The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1920-09-17

OF dollars in gold, silver and paper
money lodged in the great granite
structure.
.... Find Wrecked Car.
Police reserves hastily assembled
found difficulty in coping with the
crowd of many thousand persons
who tried to press themselves into
Wall Street, that narrow canyon ir
which automobiles can hardly pass
each other with ease. Telephone
service was shut off from many pub
lie booths in the vicinity and al
banking offices were placed under
extraordinary heavy guard.
A wrecked automobile bearing the
New Jersey license number 24246 was
found near the Morgan building and
the police tried to establish whether
this was the machine which had fig
ured so prominently in versions of the
disaster
Collision Is Blamed.
An hour after the explosion the po-
lice were inclined to the theory that
it had been caused by a collision OF
T. N. T., truck and an automobile
on Wall Street between the Morgan
office and the subtreasury building.
They pointed to the fact that de-
molished truck was found at this
point near the wrecked automobile
The authorities switched their theory
from dynamite to T. N. T., because OF
the fact that their appeared no great
hole in the pavement, such as would
have been blasted by the downward
forSe of dynamite.
So far as could be learned no prom
inent financiers of members Of the
stock exchange were injured in the
explosion. Thomas w. Lamont and
Henry P. Dawson, members Of the
firm, were in the Morgan Offices at
the time but were not hurt.
Called For Troops.
The first efforts Of the police were
directed toward aiding the injured
and removing the dead. At 12:40
fourteen bodies were seen lying on
the sidewalk and ten others were re-
ported TO. have been taken away by
volunteer. workers.
An emergency call was sent to
Governors Island, from which a
heavy detachment was sent to New
York to guard the sub treasury and
aid the police ....a.
Blowup From Street.
Heads Of the fire department, how
ever, on reaching the scene, directed
their efforts toward ascertaining the
cause and location of the explosion.
The latter was difficult because of the
battered appearance OF buildings near
the Morgan office, but the authorities
were inclined to abandon their theory
that the explosion had occurred either
in the Morgan offices itself or the
Stock Exchange. Concensus of opin-
ion at 12:45 was that the blowup had
occurred In the street.
hn al ll.I -
was more than a score dead and about
seventy five injured.
i Advance Many Theories.
One fire marshal expressed the
opinion that the explosion had been
one of dynamite. Coupled with this
theory was the auto, which figured
In other versions Of the disaster. This
automobile was reported to have col
lided with truck loaded with dyna-
mite.
Many of the injured were girls
working in office buildings Hundreds
or persons were thrown to the side
walk with the force Of the explosion
and dozens of trucks and automobiles
were pressed into service to carry
away the wounded.
Little information was obtainab BILE
from the Morgan office. J. P. Morgan
himself is now abroad.
Regulars On Duty.
Seventeen victims of the explosion
were taken out of the side door of
the Morgan banking house at 1895.
Underneath the wrecked automo-
bile was found a New Jersey chauf-
or Jerome H. McKeen Of 1407 Nelson
Avenue.
United States regulars from Cover
nor,s Island arrived on the scene at
80 for guard duty.
AT 1908 doubt was cast on the &C.
cident theory when members of the
Dcmb squad fastened to the scene
EXPRESSED the opinion that a bomb
mad exploded. They added that frag-
ments Of metal picked up on the
street were being examined on the
tneory that they may have been bits
OF the internal machine.
Injured List Grows.
At 1:15 p. M, the police estimated
dred.
Street Is Closed.
After suspending trading In stocks
Tor the day the governing committee
or the exchange ordered that all de-
iiVer1es OF securities be deferred un-
I'll Monday EXCEPT by mutual consent.
The committee called another meet
Ing for later in the day to take fur
Their measures in connection with the
eject OF the explosion on trading.
Scene Of Chaos.
Police summoned all ambulances
from Gath Street South and all avail
able police reserves were modified.
The financial district after the ex-
plosion presented a scene of greatest
demolition.
In addition to the bodies of human
beings and horses scattered over the
pavement, great blotches of blood
appeared on the white walls of Wall
Streets office buildings. Almost ey-
cry pane of glass in the vicinity was
shattered and beside a mantle of
broken crystal the streets were COW
cred with fragments of brick and
stone, blasted from the base walls OF
the sky-scrappers. Several persons
were hurt in these office buildings
when missiles hurled through win
dows.
The front of the Morgan building
was demolished and the sub treasury
also was badly damaged. With the
arrival OF soldiers and police, fifty
street cleaners were put to work
sweeping up the streets to make pos
sfble easier passage OF ambulances.
Office Help Killed.
The unofficial estimate of dead at
1:20 was thirty.
According IN Charlec Matthew'S ~