The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-04-24
INDIGNANT OVER TRAGEDY OF THE
 CRASHING WALL
One Citizen Blames Commits sion for Tragedy, Another Criticizes Inefficiency
 of Rescue Work

Two letters expressing great indignation were received by The Age-Herald yester- day. One was from Noah T. Thomas. crit iezing the way rescue work was con- ducted after the Second avenue disast IT, and the other is from F. B. Orr of Ensley, who planes the commission for allowing the dangerous steele-s6ith walls to re- main after warning. The letters are as follows: FH
 To the Editor of The Age-Hersld.
 As a citizen of Birmingham, beg leave to express through your paper my feelings as a man regarding the disgraceful spec. tacle to which we have been treated in the handling of the rescue work at tie scene of the Steele-Smith wall disaster.
 Apparently from the time that the city officials took direct charge of this work through Mr., Gafford. the proceeding de- generated to a question of salvage first and there has certainly been enough tine spent in removing a small portion of the debris and goodly portion of the salvage to entirely the structures several times over. The fact that lives were to bt. saved or bodies removed has surely played
 
 ling the situation, where speed of opera ton should have been the first consdera- tion and from the point of view of one of the many volunteers who were forced to quit in order to let Gaffords niggers take hold. I wish to state the exhibition which has taken place in his handling of this work is a disgrace to the community, an insult to the intelligence of the people a,.d the most arrogant display of gross incom- petence that 1t has ever been my misfor- tune to witness. There has been much talk of investigations to determine the cause of this disaster, but think that the people of this community are due an in- vestigation of the methods used in the rescue work after the volunteers were forced to quit and the city officials took cirect charge.
 Incidentally, I was standing at the cor ner of Second avenue and Nineteenth street at the time the wall fell. Running up the street l was enabled to pe one of the first to enter the building of the At lantic and Pacific Tea company, where, excepting one or two intervals for rest, 1 remained working with many others until about g o'clock, when the city off cials stopped us. During this time there was no visible evidence of directing au- thority and the volunteers and fremen worked together as best they saw flt. Gradually, however, a sembance of order and system developed itself and the work was really progressing in a most efficient manner when the city authorities stepped in and must say that their best perform ance compared with the poorest showing lot the undirected volunteer workmen lxI C.. efficiency.
 wish to state here that among the orig inal volunteers who deserve great credit were many negroes who labored with the best, with sweating bodies and torn ard lacerated hands, and, it is not the fact that the city Is now using negro labor, while it is true that white would be pre-, ferable to do this work, that calls fer censure, but that these laborers are city prisoners with less than no incentive to get busy, and that the directing head Of the work, MT Gafford, is apparently well satisfied with the feeble efforts which these prisoners are making, and has wasted many valuable hours accomplish ing little for the time involved. Aside from other things this delay has caused much needless heartache and worry. and in the name of humanity alone the people are que an explanation. Yours very truly,
 NOAH T. THOMAS.
 Birmingham, April 2s, 1915. No. 1927 Gull
 1om street.
 To the Editor of The Age-HeraId.
 I notice in your today's issue that com missioners of Birmingham are going to hold an investigation, Ito md out who IS responsible for the terrible catastrophe that has just caused the loss of number of lives on Second avenue, and that has disgraced Birmingham in the eyes of the world. I want to ask you, MT. Editor, who is going to try or investigate these commissioners? As I understand it, they are the bosses of this city, all of the er.,- rlcyes are under their supervision. and if trey ascertained that the buSding inspcc- tor was allowing death trap to remain