Evening star., 1941-08-24
Fifty Years Ago
In The Star

Fifty years ago there occurred an ap-
palling disaster in Park place, New York
City-the collapse of large
New York building, killing more than
D;soster so persons. The disaster ap-
parently was caused by an
explosion of mysterious origin. In The
Star of August %, 1891, dispatch reads
in. part as follows: New York-At 1890
o'clock this afternoon an explosion oc-
Cured in the five-story building Sc Park
place, occupied by John c. Eberle, manu-
facturer of maps. The explosion was
Immediately followed by fire, and in
a few minutes the building collapsed.
The fire spread to the adjoining build
ings and extends from No 66 to rs =
Those who saw the catastrophe say that
the earth trembled when the explosion
occurred and that the fire was in the
street in a couple of seconds The dust
from the wreck rose in such clouds that
for three minutes nothing could be seen
Of what was left standing but from
the pail which hovered over the wrecked
building came clouds of smoke and
sheets Of flames, yells and shrieks of
agony. From all that can now be
learned fully, If not more than, so peo-
pie have lost their lives"
Washington was in the forefront again
as a convention city. this time for
geologists. Says The Star Of
Seologists August IS, 1891: Tomorrow
Meet there will begin at the Co.
lumbian University the fifth
triennial session of the International
Congress of Biologists. To this great
gathering the men who study the bowels
of the earth will come from all the
civilized countries and talk or read papers
in almost all varieties of more or less
broken French and English"
Earlier in the summer 1t. Peary,
aboard the steamship Kite, had set sail
from New York for Green
Greenland land on an exploring ex-
Expedition pedition. With no radio
in those days, nothing had
been heard of him for some time, until
the Kite returned, bearing bad news.
The Star of August "a, 1891, reports:
1.-The Arctic steamer Kite arrived cat
st. Johns, Newfoundland yesterday with
reports of interesting experiences in
Greenland. which include struggle of
three weeks with bergs and foe ice in
Melville Bay, during which period she
made only 100 miles. 1t. Peary, his wife
and five associates were landed in Nc
Cormick Bay, Murchison Sound. Whale
Sound, his original destination, was
frozen over and inaccessible by reason
of ice islands and bergs.
while in Melville Bay Peary broke his
leg below the knee and he was landed
from the Kite on a stretcher." The
account explained that while the lieuten-
ant was standing near the tiller, the ship
hit an ice cake, causing the wheel to
spin wildly and break one leg. DR.. Fred
erick Cook, who later was involved in a
bitter controversy with Peary, set the
break and announced that in three
months Peary would be as we'll as ever.
At this time steam was up in the
European war kettle and rafting the lid.
On August "a, 1891, The
european Star printed a resume
War Threat of the situation under
the heading "On the
Verge of War: "A dispatch from Berlin
says that the arrival of the Kaiser has
been followed with unusual activity in
the War ONCE, and by orders to
strengthen the garrisons in Alsace-Lor-
raine and all along the eastern frontier.
France is in frame of mind that
might lead at any moment to war;" This
feeling was intensified by negotiations
then in progress to make formal ALI.
arice between France and Russia.