The San Francisco call. [volume], December 04, 1902, Image 5

About The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913

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Workingmen Thankful for Narrow Escape
From Deaih^on Board the Burning
Steamship Progreso.
' ;•• SACRAMENTO, - Dec. ; 3.— "W. . W. Douglass,
Deputy State Controller, has gone to Washing
ton, D. ! C, ' where he will institute proceedings
looking to the collection . of - $4,420,801 08, due
the ¦ State ; of California by" the - United States
Government for Civil War .claims.': v - :
PARIS, Dec. 3.— The " hearing of Jean
de Rydzewski, . the j Russian ( singer, be
fore Examining Magistrate Ganneval In
connection with the '. death, by shooting
November 19 of : Mrs. • Ellen Gore In his
apartment, Is set for- next Friday. • Sev
eral ' witnesses will be examined. Consul
General 1 / Gowdy/ will be represented. It
is; expected that r the hearing will deter
mim: whether, any . ; further proceedings
will be taken against De Rydzewski."
Jean de Rydzewski to Be Heard.
The readjustment of the Progreso's In
surance was completed only about a week
ago. Some of the increased Insurance
was placed here. The exact amount of
Insurance the agents here do not know,
beyond the fact that it was as much as
they could expect to get on the vessel
considering the nature ot the trade Into
which she was going. ' .
The Progreso, either as collier or oil
carrier, was not considered a temp tins
risk and as a result the fnsurance was
placed in small amounts and wherever
companiies • could be induced . to ' assume
the hazard. -"
THE Progreso as she stood when
yesterday's explosion occurred Is
said to have been worth about $250 -
000 She was fully insured, most of the
risk having been placed in England and
New York. With the vessel's change of
occupation the rate of Insurance Increased
and with the improvements made In the
process of conversion the owners made a
corresponding increase hi the amount of
insurance. .' - . >
PROGRESO IS
INSURED FOR
FULL VALUE
THE mystery which surrounds the
blowing up of the Ill-fated steamer
Progreso deepens still more when
' it was learned yesterday, that she
had just been inspected by United States
Inspectors of Hulls and Boilers Bolles and
Bulger. They pronounced the vessel thor
oughly sound and perfect in every detail.
- The following is the law governing this
class of vessels:' ' \ .' .[V. - , "
. Section 4474. The Secretary of the Treasury
may grant permission to the owner of any
steam vessel -to use any invention or. process
for the utilization of petroleum or other min
eral oils .. or substances - In - the production of
motive power,- and -may make . and , enforce
regulations concerning the application and use
of the same for such purpose. But -no such
permission shall- be granted unless upon the
certificate ot the -supervising inspector of
steamboats' for the district /wherein such ves
sel is registered and other satisfactory proof
that the use of -the same Is safe and efficient,
and upon such proof and the approval of such
certificate by the Secretary of the Treasury, a
special . license for. the 'use of such ., process
or invention .' shall 'Issue' under " the seal of
the Treasury Department. - -. ,
Provided however,. That .the Secretary of
the Treasury may permit .the use of petroleum
as fuel on -steamers not carrying passengers
without the certificate of the supervising in
spector of the district where the . vessel is to
be used, subject to such conditions and safe-'
guards as the Secretary of; the Treasury, in
his judgment shall" provide.-' For 'a violation
of any of the conditions Imposed by . the • Sec
retary, of the Treasury a penalty of $500 shall
be Imposed, ¦. which penalty shall be a Hen
upon the vessel, but a. bond may, as provided
In: other cases, be given to secure the satis
faction of the Judgment, ' ; . "v ¦
SHIP'S BOILERS
SAID TO BE IN
PERFECT ORDER
waited anxiously. After all was over and
they were told that the arm had . been
taken off, they broke down and wept pit
eously. Finally they left, having first se
cured a promise that they could see their
unfortunate brother this morning. C6n
noma stood the operation well and If the,
shock is not too severe will recover. -
Robert Gibson, a boilermaker, had both
legs broken and was badly burned. There
was a fracture of both bones of the rignt
leg and a compound comminuted fracture
of both bones of the left leg. The shat
tered bones were set and if no complica
tions set in his legs as well as his life
may be spared. The surgeons are, how
ever, a little fearful for the left leg.
Gibson's face, head and both hands were
severely scorched. He resides at 125 South
Park.
BROKEN LIMBS AND BURNS.
Edward Kane, a shipbuilder's helper,
had his right foot crushed and his right
leg broken. There was a compound frac
ture of the foot and a fracture of both
bones just below the knee. As in the
case of Gibson he was badly burned about
the scalp, face and hands and suffers
from intense shock. He Is also expected
to recover.
Hugh McGill, another boilermaker who
was at work near where the explosion
occurred, is likely to lose his sight. The
fire was upon him before he could grope'
his way beyond its reach and It was with
difficulty he. was rescued. His scalp was
badly lacerated and he sustained con
tusions of the wrist and back. His in
juries are not .considered dangerous.
George McNerney, a riveter, like his
companions, was painfully burned about
the face. A piece of steel, torn from Its
fastenings, struck him on the hand, im
bedding itself in the bone and requiring
a surgical operation. His back was al30
injured.
E. V. Beutell, storekeeper on the Pro
grcso, was treated for a fractured wrist.
Beutell is a resident of New York, and by
occupation a marine engineer. He secured
the job he held when injured only three
days ago. When the surgeons had dressed
the injury, Beutell left the hospital. He
had on a pair of overalls and a jumper
and lost all of his other clothing on the
vessel.
BEUTELL RELATES EXPERIENCE
"I was standing near the boiler," said ,
Beutell, "and about all I know about it
Is that I landed on my head some three
feet away. Then something spun through
the air and struck my wrist. Instantly
the place became dark from a heavy
volume of smoke and I started about to
make my escape. This I succeeded in
doing, only with difficulty. I saw several
fall around me, but I could not say wheth
er they got out all right or not."
All day long friends of the Injured men
called at the hospital, but Major Kendall
refused to admit any of them, saying the
patients were in no condition to be dis
turbed. Inquiry concerning people who
fortunately were not there was frequently
made, the reports of the disaster having
been greatly magnified on the streets. A.
number of boys are employed at the
works and It was a frequent occurrence
for a father to drop his occupation in
some other part of town and rush out to
the hospital upon hearing a rumor that
his boy had been mangled or burned., The
same may be said of other employes of
the works. Some of them left the place
immediately after the disaster and when
their absence became noted by anxious
relatives, they were sought at the hospi
tal. . 1
During the afternoon Maurice HIgglns,
a fireman on Truck 4, was brought in suf
fering from a severe wound of the left
shoulder. At one time the wharf was on
fire and a plank from which a long spike
projected was raised to facilitate the work
of extinguishing it. The plank fell by
accident, striking Higgins m the .shoulder
and driving the spike deep into his flesh. '
THREE VICTIMS
WELL KNOWN
IN POTRERO
Daniel Gallagher,- one of . the missing
workmen, . who Is still believed to have
OWING to the fact that the relatives
and friends of the unfortunate men
who met death in the Fulton Iron
Works disaster were heartbroken and ex
cited when the news of the accident be
came known, It was Impossible to obtain
a sketch of the lives of all.
As soon as the officers and men at the
Presidio were apprised of the dreadful
accident, ambulanc.es were hurried to the
scene and the injured were taken to the
General Hospital for treatment. The sol
diers tenderly lifted th# stricken men' and
boys into the ambulance's and; dashed at
breakneck speed.,, to the hospital. The
men were cared for In the operating room,
library and ." other parts /of the hospital.
The 1 surgeons did' excellent work-in re
lieving/the sufferers. -^Doctors hurried to
. the 1 scene' of , the disasterjn the army am
bulances and gave first aid to. the- In
jured on the ground. -Young Harry Con
noma was found lying on the : ground
where he had been hurled by . the explo
sion. ; One arm was 'hanging. to. his body
by a shred. "The little fellow proved him
self a hero in'hls suffering. As brave men
gathered; round'/ him i doing ? their ; utmost
to soothe ; him, the lad looked | up j| and
plaintively asked If , he was going- to die.
He -was assured that, hps would: live, v
| "Then r don't let mother, know,",, he said.
"She would' worry too: much. , Poor moth
er," he; added '_ with '/unselfish regret, "I
can't give her; that -Christmas '¦-. present
now. I won't, have j 1 the; money. ',' r >
He bravely watched the doctor, snip the
thread of skin \ that V held* his little , arm
to his body, f The boy ' was ', taken . to the
hospital and the doctors have every hope
the'little fellow will recover. ',: ' ¦;¦.<
All day Tuesday the Progreso's engines
were tested. Fires were kept up and a
good pressure of steam was in, her boil
ers. .• ..The engines. were 1 found to be work
ing properly and the Fulton Iron Works
people' were pleased with their work. The
tanks to be .used in carrying oil for .the
vessel's consumption and as freight were
being tested. Six of v the tanks were
found to be airtight on Tuesday.
.Thf men engaged in the work tested the
other four tanks^yesterday with a like re
sult. Riveters, painters, and other work
men were busily engaged in various parts
of the vessel when the explosion came.
Whether It was spontaneous combustion
or 'riot' will never : ' be known, but it Is. a
fact, that the big fuel tank containing more
than"12,000 gallons; of oil exploded. The
burning oil spread -all over theship^nd
the water of the bay in the vicinity of
the vessel was covered with burning oil."
The force of the explosion was so great
that it broke the vessel in two just for
ward . of amidships.': "¦¦ A large , piece of
plate from the side of the .Progreso was
found five .hundred yards from the ship.
B'ortunately.it struck ho one in its flight.
CARING FOR INJURED.
on the vessel. On Tuesday the Sea Rover
drew up alongside of the Progreso and
pumped 400 barrels of oil Into her big tank
amidships. The contract called . f or 500
barrels and the remainder . was to have
been delivered. to-day.
¦ A. prominent member of the corporation
stated that there would > be no more oil
burners fixed at the wharf. He said he
was not going to take any more chances.
He also bemoaned the - loss*/ of $125,000
which , was to have been turned over to
the corporation to-day." James Spiers,
president of the Fulton Engineering and
Shipbuilding Works,: ; visited the yards
during ; the fire," ! but would not talk for
publication." . : - '.-..":'.'. . .' •
Narrow escapes were numerous/Many
of , the men are thankful they were work
ing elsewhere when the disaster hap-,
pened. A.dozen men were detailed by the
iron. works an hour before the accident
to go aboard the Arab, a steamship being
fitted with oil burners, and they were en
gaged in their work and thus escaped the
holocaust. -"•',' , , r '¦$¦'> • .
Chief Engineer Dean received the con
gratulations of his friends on his very
narrow escape. He had been below on the
Progreso and j had gone ashore to S give
some directions. He stopped a moment
to ¦ exchange a joke with a friend and
while doing so was_ almost thrown down
by the terrific explosion./
DEAN'S NARROW ESCAPE.
John. Maguire, a riveter employed at the
works, had a narrow, escape from death,
but as he stood on the wharf he bemoaned
the loss - of his brother Jimmy. He* arid
Jimmy were partners. They worked to
gether as riveters. Both lads were work
ing on, the Prpgreso*"in the after shaft.
John had finished his tasK and. had left
his. brother a moment before to hammer
some rivets that he alone could reach.
While away the: explosion shook the ves
sel. He scrambled . from his place and
wildfy called for Jimmy, but received no
reply. He rushed to where his- brother
was at work, but was beaten back by the
flames. He also would have perished had
not friendly, hands lifted him out of his
perilous position.
John Cazette, the aged electrician who
was lost on the Progreso, had only been
at work at the Fulton Iron Works for a
month, ; biit in that short time was beloved
by all who knew him. ; His loss is keenly
felt ¦ by • his fellow-workmen.
• Continued From Page 4, Column 5.
taken to indicate conclusively that ther«
was no boiler explosion. Among those
who were below was William Holbron. an
ciler, who lives' at 1 Perry street, this
city. Holbron says that there were sev
eral explosions while he was below. The
first was the great one which was fol
lowed by several smaller ones which
might have been caused by explosions, of
gas in the pipes. Holbron had a comrade
with. him. Together they made their es
cape. Holbron's experience was thrilling:
in the extreme. One moment he was en
gaged In the peaceful performance of his
usual • task. Then came, without any
warning, the awful shock that sounded
like the simultaneous discharge of many
cannons. He was thrown to the deck -as
was his comrade and the smaller noises
that he mentions took place while he and
his comrade were hastening: to get up
on the deck. Immediately with the sound
of the first great explosion the stout par
titions between the flr© room and the fuel
oil tanks went over as if pushed by invis
ible giant hands. Immediately the fuel
oil seemed to take fire. This is the sub
stance of Holbron's story, as - told to>
friends. He was directed by an official
of the Fulton Iron "Works not to tell hla
story to the newspaper reporters and he
declined . to furnish other particulars
when he was asked for them. He also
refused to give the name of the man who
was in the fire room with him when tin
explosion occurred.
The Fulton Iron Works suffers consid
erable loss by the explosion, the amount
of which is not yet computed by the man
agement. The works have been locate:!
in the present place about ten years. The
corporation now handling the business
succeeded to the old time firm of Hlnck
ley, Spiers and Hayes. Its business la
marine, mining and general machinists*
work. Many vessels have been built by
the company. Among these are the boat
Sausallto, the tugboat Sea Rover and
the freighters Chehalis and Olympic.
Nine-tenths of the J steam schooner flea t
running out of this port was built at the
Fulton works. ',. -
I .No one who. was near the engine or
fire rooms of the Progreso when ; the ex
plosion: occurre'd "was- injured. ¦ " This is
As soon as the shock was over the
office, staff had a chance to look .about
them, and a scene of complete wreck met
their view. Wooden partitions were shat
tered and fragments of them were strewn
broadcast over the floors. The . upper floor
fared about the same as the low"er. one.
The tables upon which were instruments
used .by the draughtsmen •¦ were swept
clean of their belongings. All the office^
people "were- greatly shaken up. . During
the explosion the walls that sheltered
them rocked and cracked as if the build
ing wasin the throes. "of an earthquake.
The steamship 'Progreso was sent to the
Fulton Iron Works some months, ago to
have' a large amount of. work performed
upon her. Manager Spiers says that the
principal work was the construction of
five large tanks to be used In 'the trans
portation of oil. There was no oil In any
tank except the one that was used for
supplying the boilers with heat for the
making of steam. In his opinion there
was not more than 200 barrels of oil in the
fuel, oil- tank .when. the. disaster occurred.
There was no boiler explosion. There was
steam up and the pressure did not exceed
forty pounds. : The Progreso. was author
ized ] to have - a , steam pressure - of 180
pounds. -Mr. Spiers said he thought that
there must have been about sixty men on
the .Progreso at the time of the explosion.
They were distributed all over the vessel.
Some were painting and others were per
forming, various tasks. ; He also' said that
he had no idea how: many men, were -mis
sing. ; The roll would be called to-day.
.-, no boiler; explosion.
THE INTERIOR A WRECK.
The explosion came without the slight
est warning, and I although the office
building is 150 feet from where the Pro
greso was lying alongside the wharf the
concussion nearly, wrecked the .structure.
All , the windows -were "blown from their
frames outward, not a pane of glass
escaping. Seemingly the explosion created
a great vacuum into which the surround
ing air rushed. This "is Mr. Spiers' ex
planation of the outward falling of 'all
the glass from the broken windows.
• Inside of the office building there wa3
a singular manifestation of the force of
the'shock. .A door to Mr. Spiers' private
office, opening from a narrow ' hallway
that runs through the building . between
the several on the first floor, was
wrenched from its hinges and was 'thrown
a distance of ¦ ten ; feet " or ¦ more through
the air, toward the center of the office.
Mr. Spiers, was. seated at .a table in the
middle of the room . engaged In conversa
tion with Superintendent High concerning
work in progress in the shops. The fly
ing, door. -struck fairly on High's head.
He was cut and bruised somewhat but
not seriously hurt. Several other occu
pants . of . the building were also I slightly
cut by flying glass. J
¦-' . . * the time talking .with Su
perintendent Zadoc . High. ' Cashier « Mc-
Dougall, Miss Rose Haley,, a stenog
rapher,' the time keeper and two
clerks named Folger were • In adjoining
rooms on the main floor at work. On the
floor above were Charles Stoddard,_ chief
draughtsman and a number of assistants.
MANAGER JAMES SPIERS
JR., of . the Fulton Iron
Works, • is unable to . ac
count for the explosion. He
was. sitting in his office at
James Magulre, who is among the miss
ing, was a riveter by occupation and had
been in the employ of the Fulton Iron
Works but a few months. He was an ex
pert mechanic and known as a sober, in
dustrious young man. Maguire was borri
in the Potrero twenty-four years ago and
lived there most of his life. He,, was the
son of Mr. and Mrs. Frank Maguire .and
leaves four brothers and a sister. He was
of a- roaming disposition and only recently
returned from New York, where he had
been employed at his trade.
¦ Edward Nelson was also a Potrero boy.
He was born In the East, but came to this
city when still a lad and with his father
and mother, settled in -the.' Potrero..- He
was a riveter by trade and worked at the
Union Iron Works for a long. time. ¦ He
leaves a. father and -mother and several
brothers and sisters to mourn his loss.
The little cottage on. Iowa street pre
sented a pathetic scene yesterday after
noon when the sad news was received.
Mrs. Gallagher's grief was beyond de
scription and the seven little ones gath
ered around her and wept piteously.' Gal
lagher was a very quiet man and was de
voted to his family. ' He was well known
throughout the Potrero and every man
with whom he came in contact had noth 7
ing but good words for the unfortunate
mechanic.
a wife and seven children, whose ages
range from 7 months i to 17 "years. Gal
lagher's oldest daughter helped support
the family up to a short time ago, when
she lost her position and has been out of
work since. The rest of the children are
too young to work, and - now that the
father has been taken from them by the
cruel hand of death the . heartbroken
mother and the seven children are in des
titute circumstances.
met death, was a shlpfltter by occupation
and 35 years old. He 'came to • this v city
about four years ago from Superior, Wis.,
and was employed at his trade in several
of the shipyards here. Gallagher was a
native of Glasgow, Scotland. He leaves
Manager Spiers of the Fulton Iron Works
Is -Unable to Account for the
Awful Disaster.
SCENES , AND INCIDENTS AT THE SHIPYARD OF THE FULTON IRON
WORKS; WHILE THE WORK 0F ! RESCUING' THE INJURED WAS
BEING CARRIED ON YESTERDAY AFTERNOON. -
Soldiers Join in the
Work of Rescue
With a Will. I
CONCUSSION NEARLY
WRECKS THE OFFICE
Prompt Assistance Is
Given at Scene of
Disaster.
Major Kendall had with, him at the
scene of the disaster and at the hospital
his first assistant, Rhoades, and Surgeons
Shertlidge, Chidester, McCall. Grubb, Ed
ger and Gregory. These men administered
temporary relief to the .Injured before
they were placed in the . ambulances and
when the latter arrived at the post hos
pital commenced Work there immediately.
Harry Connoma, a 14-year-old boy • em
ployed at the works as a rivet heater,
was one of the most severely wounded.
The lad's left arm was crushed almost to
a pulp. He bad been struck by a heavy
iron and was carried by some compan
ions to the deck. Amputation was neces
sary. His father was with him during
the operation. Outside in the corridor
bis two small sisters and his brother
AMPUTATE BOY'S ARM.
SOLDIERS KNOW NO FEAR.
All was distraction . and commotion
when the soldiers arrived. Great puffs
of smoke enveloped everything and flames
were already bursting from the decks
and portholes of the Progreso. Men were
still groping their way off the doomed
"ship, blackened, wounded and stifled, and
the great fear that) a second explosion
would follow drove the timid to shelter.
The maimed lay about, some unconscious
and some groaning above the roar of the
fire. The soldiers began with a will.
With no thought of fear, they scram
bled to the decks and took up the work
of rescue. Groping their way through
the heated and smothering atmosphere,
they picked up victims and carried them
to the ambulances. Nor did they pause
in their labors until the last man who
was within the reach of human help had
been placed beyond- danger.' More of the
soldiers assisted the firemen and police.
They tugged at lines of hose and drove
the crowds of curiosity seekers back to
the fire lines. Then, when they could
do no more and when It became a cer
tainty that those left behind in the flam
ing wreckage were doomed to perish, they
returned in order to their reservation. .
When the report of the explosion was
heard. Major W. P. Kendall, without
waiting to ascertain its cause, ordered
the ambulances to be brought and the
ir.enibers of his staff to report for imme
diate duty. "I simply knew," said the
major, "that something had happened
and that we might be needed. I deemed
inquiry unnecessary."
The first wagon to start contained Col
onel Rice of the Nineteenth Infantry, a
oetachment of the Hospital Corps, Cap
tain Frank Mclntire, Captain Watson and
Chaplain S. J. Smith. Then four others
followed at the head of a willing throng
of soldiers. The sight of the dense, black
smoke, pouring upward to mingle with
the toz, and the sound of minor explo
sions, quickened their pace. The soldiers
had been sent out by the officer of the
day, who, like Major Kendall, did not
wait to be apprised of the seriousness of
the accident. The First Battery of Light
Artillery was skirmishing in the field. A
bugle call, sounding "Fire alarm!"
brought them to a halt in their military
maneuvers and they immediately formed
for other action. Unhitching their horses,
they left their caissons behind and sped
toward the burning vessel. Then came
privates and officers on foot, running,
without heed of else until they reached
the works.
meritorious service rendered
by the Presidio authorities soon after the
explosion took place. A great body of
mechanics, with greasy caps and hands,
and a group of sailors, some of them
bleeding and bruised, gave, in almost one
accord, testimonials to the prompt action
and kindly ministrations of these sturdy
men of war. The mangled and seared,
who would otherwise have been obliged
to wait until assistance could arrive from
a distant quarter, found their pain al
leviated and their wounds bound up by
skilled hands in an incredibly short time
and anesthetics rendered them oblivious
to the agonies of operations which were
immediately performed.
The entire staff of the post hospital was
pressed into service without a word of
solicitation. The noise of the explosion,
giving a warning of its own, was the
signal for action and ambulances, crowd
ed with surgeons and nurses, soon went
clattering, to the scene of the disaster.
Following the ambulances came soldiers
mounted and on foot, who, in response to
the "fire call," hastened to make them
selves useful and to render assistance
where it might be needed.
The presence of surgeons at the wharf
so Quickly is responsible for the saving
of some lives. One lad in particular,
whose limbs were torn by. the terrific
shock, and some men, might have bled
to death had much time intervened before
succor came. Ugly cuts and jagged flesh
wounds were temporarily treated at the
wharf, and the patients were later hur
ried to operating rooms, where surgeons
went quickly to work.
MAJOR VOLUNTEERS SERVICES
i j YPwrggmyg O f p ra i S e and
jg "^ gratitude were poured out by
B d the crew of the ill-fated Pro
ff greso and the employes of the
JeL-^y Pulton Iron Works for the
Presidio Authorities
Render Noble
Service.
MILITARY
CARE FOR
WOUNDED
1HE SAN IBAKCISCO CALL., THURSDAY, DECEMBER : 4 V 1902.
SOLDIERS DO HEROIC RESCUE WORK
5