The New York herald., 1921-12-31
Police Fail to Find Owner
for Fragment-Firemen
Rescue Passengers.
MOTORMAN is ARRESTED
Could Not Stop in Time When
Defective Motor Halted
Preceding Train.

An unidentified man, apparently a
laborer, was killed and twenty other
persons were injured last night at z
o'clock when a southbound four car
train Of the Ninth avenue elevated line
crashed into the rear of a four car
train which had stopped at Fortieth
street, just south Of the Forty-seepnd
street station.
Three persons were taken to Belle
vue Hospital, but none was seriously
hurt. One of them was Anthony G
Aberaitis of 10 Maple avenue, The
Bronx, motorman Of the moving train,
who suffered two fractured ribs and
possibly other internal injuries. He
also was placed under arrest charged
with homicide. The others went to
their homes after they had been
treated by an ambulance surgeon.
Half an hour after the wreck, while
members Of the Fire Department were
working in the wreckage on the elevated
structure and in the street. Patrolman
Michael O'Donnell found a human foot
buried in the debris underneath the
elevated structure at Fortieth street II
was right foot, with two toes missing.
but the police have not been able TO
find the person who lost 1t. None of the
persons in the hospitals had a foot cut
off. The police believe that whoever II
belonged to must have been sent in a
taxicab to another hospital and no re-
port made of the case.
The noise OF tlis cfasn and the screams
Of the passengers, the majority of them
men. imprisoned in the two cars that
bore the brunt o. the impact, caused
much excitement IL the district. which is
tenement housa section and lhiclSiy
populated. Repo. - spread tina. many
persons had been iurt, fire alarms were
turned in for the rescue squad. and the
reserves from three police stations were
required to handl: the curious crowd Of
several thousand. often being forced to
use nightsticks.
Three Cars Are Damaged.
When the firemen reached tie place
they found that the first car Of the train
criven by Aberaitis had telescoped the
last car of the ether train, and that
his first car in turr had been teloscoped
by the second ca OF the same train.
The last car Of the stationary train. OF
which Patrick Garrigan Of 52s West
l23d street was mntorman, was OF steel
construction and withstood the shock.
the wooden car OF the second train tele-
scoping it about six feet. But the jar
locked the doors in the steel car ind the
ten passengers, after they had regained
their feet. could not escape except by
the windows.
Most Of hsm were foreigners and be-
came excited. They began to scream
and smash the glass in the windows
with their fists and elbows. Their ex-
citement spread to the other cars. and
when the fireman reached the platform
they found the passengery fighting
among themselves for places at the
windows and smashing the glass all
along the two trains. Some tried to
climb out of the car windows on to the
third rail side OF the track. Fortunately
there were sufficient cooler heads
among them TO prevent this.
The firemen raised ladders to the ele-
vatsd structure and broke their way
into the cars with axes, picks and
acetylene torches They dragged the
passengers out of the windows. carried
them down the ladders TO the street ana
hurried with thsm into drug stores.
where surgeons from Flower Hospital
and New York Hospital treated their
injuries.
Body Found Under Debris.
The dead man was found beneath a
pile of wreckage In the rear end of the
first car OF the train driven by Aberaltis
He was dressed cheaply and plainly in
a brown sweater. old trousers and heavy
shoes. He had the gnarled. callous
hands OF laborer. The only bit OF
identification about him was a signet
ring with the initials wv. l.. r." His
body was sent TO the Morgue.
Motorrnan Aberaitis. who was arrested
by Detective Roscoe Jenkins, said he
was driving his trhin down town at the
rate OF about eighteen miles an hour
when Garrigan's train, ahead of him.
suddenly stopped. At that time. he said
he was too close on the first train to
prevent the crash.
Alberaitis was trapped in his control
box. but got out through window and
was carried down a ladder by a fire.
man. He said he had been an Inter-
borough motorman for seventeen years
and never before had been in an acci-
dent
Motorman Garrigan said that he left
Forty-second street on time, and had
driven his train about two blocks when
one Of the motors grounded and the
train stopped. The last car was then
across Fortieth street Gerrigan went
back through the train looking for the
trouble. He failed to find II. he said, and
was returning TO his control box to try
again TO start the train when the crash
occurred
Traffic was tied UP on the Ninth ave-
nue. elevated and surface lines for sew
eraI hours. but the elevated trains we're
routed through F'ifty-third street and
down to South Ferry on theSixth avenue
lines.