New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-09-15
Car Filled with Girls
Falls Six Stories,
Shoots to Roof.
ELEVEN IN LIFT
BUILT FOR EIGHT
Passengers Leap When 1t
Passes Floors-Oper-
atOr Held.

One woman was killed and five girls
seriously injured last evening when an
overloaded elevator in an eight-story
loft building at SO West Third street
got beyond control of the OPERATOR
dropped from the sixth floor to the bot
tom of the shaft at express speed, shot
to the roof, fell again, and finally
rushed upward.
The operator and two girls leaped 20
safety as the car reached the ground
floor the first time. Miss Edith
Fleshcher. of 609 Garden Street, Ho-
boken, also attempted to jump, but the
impact of the elevator against the
ground floor had reversed the lever and
the car spurted upward. She was
caught between the floor OF the ascend
ing elevator and the ceiling Of the hrst
floor and crushed to death.
Passengers Jump and Fall Out.
The elevator, filed with screaming
girls and running wild, sped up and
down the shaft, the frightened passen-
gers jumping or falling out at the
different floors, before the engineer OF
the building shut off the power.
Those whose injuries were brought
10 the attention of the police were
Miss Kate Fielder, seventeen years Old
of 263 East Tenth Street, contusions OF
the left ankle; Miss Jennie Strickler,
nineteen, of 60 Mangin Street, contu-
sions of the right leg; Miss Fannie
Zimmerman, nineteen, of ll9 Attorney
Street. contusions of right leg and cuts
and bruises on face; Miss Elizabeth
I'nper. seventeen, of $40 East Eighty
first Street. bruises on body and legs;
Miss Gussie Lucil. nineteen. OF 20i
West 144th Street, contuslons OF right
leg. h
All five, who are employed by Jacob
Elishowitz, hat manufacturer, on the
seventh floor of the building. were
treated By DR.. O'Rourke and DR.. Sal.
mon. Of st. Vncent's Hospital, and
later taken home.
Coroner Feinberg ordered the arrest
of Fred Small, colored, of 80 West l36th
Street. the elevator operator. lie was
locked up at the Mercer Street station
on a technical charge of homicide.
Car Was Overcrowded.
Small told Detectives Martin and
McGovern he ran the elevator TO the
eighth floor at 5:40 o'clock to carry
down the girls who were just getting
through work in the tailoring estab-
lishments. Four passengers got on at
the top floor and when he got down
TO the sixth floor he found fifteen or
twenty jammed against the gate. They
began crowding in and the operator
had trouble in closing the gate.
When Small looked around he count
! ed eleven women and girls IN the
car. The maximum capacity allowed
by law was eight. The operator re-
| monstrated with them.
"Three will have TO get OUT ne
said
! The girls nearest the door, in hurry
to get to the street, began Joking win
/ him. II,
/ you're just doing this to be mean,
| he told the detectives they SAID 10 MN,
"You can take US all if you want TO-.
Miss Flescher Usually Walked.
/ Among those who got on at the sixth
floor was Miss Flescher, an employe of
! the Olympic Dress Company. 1t was
the first time she was known to ride
down. She always used the stairs more
/ because she liked the exercise, accord.
/ ing TO a relative, than through lear oil
/ elevators. She was thirty-three years
/ old. >,
"oh. look who's here!" exclaimed
one of the girls in the car when she
saw her.
"Yes. I'm riding for q change %
night" Miss Flescher replied. 49,
II is believed she was showed into
the elevator playfully by the crowd on
the sixth floor.
i but as soon as he started, the car got
bevond his control. The doors at the
| grounnd floor were open and Small
| ro,,inued on page 3, column