New-York tribune., 1921-11-30


Joseph Rennisca, rs Spencer Street,
Brooklyn, lacerated scalp, at Cumber-
land Street Hospital; Camille Russo,
twenty one, Of 1877 Forsyth Street,
Manhattan, q concrete worker, possible
internal injuries, at Cumberland Street
Hospital; Vito Stabello, twenty seven,
of 17S Harrison Avenue, Brooklyn. o
laborer, married, lacerations of face.
head and hands; unidentified Italian,
fiftv-fve, broken left leg; at Williams
burg Hospital; Edward Page, truckman,
of TIT Bedford Avenue, decorations and
bruises; Mrs. Josephine Page, wife of
Edward Page, same address, decorations
contractor, forty-two. of 182 Stagg
Street, Brooklyn, general lacegations;
another man, unidentified.
Three Men Missing
William Gartland, of ISS Schaeffer
Street, Brooklyn, bricklayer, and
three unidentified men were still miss
ing late last night, as crew Of thirty
firemen, workers for wrecking COM
pany and employees of the Brooklyn
Building Superintendent's Office, con-
tinued their search beneath the debris.
Sylvester Roscnthal and Samuel Mos
kowitz, owners and general contractors
of the theater, cf 1881 Pacific Street
and 500 Putnam Avenue, respectively,
were arrested last evening at the IN
stance of Harry E. Lewis, District At
torney of Kings County, who took
charge of the investigation directly
with manslaughter and held without
bail for arraignment in Gates Avenue
court to-day.
The men were arrested after Mr..
Lewis's assistants had examined a
number Of witnesses, including some
of those injured. At least twenty
FIVE witnesses were questioned by AS
sistant District Attorneys Ralph Hem
street, Benjamin Hook. Everett T.
Caldwell and Reuben Wilson.
A theory that the wind and the rain
of the last few days had so weakened
the uncompleted structure as to make
trict Attorney Lewis, who said:
"If my theory is correct the wind
and rain had nothing to dos with the
collapse. If my theory is correct some
one is going away for long time"
Immediately after the collapse four
Investigations were instituted. They
were: Police, District Attorney, Medi-
cal Examiner and Building Department
Plans for the building were approved
by the Building Department of Brook
lyn Borough on August 2, 1921. They
called for brick structure to cost
about 100000. Chief Inspector John
Schackenberg was sent out with other
SI:lding inspectors to gather what in
formation they could. Mr.. Lewis de-
cllhed to state what his ihecry of the
collapse was until the investigation
had been completed, which, ne esti.
mated, would take two days.
Four Other contractors were said
last night to have been associated with
Rosenthal & Moskowitz IN the con.
struction of the theater as sub-contrac-
tors.
PatroIman Heard Crash
Patrolman William Sesry, of the Yer.
non Avenue station, was on duty 8
short distance away when he heard
che crash. Seeing what had happened
ne sent in a fire alarm and call fo1
reserves AS the work of rescue got
under way crowd collected, which
made 1T necessary to augment the DO.
lice and throw Gordon completed,
around the block between Park ans
Flushing avenues.
l. Borough Inspector Thomas +. Muir.
ply, of the. Police Department, ar
1 gr9!yeds soon before 2 p. m. and took
cnarge. William F. Thompson, chie1
OF the Brooklyn Fire Department, ar.
rived about the same time. Reuber
wilson, representing the District At
torney's office, was next of the Dor.
ough OFFICIALS on the scene. Then came
Mr.. Lewis and Borough President
Riegelmann.
President Riegelmann at once or
dered a score or more of photograph.
| taken OF the wreckage to be used a.
evidence in the Investigation, which. h,
announced, would be entirely in charr,
| of District Attorney Lewis. He al
rected Albert F. Kleinert, superintend
ent OF buildings, to send all available
inspectors and experts to the scene t,
render what service they could. AL
persons connected with the construc
ton OF the theater who could be foun,
were questioned. Mr. Moskowitz, nj,
Kosenthal and Meyer Schenckman, O
4SS Sackman Street, Brooklyn, a con
crete sub-contractor, were held in
shanty in front of the theater by tn
4 police for the examination that was t.
follow at the District Attorneys Office
Several of the bodies were so mutt
lated that Identification would hav
been impossible except for union card
and other papers found on them. /
vas necessary for the rescuers, tn
e.sriiest of whom were members Of En-
%f'ie Company 230, to dig with pickaxe
!. shovels for more than three hour
aefVre they could locate the dead an
sorie Of the injured.
Ignoring the danger of further col
lapse firemen and other city employee
worked inside the wrecked build,ne
The facade remained, as did a larg
portion OF the soYth wall and til
rear end. The building is about 10
feet wide at the front, extends Glen
through the block to Spencer Stree
for 100 feet and was planned to sea
1000 persons, The highest part o
the roof was so feet. The supportin
walls, on which the iron rafters restec
were about A. feet high.
Joseph altman, of 372 East 1885,
Stree told story of what occurred
He had been working on scaffold
few feet below the ceiling with Sheri
dan and Nicholas. All were wir
lathers.
4 II left the scaffold and went to tn
ground floor," said Altman. "Whil
was walking across the floor I hear
noise that made me think perhap
/ the, scaffold was falling. When
looked the scaffold was still there, bu
the north wall was buckling. hear,
screams and shouts from the men OF
the scaffold and those working below
think there were from 35 to 80 men
work inside the building.
Suddenly the roof seemed to ali,
off the buckling wall and it fell.
struck with terrific sound and In
j wall seemed to fall on it. After th
thud ! didn't hear sound. Thar,
was an awful silonce Yrvorv@ L l., =. G,,,n, :,