The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1922-01-31
Washington Coroner to Fix Re-
spOnsibility for Disaster.
New Deaths May Swell Reduced
KnickerbOcker Toll.
ARRESTS NOW IN PROSPECT
Grand Jury Has Help of Army
a.7d Navy Engineers.
Senate to Take Action Today on
Capper Resolution.

washington, Jan. 31.-While the
city began the burial Of its dead to-
day. District of Columbia authorities
pushed their investigation of the
Kniekerbocker theater disaster and
the senate was expected to take action
on the resolution of SeDator Capper
Republican, Of Kansas, proposing ar
Independent inquiry by that body.
A requisition for the same purpose
also was pending in the house, altho
Representative Mondell, Republican
leader. announced that body would not
authorize an inquiry pending the out
come of those by local authorities.
A recheck of the death list by the
police today showed the final total
outside of the expected deaths of in
jured, of which there are now three.
probably would be reduced to ninety
five from the total of 105 carried yes
terday. OF the total Of 1913 injured,
sixtytwo remained in hospitals today,
with a dozen reported in critical con-
dition.
The federal grand jury under the
direction of District Attorney Peyton
Gordon went to work in earnest today
in its investiga ton to fix responsibility
for the KnickerbOcker disaster.
May Swell Death Toll.
Estimates were expected to be aug
three persons who were injured in
Saturdays crash.
They are DR.. Clyde Gearhart, Miss
Carolyn Upshaw and Edward Will
liams. Z. II. Shaughnessy, second as
sistant postmaster general, who was in
a serious condition yesterday, was re-
ported this morning as greatly i'm
proved.
Hospitals were still crowded with
the injured, many of the victims being
permanently manned.
senate to Take Action.
IN addition to the grand jury in
vestigation, the senate is expected to
take action on the resolution of Sena-
tor Capper. of Kansas, ordering an in
quiry into the construction of the
Knickerbocker theater and all other
large buildings erected in Washington
during the war.
The grand jury is receiving as
sistance from engineers of the war and
navy departments and United States
attorneys are collecting a mass of evil
dence bearing upon the construction
of the theater which would be placed
before the jurymen when the actual
inquiry gets under way.
Coroner ]. Ramsay hewitt has sworn
in a special jury to investigate the
catastrophe, announcing that teSti-
mony will be taken week from today.
Arrests Are Expected.
Officials said today it was entirely
probable that action taken by the
coroners jury would lead to the ar
rest of persons charged with criminal
negligence in connection with the col
lapse of the Knickerbocker roof on
Saturday night and the crushing of
the hundreds who sat below.
In the meantime, the grand jury will
be at work and it is entirely probable
the first official action in assigning
definite cause for the accident will
come from this source rather than
from the coroner's jury.
Crash Due to Defect.
Col. Charles Keller. engineer COM
missioner of the district. held the
opinion today. after a personal survey
of the wreckage. that the collapse of
the roof was caused by a defect in ma
terial and not by a fault of design.
Building Comm sSioner Healy also be-
lieved that plans for the roof were
practical and sound. Practically all
OF the larger motion picture houses
use the same design, he said.
Reductions in the death list which
the police early today believed would
he final, resulted from tentative elm
inat.on OF eight names for which the
police have been unable to find any
addresses. They are D. n. Walsh,
Miss NJ. +. Walsh. Mr.. and Mrs. Rus
sell Maine. Albert Baker. Paulus
Lamby, w. NJ. Crawford and F. Fl.
Hall. In addition to these Miss Ger
trude Taylor of Washington was found
to have been reported dead by error
and Ernesto Matiello, who was killed,
was found to have been listed again
as Ernest Martello. These ten elimi-
nations will reduce the total to 95.