Evening star., 1916-07-31
TWO ARE UNDER ARREST
AS RESPONSIBLE PARTIES
Charged With Manslaughter by
Storing Explosives, Violating
City, State and Federal Laws.
THREE DEAD; SCORES MISSING
Property Damage Is Now Estimated
at S2O.O6O,OOO and Several In
vestigations Are Already
Under Way.


Under Way.
NEW YORK, July 51.-Two
men are under arrest today on
warrants charging them with
manslaughter, indirectly causing
the death of one of the victims
of the terrific explosion of am
munition on Black Tom pier
early yesterday morning. Esti-
mates of the casualties early to-
day placed the number OF dead
at three, with three others NOR
}tally injured, thirty-fve suffer
sng from less serious injuries and
eleven to twenty missing. Esti-
mate of the property loss is
placed at $2O,O6O,OOO.
Many persons who were on
board barges moored at the
burned piers are missing, and it
: feared that they have perished.
II some quarters it was believed
he total number of dead would
,sch twelve.
Two Are Under Arrest.
Those under arrest were Albert NJ.
-.sman. agent OF the Lehigh Valley
.,-l!road. stationed at Black Tom pier.
i.id Alexander Davidson. superfntend-
eat of the warehouses of the National
Storage Company, thirteen of which
we're destroyed by the fire which fol-
lowed the explosions.
Dickman and Davidson were arraign-
cd charged with manslaughter and
held in $1,000 bail>for examination FRI
day
\ warrant was issued for the arrest
4 Theodore B. Johnson, president of a
.shtering company. one of whose
oarges. loaded with ammunition. is al
eyed to have been moored at the pier.
frank Hague. commissioner of pub
safety of Jersey City. charged that
either the Lehigh Valley Railroad Com
pany. the storage company or the
Hghterage company. and that some OF
them had violated the laws of New Jer-
sey. the Jersy City ordinances and the
rules OF the interstate commerce com
mission by permitting barges loaded
with explosives to remain moored at
the piers overnight These barges
were being used to transport the am
munition to steamers lying in Graves
end bay.
Several Investigations Begun.
Several Investigations were com
menced today TO discover the origin OF
the fire which caused the awful ex-
plosion that destroyed s5,000.000 worth
of ammunition. eighty-five freight cars.
set blazing ammunition barges adrift
to lombard the Statue of Liberty and
the Ellis Island immigration station
with shells and shrapnel and shattered
100000 worth Of windows in this city.
One of the Investigations is conducted
by Cot. Beverly w. Dunn. chief in
spector of the bureau OF explosives OF
the American Railway Association and
the interstate commerce commission.
He is aided by thirty inspectors.
The county prosecutor and city authori-
ties In Jersey City are making Invests ga
tions also 1t Is understood that agents
OF the Department OF Justice are making
inquiries TO learn whether the explosion
was the work Of an incendiary.
Claim Barge Violated Law.
Conflicting reports as to the cause OF
the fire are still circulated. Lehigh Val.
ley officials assert that an interloping
barge loaded with ammunition was
moored at their pier in defiance of their
orders and that the first explosion took
place on board that vessel. The commits.
sioner Of public safety says that -four
ammunition barges were at or near the
piers and that all Of them were destroyed
II Is feared their crews perished.
The big pier just west of the Statue
O. Liberty is today mass OF smoking
rr;ias with the debris piled hundreds OF
feet high in places. and with the fire
stil burning.
The work of repairing the damage 10
the buildings on Bedloes Island and
Ellis Island and in New York and
Jersey City began today. The immigra
tion station at Ellis Island had the ap-
pearance OF war-swept village, with
every window, shattered. the roof OF
rhe hospital caved in. the main door
blown away and the dining and execu-
iTe rooms wrecked while the islaid
was strewn with bits of shrapnei braken
glass and three-inch shells thrown ashore
from drifting barges. which had lombard
eli the island as they burned. The dam
age was estimated at $4,000.
Havoc Wrought on Bedloe's Island
The building on Bedloes Isla nd
with doors blown in and windows shat
tered showed the marks of an eight.
hour bombardment of shrapnel. iron
bolts and spokes. pieces Of steel and
chain. The roof of an iron warehouse
was ripped Off and the walls are r,iIl