The sun. [volume], July 31, 1916, Image 1

About The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920

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THE WEATHER FORECAST.
, Partly cloudy and warmer to-day ; to
morrow, probably showers.
Highest temperature yesterday, So; lowest, 63.
Detailed weather, mnll and marine reports on pace 10.
VOL. LXXXIII. NO. 335.
NEW YORK, MONDAY, JULY 31, 1916. Copyright, 191, by the Stm PrlHj and PubHjMit? Atiociatton.'
ONE CENT
la Oreatfr New York,
F.lntwhrra
Jrr.fr City and Newark. J TWO CKNTM.
i4L OF SHRAPNEL AS EXPLOSION ROCKS NEW YORK CITY;
TRAIN BLOWS UP; SHELL LADEN BARGES BURN IN THE HARBOR;
ONLY 2 KNOWN DEAD, BUT SCORES ARE HURT; $30,000,000 LOSS
a sHNE.r
SOBWAY AND 'L'
MEN MAY QUIT;
3RD AV. TIED UP
General Malinger Admits
356 34 Miles of Line
Inactive.
COMPANY THREATENS
"FIGHT TO A FINISH"
Will Attempt to Run Cars
To-day Employees on
Other Roads Restive.
Interboroufth Rapid Transit em
ployee are ready to strike when the,
call comes and add to the rolling stock
now standltiR Idle In the barns of the
Third Avenue ystom the cars of the
HUliway nnd elevated lines In Man
hattan, thus completely tylnc up the
tranvportatloti facilities of the clly.
This wnH the substance of a report
given credence last night. The sub
way and elevated trainmen held n
meeting yesterday. It wan said, nt
which It was decided to join the trol
ley car motormen nnd conductors
whenever the strike lenders should de
cide the time was fitting;
One report was that the call would
eomo at noon to-day, another that It
would come at midnight. The men
themselves were said not to know at
what hour they would be ordered to
leave their trains. Neither the official
of the Interborouuh nor of the union
would atnrm or deny the rumors, and
Police Headquarters reported receiving
no Information of the proposed move.
At t o'clock General Vanager Edwin
A. Malier ndmltted that not a surface
car was running on any part of the
Third avenue system In Manhattan, and
at 9 I. M. he ordered every car In The
Bronx Into the barns. In addition the
red car lino on the Manhattan llrldge,
controlled by the It. R. T Third Avenue
New York Railways Company, was
rtepped because the men were on strike,
jr.. ri cur was out of the car
i.arns and motormen and conductors
were flocking to the strikers' headquar
ters to enroll In the union. Whereupon
W. D. Mahon, president of the Interna
tional Association of Street Railway
Men. throwing back his coat and run
ning his thumbs up and down his aus
j.enders. declared at strikers" headquar-
"We've tied up 35C?4 miles of the
Third avenuo system. We started In
Yonkers. as per schedule, ran over to
Mount Vernon and to New Rochelle. W e
continued on to The Rronx and now
we've tied up the Third avenue system
In a neat little bundk
Union Now Una 3,500 Members.
"When we reached Manhattan and
The Uronx we had only 198 members In
our union In those two boroughs, the re
sult of four years work. In the last 14
hours we'vo accumulated more than
2.500. ,
"But, aa the villain says In the melo
drama, 'the end Is not yet. We shall
continue until we've organized ever)
traction line's employees In the city, but
remember that our grievance, for tne
present. Is onty against the Third ave
nue, which has refused our demands.
Charges that the strike leaders have
been working secretly among employees
of tho New York Railways Company,
enrolling them for a walkout, were made
last night .by Frank Medley, vlce-pres -dent
and general manager of that com
nany He Issued a statement to "all em
Sloyee.'1 warning them that agitators
were plotting to embroil them li cam.
calm designed to tie up all traffic In
Sew York city and advising them that
the company had made arrangements to
, iw adequate protection to them In the
v" ".uux,.; usually a man of
ords had thus spoken at length,
tot lnulrV of General Manager Maher
l-T. Tlon. the various lines proved
the union head to bo correct.
"We've taken every car oft." said Mr.
J! ... ih mn who have re-
-mlfned loyal to u. hav. been Intimidated
maiiicu been at.
H3T t,v .angmen and guerrillas
that the strikers brought down from
lr..:.i.-.., .r.,1 The Bronx. Tho
,'Z.7 .na the conductors were as
, rot.fn.e" SJwav. on Third avenue,
St. on the East Bid. and on he lower
w!.t Hide They did not want to quit.
forced to do It. We shall
atari "a .full service In the morning, how
ever."
Tkreaten "FlnUh" Flarfct.
"Are you
nine to settle wltn tne
trtkersr
We are not.
We're going to fight to
the finish."
nave tou heard
from Mr. Whit-
""'Mr.' WhltrldS" Is In Europe. We
have not heard from him." said Mr.
"No"'' car moved over the 126th street
line all day, making It necessary for
OMiinnds making for Fort Lee ferry
hTa It frTmthe East Hide. The Man
hatt strert lln. running down to 110th
itreet and Third avenuo did not move
Tha "Siroadway lines, running from
srortr-second street and the West Shore
f.rry up Tenth avenue, Amsterdam
ivenua and Broadway, to Fort Oeorge.
I6th street and the like, furnished very
little service In the forenoon and none
JTh !! 'rom Fort ,trrjr v,a
Broadway and Forty-second street to
T?Mt Thirty-fourth street also was out
of business. The Klfty-nlnth, Forty-Twenty-eighth
and Twenty-
thf
06t
.inih streets mldcrosstnwn line,
atraci sysicni, vuu wwn ww
OmMmmmI oh Sixth Pp.
JOINT DRIVE ON
SOMME PUSHES
UPTO MAUREPAS
Concerted Advance of Brit
ish and French Gains on
a Six Mile Front.
GERMANS RUSH GUNS
TO WESTERN SECTOR
700 Batteries Sent to Pic
ardy to Offset Allies'
Superiority.
Ionpo. July 30. Acting In concert,
the British and French forces attacked
together to-day and as a result of their
cooperation both made valuable gains.
Gen. Douglas Holg reports that the
enemy "must have suffered heavily,"
whllo the French night communique
Implies the same when It announces
that the ground gained was held
against powerful German'counter at
tacks.
The fighting was at the point where
the British right rests against the
French left, with the Somme between.
The British nttacked In a sector be
tween the Delvllte wood nnd the
Somme and after n heavy cngagpment '
were able to move eastward beyond '
vaterlot farm and Trones wood.
which, like Delvllle wood, ha been n
death trap for thousands. Their ml-
vance was on a six mile front.
Preach Take Trenches.
The French took German trenches
from llardecourt to the river on a
front from 300 to 800 meters deep
nnd three and n half mites long. Resides,
they pressed forward to the outskirts
of the village of Maurepas. enst of
Hardecourt, nnd took positions north
of the vlllnge of Hem. which Is .outh
of Maurepas. These were held ngulnnt
counter attacks of the utmost vigor.
Tile French troons In i'leardv had
been waiting until the llrltlsli carried
out the operation assigned to them.
That having been satisfactorily com
pleted, the central echelon got word to
move forward against the German
trenches on the eastern elopes of the
ravine through which a light railroad
runs from Combles to Clery and I'e
tonne. l?vcry detail of the advance had been
worked out with mathematical precision
beforehand, and the operation was com
pleted well within the time limit set.
The attacking troops met with a moro
than usual amount of resistance from
the Germans, who had foreseen the move
e.nd made every preparation In their
power to frustrate it. The positions had
been strengthened as well as the Inces
sant rain of projectiles frum the French
artillery permitted, and large forces of
icserves were gathered In the rear.
The German reserves were hurled for
ward as soon as the French dash slack
ened and tho fighting was fast and furi
ous, especially ut the southern end of tho
lUie where the nature of the ground per
mitted the counter attacking troops to
advance with some prospect of getting
through the French curtain of tire.
Counter Attack Vain.
The French rtaff work, however, was
too well done; nnd, although the Ger
mans struggled bravely and stubbornly
all afternoon and well Into the night,
they failed to regain an Inch of ground.
Wave after wave of German Infantry
waB swept away by tho well directed
French chine gun and light artillery
Ore.
At Pozlcres tnere was no Infantry
fighting. The day was spent In consoli
dating the ground won In the drive last
week. Near Ypres the Canadians raided
German trenches successfully, and the
Royal Munster Fusiliers performed the
same feat on the Loos salient. The Ger
mans entered a front lln" nrltlsh trench
near the Hoheniollcrn redoubt, but were
expelled.
German attacks against the French
redoubt In the ravine south of Fleury,
three miles northeast of Verdun, were
repulsed.
Military experts here said to-night
that the day's news meant more than
ground gained, because It showed the
perfection of tho understanding between
the British and French commanders. A
joint operation of the kind attempted
to-day Is always ticklish, they say, for
tho least failure to act In perfect unison
on a predetermined plan might prove
disastrous.
British I.oaa la 13,080.
It was announced to-night that the
British casualties for three weeks have
been 5,!29 dead, of whom 1,140 were
officers, and 41,831 wounded, of whom
8,060 were officers.
The Daily .Vetos correspondent at Rot
terdam asserts that the Oermans lately
have brought 700 batteries to the Homme
region from other fronts to reply to
the tremendous fire of the Allies' ar
tillery, In an endeavor to overcome the
overwhelming preponderance of British
and French metal.
They have sent no large forces of
men to the west since the movement,
already reported, of 300,000 reenforce
ments some time ago, when they under
took a counter offensive, Unlerx within
a short time they are able to withdraw
Continurd on Sixth Page.
Resumption all main line Trafltr via
Anuthern Hallway, Leave N, Y, .tally nt
I Snum
fuio
for
Orlen
A. M :35 I-. m, unci l : 3 u a, m,
Atltnts. Montgomery, Mobile, New
tuns. Illrmlncham aaa Intermediate
I points via Charlotte, N. C. N. V, offlct.
f IK Ith AV.A4.
jyjAP showing where fire started at the Lehigh Valley Black Tom dock and spread to Jersey Central Dock No. 7; also indicating positions of
barges which were loaded with ammunition:
A. Barge loaded with dynamite standing off from Pier 19, where fire started and first explosion followed, known as Black Tom dock.
B. Schooner Wollcot waiting to be loaded. C. Black Tom at point w here fircboat Willett of New York department stayed spread of ware
house blaze. D. Jersey Central dock No. 7, where cars loaded with ammunition were burned. E. Position occupied by burning barges after
they had drifted out into the bay. F. Forbidden position of Lighter No. 24 at the end of Black Tom dock. She was loaded with 3,126 cases
of ammunition.
I 1 . v ramx. jPWimhim .'.'smJ 1 ".v-sT.Pita. insb . I i
: W" All sS!jeKar in. riSrV v. 1
y n mt um. n
U. S. CUTTER ASKED
' TO CONVOY U BOAT
Captain of Apnche Replies He
Has No Official Interest
in Deutschland.
Baltimore, July 30. Although the
German submarine Deutschland mill was
at her pier to-niifht, developments dur
ing the last twenty-four hours Indicated
the Intention of Capt. Koenlg, her com
mander, to leave in a short time.
It was learned to-day that when the
revenue cutter Apache anchored a short
distance from the Detitschland's slip late
yesterday afternoon, the Apache' com
mander was asked by officials who are
looking after the submarine's Interests
If he could convoy the Deutschland to
the three mile limit off the capes.
The officials were referred to the Navy
Department. To-day the Apache's com
mander said he had received no orders
to convoy the submarine and had no
official Interest In her.
The tURs Britannia and Chicago came
up to the Deutschland's pier to-day and
the llrltannia's captain had a conference
with officials on the Interned North Ger
man I,Iod steamer Ni-ckar. Afterward
the tugs proceeded down the l'atapsco
Itlver.
Karly this morning the tug Thomas
F. Tltnmlns, which convoyed the sub
marine from the capes Just three weeks
afro, got up steam. Capt. Zach Culllson
remained on board the tug all night and
tt was said he arranged to take on a
pilot at short notice.
It can be said on good authority that
the engines and submerging machinery
of the Deutschland are In perfect condi
tion and that Uie vessel's departure Is
not delayed by any trouble aboard her.
Allied Patrol Ships Identlfled.
Nonroi.K, Va July 30, Hoth the
United Stntea neutrality squad and the
allied patrol outside Cape Henry made
this a day of rest. With the cruiser
North Carolina lying In Hampton Hoads
the allied warships were not seen to-day.
Tho I'nlted States destroyers remained
at the capes. Three wnrshlps In the
allied patrol were Identified to-night ns
tho Ilrltlsh cruisers Monmouth, Kssex
and Suffolk.
nrotrned at HoeUaway Beach.
Carl Schloss, 23 years old, of 903
Prospect avenue, The llronx, a Pruden
tial Insurance agent, wns drowned late
..t,.r,l:iv afternoon whlh' bathing In the
ocean at the foot of Kast Korty-nlnth
street, Ilockaway Reach.
N'
EW YORK got its first
ing issue giving An accurate account of the whereabouts and cause of the disaster and telling the extent of tho
damage, as known at that time, was on the street half an hour before any other morning newspaper appeared
with the news.
THE EVENING SUN issued an extra giying a comprehensive account of the explosion, and this extra was on sale
an hour before the earliest edition of any other evening newspaper. THE EVENING SUN'S story of the explosion was
tho most accurate given by any paper of the day.
The newsgathering machinery of every paper in New York was tested, and THE SUN proved its worth.
UPPER (V...7 b
MANSLAUGHTER CHARGED IN
THREE EXPLOSION WARRANTS
Blame Placed on Johnson Company Lighter
Loaded With Explosives and Moored
at Pier in Violation of Law
Manslaughter is the charge nnmed in three warrants issued
last night in Jersey City by Judge Mark A. Sullivan of the
Hudson County Court of Common IMeas for the arrest of
Albert M. Dickman, agent at the Black Tom dock for the
Lehigh Valley Railroad; Theodore B. Johnson, head of the
.Johnson Lighterage and Jjr.ving Company, and Alexander
Davidson, superintendent ol tne National Docks and Storage
Company. It is averred in the complaint made against them
by James Connelly, Jersey City's inspector of combustibles,
that the three mentioned are responsible for the loss of life in
yesterday morning's explosion because they permitted Lighter
No. 24 to make a mooring for the night at the Lehigh's dock.
Davidson and Dickman were arrested in their homes by
Detective Lieutenant Peter Green. They were taken to the
county jail, where they were released in $5,000 bail, fixed
by Judge Sullivan.
"Jersey justice" scarcely ever before moved so swiftly and
so unexpectedly as in putting the blame on the three officials.
This first consequence came after the day's investigation of
the earth shaking explosions had established so far as pos
sible in the time these facts :
Tho blnzo wns not of lnmiillnry
origin. Nothing niltlnwl In tln
hunt for onuses Miowoil (ho lca-t
prwiPiitv of n pint iimittiit the Al
lien, to whom tlu Imnieiixo More of
ammunition wits roiislKiiril. None
of the numoroiw cimnN employed
by the LehlKh 1ms Imil ocenslnii fur
this 1; 1 1 id of tilariti for months
Illase Mlnrts on l.lKhter.
Tho blaio started on lighter No. 21,
owned by the Johnson l.lghteragu Com
pany. With the exception or one tun
boat captain, those who have been ques
tioned about the disaster placed the
blame on tho boat. The Lehigh Valley .
makes tho lighter crew culpable. 1 1, A, ;
Campbell, Inspector fot the Interstate
Commerce Commission, which began an I
SUN FIRST TO TELL
accurate news of the Black Tom explosion from THE SUN.
Investigation yesterday, holds to the
same opinion, So docs M. T. Henley,
! ynnlmastcr of tho Hlack Tom yard, and
other minor officials.
When llamcs burst out on the lluhter
she was carrying 3.124 cases of nmmunl
i tlon, which Mm had Just tnken n hoard
, from ears that unloaded at the Jersey
,i entrain pier within fifty yards of her
. taiai mooring place.
i ii. ...i.... .
,,1-nt,-,, , me ?ii(iwiiuicr; j, m, Kane,
watchman for the National Pocks nnd
Storage Company's plant, nnd A. M,
U.ekman, agent for tho storHge com
pany, used every argument thev could
command to prexent lighter No. 2i mak
ing an all night stay at the p'cr end,
Regulation of the Interstate Com
merce Commission, a Jersey city ordi
nance nnd the rules of tho 'Lehigh Val-
Contfniird on Fourth Page.
NEWS OF EXPLOSION
POLICE HUNT BOMB
AT HEADQUARTERS
Detectives, Fearinp Another
Hlownp, Hush Around to
Find "Plotter.'
I'Jllce Headquarters was a scene of
feerlfh activity and confusion jester
day morning due to the fact that no one
knew where tho explosion had occurred.
One of the largest telephone switch
boards In the city, outside of the local
exchanges, Is located In the building, nnd
tho six operators on duty under Lieut.
Helwlg had a busy time for many hours.
The flret conclusion of the entire
neighborhood was that n repetition of
the bomb plot that nearly wrecked head
quarters last year had been attempted.
This Idea was strengthened by the
crashing of glass from broken windows
near by. so that within a few minutes
hundreds of the Italian residents of the
neighbored were clustered about the
building Tii a panic.
Many of the men were In bod or pre
paring' to retire. To a man they rushed
out, some In Happing night robes and
wine half dressed, all with their re
tolvers drawn, looking for the suspected
bomb plotter. Detective Tom Donahue,
It was said, ran as far s the corner
of llaxter :UKl Walker streets In his
search nnd gaxe It up there because he
found ii thief looting the broken window
of a Jeweller's shop.
lie put the man under arrest and
started back with him, only to find
that In his haste to dress ho had left
his shirt tails hanging outside his
trousers.
CHILD LABOR BILL IN PERIL.
Opponent Say They Will no
Everything- Pnaalble to Kill It.
Wasiiinoton, July 30. President
Wilson having won his fight for action
before adjournment of Congress on tho
bill to prevent Interstate commerce In
the products of child labor, the Senate
will take up tno me.isuro tills week.
Passage of the bill ts a foregone con
clusion, but tt will be opposed stubbornly
by a group of Southern Democratic Sen
ators aid an nttvr.t will be made by
Senator Hniah. aided by Southern Demo
crats, to couple with It tho literacy test
Immigration bill, which the Democratic
caucus determined to put over until next
session.
Democratic opponents of the child
labor bill have frankly told the .Senate
that they will do "everything honorable
to defeat the bill, and for mat reason
will vote In favor of coupling the Imml
cratlon measure with It.
An edition of the Sunday morn
Shock Felt for 100 Miles
Thousands of Windows in
Manhattan Broken
13 WAREHOUSES DESTROYED
jFire Said to Have Started on Lighter Near
Black Tom Pier Was Fought Before
Calling City Aid
FIREMEN FELLED
Sugar Worth $3,400,000, Cotton and Tobacco
Valued at $15,000,000 and Unreckoned
Amount of Munitions Lost
, At 12:45 o'clock yesterday morning a "still alarm"
rej'.ched Fire Headquarters in Jersey City by way of the
American District Telegraph Company. The report said
"some rubbish burning," but as the rubbish was said to be
on Black Tom pier, which juts into New York harbor south
of Communipaw and for more than a year has been the prin
cipal shipping centre for war munitions going to the Entente
Allies, Fire Chief Boyle said :
"I guess we'd better send five companies down there
, even if it don't amount to much."
While the firemen were on their wny Police Headquarters also heard
about the rubbish heap and despatched some patrolmen down to keep
, the firemen company.
Descending from his automobile about half way down the pier, which
i is half a mile long, Chief Boyle saw that several frciRht cars of the
Lehigh Valley Railroad Company on the end of the structure, two barges
tnat nestled beside it and one of the two long brick buildings, that house
eighteen warehouses of the National Docks and Storage Company were
aflame. So hot was the neighborhood that the firemen couldn't get
within 1,000 feet of the "rubbish heap."
All Thrown Flat by Explosion.
They were about to connect their hose to hydrants and do their
best at wetting down the reachable parts of the pier and buildings nnd
the 150 barges and canal boats that are crowded into a basin along the
pier not far from the shore when every man was thrown flat on his
face by the concussion of the biggest explosion that they ever hope to
hear.
u was followed twenty-five
Thousands of tons of dynamite,
and trinitrotoluene whether on barges or in freight cars the blowun in-
2 1 ...in 1 i .....
eeuKuuon win nave to determine; the railroad company says only two
cars loaded with explosives were on tho pier joined in two monstrous
upneavais.
Between the two mighty explosions came the manifestation f
an American Verdun. Bombs soared into the air and burst a thousand
feet above the harbor into terrible yellow blossom. Shrapnel peppered
the brick walls of the warehouses, ploughed the planks of the pier and
rained down upon tho hissing waters. Shells shot hither and thither,
exploding under the touch of the terrific heat and shooting their missiles
at random. Some of tho shrapnel shells fell even in Manhattan. On tho
pier arose a white glare as of a million mercury vapor lights.
Ellis Island
The hawser of a three masted
pier burned away and the schooner, on fire, drifted off over the bay, a
sight for mariners and a menace to Ellis Island, against the shore of
which, a mile from Black Tom, it drifted. Five of the barges followed it.
They were burning, too, and had plenty of ammunition abronrd, as was
evidenced by the bombardment that they presently directed against the
terrified wards of Uncle Sam on Ellis Island.
It was heaven's mercy that none of these was killed. In reassuring
and protecting them the attendants and nurses, especially those in chnrgo
of thirty-fiTe insane patients, passed two hours that they will always
remember,
Mennwhile the firemen. Between explosions they found thnt the
water mains on which they relied hnd been wrecked. Chief Boyle set
every engine to sucking salt water from beside the pier and pouring it
over the landwnrd side of the two warehouse buildings. Then the flueboat
Thomas Willett came screaming over from Manhattan, and with her help
this building was saved.
So started tho phantasmagoria of sound and fire, tho most daz
zling fireworks ever seen ogainst a New York sky. Tho burn
ing powder on Black Tom pier nnd at a pier of the Jersey Central
Railroad a mile away to the north, which was fired by sparks or somo
of the flying bombs, made a light so brilliant thnt a needle could be
picked up in the street in many parts of tho metropolitan district.
Shock Is Felt for Twenty Miles.
All of Jersey City's population nnd many of Manhattan's were
shnken from their beds. At Pocantico Hills, twenty miles up the Hudson,
John D. Rockefeller got up from bed to see what kind of an earthquake
wns rocking his house. In the Oranges doors that were shut flew open
and doors that were open banged shut and the owners of the doors were
commensurntely shaken and alarmed.
In the nearer provinces Jersey City, Bnyonne, Hnboken, lower
Manhattan it meant the end of the world to many a man nnd woman
who rtin Bhrieking from their rocking homes and then knelt in the street
to pray. The tall buildings of lower Manhattan are pockmarked with
broken windows.
The only item that shrank ns tho facts wcro gathered together
yesterday was happily that of loss of life. The known dead are now set
down as two. One is un unidentified young man who was found in tho
water beside Black Tom pier. The other is u child Arthur Tarson, two
nnd a half years old. The boy and his mother were thrown from bed at
their home, 87 Central avenue, Jersey City, and tho boy died of shock.
Thirty Others Were Injured.
Ten persons nre reported missing, including Cornelius Leyden, chief
of the Lehigh Valley Railroad's police, who was last seen in the fire zono
on tho pier. This number may be greatly increased when u full account
ing is made of tho men who were on tho pier nnd tho barges.
The total of tho injured most of them cut by glass who required
attention in the hospitals of Jersey City is thirty. Ono of them is likely
j to die. He is James Doherty, a
BY EXPLOSION
minutes later by n still bigger one.
nitroglycerine, nitrocellulite. lvildlt-
Is Bombarded.
schooner moored near the end of tha
Jersey City policeman, who waa felled
Vv
.Hw.i.'.
,l.-)..,A-jj,.fjt,