New-York tribune., 1920-12-03
Bodies of Five
Sought in Ruin
Of Strathnore
Wife of Missing Man Keeps
F Path etic Vigil While
Workmen Search Wreck
of Broadway Structure
5 " omen May Be Buried
Coat Found on Second Floor
of Collapsed Building
Is Not Yet Identified


The wreckage of the col1anseI
Strsthmore apartment house. al Fiftv-
second Street ani Broadway. did not
weld the bodies Of any victims yes
terday, though workmsn and fremen
took up TIE dangerous task 81 snoring
IT Ire remaining walls and rem owing.
.hs crest pile Of cebrls which rsy.
hlds anywhere from one to FIVE victims
Late Yesterday afternoon al over
coat was found or the second Aoor ~
ne building, on the Broadway side, hv
Peter kane, a workman, who took the
Carmen. % Assistant District Attorney
1ohn +. Hannis, Investigator for the
homicide bureau. There was no mark
by which the coat could be identifie cd
i Ms shown - Mrs. Jonn Chester
Smith, 81 81 Macombs Place. whose
husband * supposed 20 have been
1rr.sd II fhe wYechage Mrs. Smith
sd TIE coat did not belong to ner
husband. and that he had worn a
Nscsinav when he had gone to work
" edresdsy with the vreckinc crew
which wss converting the building into
g. office structure
Three other overcosts were found N
the building shortly sitter it's collapse
At $50 o'clock Wednesday afternoon.
nu, th. Paul NJ. Chapman Wreckire
Company yesterday notified Police Cap
tain James MacCauley, Of the Forty
seventh Street station, that they had
carefully checked ove- their list of
employees who were At work on the
building ard all were accounted for.
Ten Families Gusted
Thirteen families in tn. Nowrcrt
apartment building. AZ COS Wes. Flftv-
geco-6 Street. ard ter families IN ~
apartment house across the street a.
7oS West Fittv-secord Street. were or
dared ont, for fear thst the remaining
walls ot the S.rathmore might col
la7se. Among those at the Newport
was EEe Shannon, we'll known
actress
Frederick c. Kuehrle. Chief In
sp=ctor Of Buildings o Manhattan, said
t,a- he vas o. the opinion that the
collapse Tas due 20 the shifting to one
SIDE Of 4 quantity OF snoring material,
roSrly timber and iron girders. which
was on TIE second or third Aoor and
W. moved against the east wall. which
COLLAPSED This wall was about fifty
vears Old. and stood in mortar. not
beng anchored like the walls OF mod
e-a buildings.
NJ Kuehrle attributed the collapse
= POOR supervision. ard said that. from
- analvslz cf recent collapses. It had
hser discovered that such accidents
rcueilv occur Within half an hour OF
outing Tine. ard are due 70 the push
l-g ASIDE - quantities Of material for
t.s re-. daE
T.= ~a.l. according t. the inspector.
7as supported r upright t-uzses in
s-aad q oeveled beams. as is custom
- -s= wsll - inspee.or s.'d,
tecslse 81 re overload which mad been
uus-a1 against i.
Ta7 last regular inspection Of the
building i vas said. was made last
-rasdzv BY Building Inspector James
~-islc:. -co SAID - also took a casual
ioo. - the building Wednesday, but
noticed nothing which would indicate
a .rtperd,-e collscze.
Child Asks for Father
Nrs. Smith, wife Of the workman
80 : supposed 10 have been buried
ac-ea-r re ureckags. was pathetic
~g1re yesterday IS she stood n the
co.. O. store opposite and watched
- 7-o-k heing carried on. She sad
"a -er C1ucr-e-. Eoro.nr. riNe wears
81 hai ro- neen notified cf the prob
= $ dea-1 Of ce- father, though the
c.Id .e7- asking WIZ her papa DID
90 cora aore AZ sooa 2 she got -ne
Cd 90 . school Mrs Sm mith hurried
= ne scene n the accident. Smiths
fa-ner Waiter A Smith. Of Syracuse,
cs-n- n New York yesterday and as
:, .'ad : re work on me building.
Building Inspector Pivelle believes
- o7is oody in the ruins is that of
Smrc
I t:ra o'clock yesterday afternoon
stsee- csr fT7c waz resur, ed ~ Broad
rsst r-e building. Passengers
asd recn tra~sterred previously 70
Ssfs-,- or Eighta Avenue. shuttle
czr ser-'c@ rad prsvailed OF Broad
- oetpesn Fiftv-arst ard Firty-
ae-o-a streess
According 70 John Ericsson. super
i~-erder. ~ ne Neupor* apartrnents
80 7oren mav he buried under ne
nes1 . dehris On t1e Fif.y-zecond
,--s". de. Ericsson SAID re rad been
.c-c - man rrose finger uas cut of
~ Svlng glass and who disappeared
9eso-e re could oe questioned further
"a -e had seen two women over
: lred n ne avalanche Of brick
william Zaranko, head of the House
vrecS Sers' Union. Local No. IA, said last
r zn. fcat ne wreckers empuloycd on
.rs building were not from ms union,
rr. oe o1Yed 20 me Rrindell Union