20
| suddenly violently insane when thcy
realized that at last they were safe reached
| the ears OF many in that army of frantic
persons and caused them to become crazed
by the horror of the thing Men charged
the police lines with lowered heads, only
to be thrown back upon those who were
| directly in their rear.
Feared They'd Fall in River.
| Tho police. trained In handling great
| gatherings in times OF disorder and vio-
! lcnce, were at times powcrless before the
| fury Of those who wished TO get closer
dew OF what was going on at the Car
| pathias pier. inspectors McClusky and
Leahy, I'm command Of the police arrange
| uent5, ran up and down the wavering lines
o. patrolmen, urging. exhorting, demanding
! that the men keep the crowd back. They
feared the consequences If the crowd once
! lot its head and began 10 sweep toward the
| river.
| When the foot patrolmen were occasion
ally repulsed by the storming army on their
| flank, squadrOns OF mounted patrolmen
dashed forward, ruthlessly riding down
those who would not heed tho police clubs.
| Ir that mad rush. with the hard pressed
! police struggling for the mastery with the
| crowds women We're treated as harshly as
| the men. No other methods would have
| succeeded and the police knew it.
Despite Mayor Gaynors strict orders 10
the police that all photographers who at
! tempted to take pictures should he arrest
/ ed. the darkness OF the night was lightened
| by the binding glare of flashlights again
and again. Women blocks away from the
Cunard piers who had not even caught a
| glimpse Of any of the survivors. became
| hysterical and uncomfortable upon several
occasions when one Of these flashes went
| off in their vicinity The pent-up excite
/ flent under which they had labored pre-
vious TO the arrival OF the ship needed but
scch an Incident TO set 1t into flame.
| One feature OF the wild night along the
river front. glaring disregard Of the time
OF stress and sorrow. was the uninter-
rupted traffic maintained by the freight
trains OF the New York Central Railroad on
Its Eleventh avenue tracks
During all the time of the dscharging OF
the Titanic survivors the yard engines piled
up and down the tracks, which are on a
level with the streets. and on many oc-
casions narrowly missed crushing persons
who had ventured beyond the street. The
Efforts OF the police to have traffic discon-
tinued until after the Carpathia had dis
charged her passengers were unsuccess-
iui. Inc trains kept to their schedule,
WINE the thousands who desired TO pass
rrom either side Of the avenue were forced
20 risk their lives between moving lines of
freight cars.
This city has never seen such another