Evening star., 1927-04-18
James T. Ryan Lauded
For KnickerbOcker Work


Ryan, funeral director, 317 Pennsyl-
vania avenue southeast, announce
ment of which was made in The Eve
ming Star. the Grim Reaper has re-
moved from our midst not only a
prominent business man, but a civic
worker and a hero of the Knicker-
booker tragedy whose brilliant efforts
on that occasion will long be remem-
bered by those who worked with him
rescuing the living and tenderly re-
moving the dead.
At that time there existed in the
National Capital the Motor Corps of
the District of Columbia" composed
of about 400 law-abiding, business
and professional men with motor
cars, who assisted and co-operated
with the Police Department whenever
required and especially in time of
an emergency.
One of the members of the lam
bulance section" was Jim" Ryan,
who was one of the charter members
of the organization and among the
first to tender the use of his am
balances to the cause. At the urgent
request of w. Pearce Rayner, COM
mander Of the Motor Corps, whose ma
chine was snowbound at Chevy Chase
and he himself unable on this ac-
count to reach the scene of the
disaster, the writer took command of
the Motor Corps at the Knicker-
booker Theater. Comdr Rayner
called out every available mem
ber of the corps, ambulances, ply
sicians by telephone at his home and
carried on the operations throughout
the two days of the tragedy.
1t was while responding to this call
that Jim" Ryan, at the wheel of
his ambulance. dashing through the
binding snOwstorm which prevailed
at the time, picked up the writer, who
was tramping through the heavy
snow on Fourteenth street near
Rhode Island avenue northwest.
Recognizing me, he clamped on his
brakes, while ] jumped aboard the
running board of the ambulance and
we continued out Fourteenth street,
turning left into l. street. AT Six
teenth street we were blocked by
the disabled engines of the District
Fire Department, and were signaled
by the police to proceed north on Six
teenth street, which we did. Turning
left into Euclid street, we were soon
at the Columbia road entrance of the
theater, where the task of removing
the unfortunateS was commenced.
After assembling all of the Motor
Corps ambulanCes and organizing the
stretcher bearers the members of the
corps wended their way beneath the
crumbling walls of the theater, down
into the very deepest points of the
debris where victims were still found
breathing and. placing them on the
stretchers, covering them with heavy
blankets. conveyed them to the vari-
Gus hospitals.
4. Il
most dangerous parts of the theater,
with the walls almost on the verge
of topping over on the rescuers at
any moment, and lending every effort
with the writer in digging out the
injured, was Jim" Ryan. AS fast
as a victim was finally gotten through
the wreckage to the ambulance, off
would speed the machine with him
at the wheel and his assistants stand
ing on the steps of the ambulance.
1t was Jim" Ryan who drove the
first ambulance through the heavy
snow and broke the way through"
to Garfield Hospital, in order that
other ambulances might follow. When
orders were given to dispatch the in
jured to Emergency Hospital, he
drove at high speed down Sixteenth
street to the Emergency Hospital,
carrying the SIfeICner along WIlH LIle
rest of his assistants and handling
his patients as tenderly as If that of
one of his own family.
He kept up the terrific pace
throughout that long and dismal
night, never once thinking of him.
self, but sacrificing everything that
he might perform civic duty TO the
public and keep allegiance to the
Motor Corps, which was founded for
the very volunteer service he was
rendering. And thus l observed the
outstanding work of one member of
the organization, whose heroic efforts,
like those Of many others, went un-
noticed and unheralded and who. in an
exhausted condition from the terrific
strain throughout the night, re-
quested permission to be excused, but
not until after all of the injured had
been removed from the debris. Prac-
tically all of the equipment, includ-
ing extra Stretchers and blankets, was
expended. but this he did with the
same cheerful spirit he exhibited in
rendering his personal services. His
loss will be mourned among the men,
bers of the Motor Corps, and in my
humble way, as an officer, friend and
associate of Jim" Ryan, / wish to
pay tribute to his memory.
HOWARD S. FISK,
Inspector, Motor Corps, ID. c.