The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1916-10-10
1871 r!
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hOGE
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magazine, as quick as he could fire. He
was not conscious that, some seconds
before, he had emptied his magazine
and was SIMPLY pulling at the trigger
until Houston spoke to him
The first of the charging troops
they had almost gained the tower at
the west end of the great central span
vanished altogether. The roadway
upon which they ran pulled upward
and was lost in great black burst
of smoke and dust. From the cloud
fell dots of debris, bodies, and turn
ing, tumbling forms which might be
men still, and dropped into the river
below. Farther out between the bridge
towers the roadway simultaneously
was blown up. 1t stopped the specks
caught in between. but stopped them
only for moment. More men
emerged from the smoke, and the sur
yivors on the span went ON. The dy
Mantle which the Americans had laid
under the bridge had failed to de
stroy all the floor for the specks pass
ed the places where the mines had ex-
ploded. They were reinforced and
came on.
The American machine guys clat
tered again. but the troops of the re-
gent rushed, defiant They passed the
piers and ran on when. behind them
mighty. thunderous detonation-a
conclusion of shock more than a noise
shook N "a. as 1t was vibrating all
the rest Of the water front. The clouds
of smoke and dust rose this time from
the base of the great bridge towers
near the New York shore-the other
towers already were lost I'm haze-and
as the cloud cleared the great towers
tottered and crumpled.
Down upon the river, down, down
slowly, evenly at first, and now faster
and faster, the whole mighty span of
Brooklyn bridge was falling with the
towers breaking above it. Down 1t
fell with its thousands Of specks which
were men upon it Down. 1t was just
above the water. Now it met the wat
er. The concussion, the thunder of
the meeting rumbled and rumbled
Like Titan's tuning fork. thousand
yards all trembling. the bridge lay on
the water. Now 1t was sinking. The
towers had come down on the roadway.
and as they crashed they seemed TO
bear the whole bridge below The tidal
wave from the impact dashed against
the docks before N "a and Travelled
on up the river. Now the water seem
was a maelstrom. 1t swirled ny and
over the tiny stubs which had been
tower piers. The American artillery,
which had ceased firing when the
bridge was falling, doomed back to the
guns on the other side the volley of
requiem. Brooklyn bridge was gone.
Figures were struggling in the water
above the maelstrom. Little boats
craft whose purpose could only be to
pick up those drowning men-Dut out
from the New York shore toward the
whirlpools. Shells from the other side
screamed at the little boats, warned
them. Then sunk one. The rest turn
ed back An hour later Jim Ashby
saw from his window at n "a the
steel towers and spans Of Manhattan
bridge fall into the river. Williams
burg bridge and the tunnels, too. were
destroyed, he heard that night. Queens
boro bridge. across Blackwelps island
would follow the others into the river
as soon az the enemy attempted to
storm It.
But the regents generals were send
ing no more men across steel spans to
test the American temper. They were
Smelling Manhattan thoroughly. sys.
tematically. with their great siege
pieces and howitZers placed in the
parks of Brooklyn and the fields on
Long Island At midnight, for the
himself-his headquarters were then
near Richmond Hill-sent an appeal by
wireless to the neutral ministers al
Washington to use their influence with
the president to bring about the sur
render of New York. which was being
refused by the American madmall-
General Stone-in the face OF com
pletely hopeless military situation.
Americans of the greatest power and
influence were already urging the presi
dent to the same object. Most of then
had fed from New York that day The
others had heard directly of conditions
The general staff was mad. Stone was
rorticuIarI insane Bainbridge who
commanded the American army In New
York city, was fool. He had beer
beaten on Long Island, and with the
regents army in Brooklyn commanding
New York city. he had been out
Unanswered and fianked out of the city
He could not stay there; he must know
that. But he refused to go, and tht
general staff refused to order him out