The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1917-01-13
EXPLOSION
RATTL Ed NE" YORK
CONTINUED from page l.,

window panes ratified to the ground
Machinery. in small factories In has
keI. Midvale, Bloomingdale and other
small towns nearby jumped from tnell
bases and tumbled about, smashing
floors and ceilings and In some IN
stances wrecking buildings.
Instantly the black night sky hareo
red from the burning powder plant
Thousands of people throughout New
York, New Jersey. Massachusetts ana
Connecticut, felt the rumbling jar OF
the explosion and from windows as Tar
as Albany, looked out and saw the
fire light leaping against the SKY.
Buildings four miles from the scene
of the blow up were wrecked. WINDOWS
were smashed fifteen miles away ana
automobiles Ave miles from the place
were blown from the road.
Many Lives Reported Lost.
N.W YORK, Jan. 13.-Reports OF
heavy loss Of life as result OF tue
explosion OF tons Of powder at the
Haskell, n. J., DUPONT plant last
night were circulated today In various
New Jersey towns A sergeant OF the
Pompton Lakes police, declared TWEEN
ty-seven were killed. He announced
his estimate after talking with sur
wing woTknsr. One OF the DUPONT
company doctors was quoted by the
sergeant, as saying he had counteu
eleven dead.
Members OF the Pornpton Lakes. N.
j. police force, familiar with expio-
stons which have bssn numerous =
the vicinity OF last NIGHTS blasts, de-
clared II alwayes is hard to name the
number OF dead. They said That az
the first blast. workers always start to
run. many OF them running so far they
never come back. Counting of noses
under such conditions. it was stated,
avaiIs little.
II always Is the com pany's practice.
these men stated, to say nothing
about the number Of dead. The pu-
POINT statement accounts for only
two missing.
Hints of incendiarism in connection
with the blaze which caused the eH-
pIosions are many. James Lynch. su-
perintendent Of the plant, said the fire
started in a glazing barrel cylfn-
derical niece Of machinery in which
powder is mixed with graphite to re-
duce friction. From here, he said, II
spread to a magazine In which was
400 900 mounds Of smokeless powder
to be used in cartridges for machine
guns. This caused the big explosion,
he stated.
Not a house in the village OF Pomp-
on Lakes has a whole window today.
Houses belonging to the company and
located three-fourth of a mile away,
were lifted from their foundations
and flung twisted and broken, to the
ground.
A report that guards at the plant
| had beaten back the men when they
started to run. was denied by eye
witnesses who said workmen, guards
and residents OF the village fled at
the first warning.
Parts Of Human Bodies.
NEW YORK, Jan. 13-A physician
! from the emergency hospital at the
Haskell plant this afternoon reported
! TO County Physician Robert Arm
strong of Passaic county that he had
I found parts of human bodies IN the
plants ruins.
| DR.. Armstrong left imme dfately for
! Haskell to investigate the reports.
! County Prosecutor Michael Dunn
stated today he would probe to the
/ bottom to reach a definite solution OF
/ the cause Of the explosions
Loss Of Less Than Million.
! NEW YORK, Jan. 13.-Confirming
estimates Of s12,000.00o loss in con.
nection with the destruction of the
Canadian Car and Foundry company
plant at KingsIand, y. J.. President n.
Curry, of the company, today issued a
statement saying the toal loss to the
company. after insurance has been
paid, will be under 81 100000.
Nearly 100000 OF the loss will
fall upon the Russian government, he
said, because that much OF the prod
uct had been delivered. Insurance on
the plant amounted to about $3.50, 900
Only Two Missing.
NEW YORK. Jan. 1.-two million
property damage. but at cost OF only
two lives seemed likely at noon today
TO be the record Of the Haskell ". J.
explosion Of the DUPONT Powder com
pany's plant last night. which shoot
four states. The company itself mere
Ily stated that two men are missing.
Only two Of the thousands in the dan
ger zone were so seriously injured a.
to require hospital treatment. tn.
company declared in a statement from
lWi'mingtop today.