The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1918-09-28
Hall Dozen Persons Tumble Into Con-
crete Stairway Leading to
Government Building
Basement
OTHERS SAVED BY POLICE
Unguarded Areaway, B1inilng Search
Light, and Crowd at Loan Meet
ing Combined Causes Of
Accident.

A half dozen persons were Injured,
one seriously, by falling into the I'M
guarded concrete stairway leading
from Lucas avenue into the base
ment Of the government building, at
the beginning Of the big Liberty loan
meeting on the postoffice lawn last
evening.
Mrs. Phillip G. Finn, Of 42S Des
Moines street, had her meecap
broken into fragments and will be
confined to her bed for a long time.
! if she is not permanently famed.
A baby carried by Mrs. George W.
! Parker, of Railroad and NJ streets,
went down into the hole with Mrs.
Parker, but escaped with an abraded
nose and chin. Mrs. Parker, an old
woman, had her back badly bruised.
Miss Mildred Humes, Of 722 South
Second street. sustained severe
bruises of her hip In the fall.
Miss Finn, sister-in-law of another
injured woman. had her right hand
badly injured.
Miss Hedrick, of eo6 South Second
street. had her left knee cut to the
bone.
Government Made the Trap.
A dense crowd was hurrying to the
postoffice lawn to hear the speaking
and music there. A headlight placed
to illumine the scene of the big meet
ing shone directly in the faces of the
people going east in Lucas avenue
and blinded them.
For some occult reason, the gov
eminent never placed any railing at
the stairway leading to the basement
of the postoffice building, and left a
concrete hole fifteen feet long. three
feet wide and from three to four feet
deep extending from the building to |
the curb of Lucas avenue. This con- |
crete pit lay directly in the path of |
the crowd going to the meeting from |
Seventh street.
Police Save Many Others.
The front of the throng rushed |
directly into the pit and it was for
tunate that the hole was not filled |
with people and many more injured.
Officer Wilson appeared at once
and prevented another lot of people
repeating the fall little later. The
city police then invaded the govern
ment domain and roped off the stair
way which prevented any further
danger there.
The injured were carried out of the i
hole and taken to the Office of DR..
Charles A. Dimond few feet away
where field hospital was quickly
established. DR.. Dimond called in DR..
F. Blinn Dorsey to assist him in
examining and caring for the injured l.
people. Later they were taken to |,
their homes.
Tried to Have it Protected.
At the time that stairway was
built several years ago, the late Post
master Edward P. McManus, then
custodian of the building, made big
to have that pit protected /
by ratings and the postofice en-
ployes have been talking about it's
dangers ever since.
The inspector in charge Of the con-
struction of the stairway insisted .
that the ratings were not necessary,
since it is on ground not thorough
fare for the public.
He was correct in his idea that !.
people have no legal right to walk
across that part of the lawn, but
practically nobody knows this, and (.
the late Postmaster McManus was :,
correct in his contention that the
hole was very likely to hurt people,
legally or Illegally, and that broken i
bones heal no more quickly because
they ought not to have been broken.
Keokuk people criticise the govern
ment parsimony very bitterly today,
after the serious accident happened .
la at eve0inp