Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-01-21
Carrying the casket down the Capitol
steps after the services there.


and open places. Flames from the
burning buildings. which grew bright
err as time went on, gave US a fair light
! through the pail of smoke. fog and
dust There was a paucity Of ambu-
lance facilities for time. but this was
remedied before the night was well ad-
vanced. and we developed system.
THE surprising thing was the large
number of persons whose injuries at
first appeared to be serious. owing to
the fact that they were dazed ana SUI .
fering from species of. shell shot. but
attempts and walked off fairly sound.
with bandaged arm or head, to assist In
the relief work.
THE fire was under control about
midnight, but the work OF the relief
force continued until dawn, when the
volunteers were replaced by the mill
tary and Red Cross workers
Shock Greater Than in Battle.
A young army officer who was home
on leave told the Associated Press cor
respondent that he had been through
heavy fighting on the Somme. on the
front in France. but that nothing he
experienced there came so near shak-
ing his nerve as the explosion which
occurred at a point less than mile
from his home. He said:
"A great flare in the sky lighted up
my room, and as dashed into the
street the whole sky was ablaze. and
an explosion more powerful than any
gunfire shattered my home. Then I
set about aiding In the work OF res
cue"
Those who were permitted at the
scene of devastation soon after the ex-
plosion saw many pathetic sights. A
young man who hurried his mother and
his sister from their house when the
explosion began to shake 1t said:
1.-THE next moment I was blown
table. Then the ceiling came down,
and in another instant the house col
lapsed like a pack Of cards and l rolled
into the street. where found my
mother and sister safe, but terror
stricken"
Confusion for Two Hours.
The ruined buildings were blazing
and confusion prevailed in that vicinity
two hours after the explosion. As the
correspondent passed through the
street near the scene Of the disaster the
tottering houses still were collapsfng.
A fireman who witnessed the grSat
blast from a point Of vantage described
1t thus:
saw L huge white ball rise to q
great height and then vanish. saw
also molten and blazing masses shoot
ing through the air to great distances
In the center Of the road a hundred
yards from the point Of explosion stood
q ten-ton boiler which had been lifted
over a whole block Of houses. Another
piece Of machinery was found half
mile away.
Terrible Scenes at Flour Mill.
The Central News Agency says:
Terrible scenes were witnessed when
the -four mill. which was seven stories
high, burst into flames. To get such
blaze under control was an impossi-
bility, SO reluctantly the firemen were
Obliged to devote their efforts to saw
ing neighboring property. Despite all
their efforts. the flames rapidly spread
over a large area.
Scouts and Girl Guides worked to al
leyiate the sufferings of the injured.
One youth returned home from work to
find that his parents house had van
ished in the great upheaval: he found
Identify the unconscious form Of his
mother. In q mortuary he found the
bodies of his father and sister. There
were hundreds who sought relatives
and friends in vain"
Several Plants at London.
While several munitions plants have
been constructed at various places in
the neighborhood of London since the
outbreak OF the war. the most impor-
tant munitions factory Is that OF the
| woolwich government arsenal. located
about seven miles east OF the English
capital.
tho south bank Of the Thames. and even
before the war was considered one Of
the most imposing establishments in
existence for the manufacture Of
materials of war. The arsenal proper
covers an area Of about 1885 acres.
around the central plant has been dot
| ted with numberless workshops.
1t is understood that $1,000 male and
| female workers are employed In the
arsenal proper. while the factories IN
the neighborhood employ an additional
! 80, 900 hands, mostly women.
Established in 1716 by a German.
The woolwich arsenal was establish
ed in ZIG by a German named
schalch The chief departments are the
royal gun and carriage factories, in
which guns. mountings, field carriages
| and military vehicles OF every descrip-
ton are manufactured or repaired; the
royal carriage department. the army
| ordnance department and the royal
laboratory for making cartridges and
projectiles.
! 1t appears probable from the official
statement in regard to the disaster.
particularly the reference to the flour
mill nearby. that the explosion did not
occur on the grounds of the old Wool
witch arsenal proper. although the fac
\ tory destroyed may have been one OF
those established in the vicinity in
| connection with the great expansion
of the Woolwich establishment since
the outbreak Of the war.
Flaming Teuton Munitions
| Kill Ten, Iniure Twenty,
| in Laboratory at Spandau
LONDON. January 20. 1858 p.m-Ten
persons have been killed and twenty
injured by an explosion in a munitions
Laboratory at Spandau. Prussia, accord.
ing to a Berlin dispatch forwarded to
Reuters via Amsterdam. The material
damage was slight. according to the
dispatch.