Evening Star Newspaper, January 30, 1922, Page 5

étrict. Chapter Begins Re- fief Almost Immediately i After Crash. th the same zeal and efficiency of vice that has become synonymous h the name of the American Red s throughout the world, the local pter responded to the urgent need ught about by the Knickerbocker eater disaster Saturday night. The trict Chapter began to function lost immediately after the crash. treasurer, Miss Margaret Hood, 0 Was near to the scene of the gedy, immediately notified Dr. Wil- udm E. Clark, head of the medical committee, of the disaster, who s@nmoned in a short time seventy- two doctors, who went to those places throughout the city where their help was needed. Miss Hood then called Dr. Ralph Jenkins, chairman of the chapter; Miss Mabel T. Boardman and Mrs. ‘Theodore Richards, utive secre- tary of the chapter. Mrs. Richards at once notified the cantgen, motor corps, help aides and clerical committees, who quickly responded. In Charge of Committees. In charge of the various committees were Mra. Isaac Littell, canteen com- mittee; Mrs. B. D. Carter, Mrs. Charles B. Wheeler, substitute, motor corps committee; Miss Anna Koeper, cleri- cal committee; Mrs. Scaton Schroeder, with Mrs. Clara Chappell and Mrs. Frank Pleadwell, substitutes, help aides committee; Mrs. Marie Cham- berlain, head of nursing service; Mrs. ‘William Spencer, head of comfort sec- tion, and Mrs David Roberts, in charge of the: production, rellef and supplies committee. Saturday night Mrs. Anna Wimer and her husband walked ten blocks through the snow to obtain the chauf- feurs of the motor trucks who got the cots and blankets for Emergency and Garfleld hospitals and also the Christian Scientist Church. Among the supplies furnished by the Red Cross were 100 blankets, 100 sweaters, 125 pairs of gloves, 50 bath- robes, 150 pairs of socks, 30 pairs of warm pajamas and 100 hot-water bottles. Donations in_ the form of blankets were received from S. Kann's & Sons. The help aides assisted in feeding the wounded at the theater, also aid- ing those still pinned under the debris by means of tubes. The sol- diers, sailors, marines, policemen and citizens aiding in relief work were also fed and from time to time given new gloves. Food and careful nurs- ing attention was also given at the Christian Scientist Church. Generous Public Spirit. ‘Mra Richards, in commegting on the work of the Red Cross, stated that she wanted to commend the splendid spirit of the public, who almost overwhelmed the Red Cross with generous gifts, and use of homes, {‘nwhines and assistance of every ind. The Junior Red Cross of this city also aided in rellef work of the injured and rescuers Saturday night, lasting through today. Every ald that the junior organization could glve was furnished. Prominent in the work of the organization were Miss Hilda King, Miss Marian King, Miss Ruth Rosen- felt, Miss Catherine Chambers and Miss Edwarda Gavre. Members of the Red Cross working with them were Col. and Mrs. HL C. Barnes, Mrs. Alvin Newmyer, Mrs. Natalie Mayer, Mrs. Gilbert Hahn, Mrs. Sylvan King and Mrs. Lawrence Gassenheimer. Salvation Army Assistance. g4=EHHZ00 o NAVY YARD EQUIPMENT Other Officials Communicate With '[) |COL. ROOSEVELT OFFERS |MAKE FUNERAL PLANS HOW THE STAR COVERE. NEWS OF THEATER HORROR FOR HOWARD S. KNEESSI Charles W. Semmes Assists Family D. 0, MONDAY, JANUARY 30, 1922. WARNING CRY OF MANY IN BALCONY OF THEATE | Photo by Pridgeon. “DUCK” SAVES THEATERPLANNED T0ALLOW CHANGES So Constructed That Conver- sion to Apartment or Busi- ness Building Possible. ‘The manager of the Knickerbocker Theater, Robert Etris, lived in the theater building. His apartment was at the south end. It is stated that he entered the theater just befors the crash, and for some time it wa3 thought he had been caught by the falling roof. It appears he turned to the left and went to his apartment, which lies in a portion of the struc- ture outside the theater proper, and which was not damaged. It is stated that the Knickerbocker was built with the idea that, if the theater were not successful, the build- ing could be turned into an apart- ment and run up several storles high- er. There was also the possibility that the building might later be turned into a combination of shops, ballroom, summer garden, restaurant, roof garden, etc. Plans were drawn, according to neigh- bors who watched the building rise and who were approached to rent store space in case the combination amuse- ment place were decided on, so that the structure could be turned to any of the three purposes. The Columbia road side shows where the apartmant house floors and windows would have been. Just behind the stage, located at the narrow north end of the building, is a candy shtop. A corridor-like division, containing the main entrance and lob- by, connects this shop with the apart- ment portion, occupied by the manager and the superintendent of the building. In all these parts the roof stayed and nothing was displaced to give any clue to the horrors lying just beyond the inner doors. The diagram bherewith printed explains the situation in the building. On the flat roof was a small- er structure of tin and iron, which added some little weight, and which aleo gave a chance for the twenty.five- mile-an-hour wind to exert considerable pressure on the weakening structure. POLICE FORCE THEATERS TO REMOVE ROOF SNOW Houses Remain Closed Sunday Un- til Order Is Com- plied With. Practically every theater in the city was open last night, but not before the captain of police in whose precinct the house is located, had given his per- { mission. _Following the order of the Commis- }smners clasing all theaters until the snow was removed from the roof, In- spector Sullivan, acting chief of police, issued orders to the captains of the precincts to see that the order was car- ried out. As the building inspector's force was not working yesterday no one ould be secured from that source to ake the inspection, it was stated, the police captains were held respo sible as to the safety of the theaters The captains personally visited eac of the theaters and saw that the snow had not only been removed from the i Toofs, but from the exits as well, before | they would allow the doors to be opened to the public. At the Rialto Theater, where on Sunday morning, the Burrall Sunday ischool class, of the Calvary Baptist {Sunday_school meets, Capt. Brown | of the first precinct refused to allo, the clas morning. Great assistance in the way of food was rendered by the Salvation Army, & headed by Capt. and Mrs. Harold Smith, and a corps of ten workers. seats fell to the floor. The from daylight in clearing the snow one of the spectators that saved Srash '“:na“%‘ifi‘en‘l‘F pll:r;'eon;hiyr-fromblhe theater roof, but as it hud ; uc! sently po {not been entirely removed, the offi- many persons who occupled seats In | tha Toof covered them, the seats hold- | cer declined to allow the ession Lo Detective Cornwell Anxious to Aid Theater Victims. “Duck,” was a warning shouted by 1 balcony of Victim of Theater Disaster. Parly yesterday morning members of the Salvation Army appeared with a lafge supply of doughnuts and hot ooffee, which they,.gave to the res- cuers and injured. ‘Assistance was given the workers by many nearby residents, who in- vited them in their homes and helped them in the making of coffee and sandwiches. DEAD VIOLINIST JUST WED. Joseph Wade Beal Leaves Bride of Four Days After Crash. Joseph Wade Beal, first violinist the Knickerbocker Theater, marri Miss. Margaret Denham, his boyhood sweetheart, last Tuesday at the Mount Pleasant M. E. Church. Today the widow, who was not present at the EKnickerbocker when the roof crashed. site in gloom, stunned by the loss that suddenly came upon her. The young man's father, for he was about twenty-two years old, is “Ben” Beal, a veteran telegrapher, in charge of the telegraph staff at the arms con- ference press room. A desire on his part to become a violinist was inter- Tupted many vears ago with the loss; of an arm through an acgident. When Joseph Wade Beal was born in Wash- ington that desire to become pro- flflf:nt on the violin was transferred %0 his son, who was put to the study of that instrument at an early age. He made rapid strides in his work, and, after serving in the Navy during the war, returned to the task of ful- filling his father's dream. OFFERS TO AID IN HOMES. Group of Y. W. C. A Would Labor for Theater Victims. The Christian Social Service Group of the Young Women's Christlan Assocla- tion offers its services in any form to the nomes of those who suffered injuries and deaths in the Knickerbocker dis- at ed r. The group, it was explained by Mra F. R Brodton the organizer and pres- ent “mother” of the society, has about forty-five girls who will be ready at a moment's notice to render any aid possible. As the soclety is at a loss to determine those who need ald, it is requested that Miss Mary Wright, chairman, be notified at Main 8587 or Mz, Brodton at Franklin 7872. CAPT. VANCE PROMINENT. 3 Vitim of Knickerbocker Disaster ; Well Enown in Virginia. @apt. R. Conroy Vance of Richmond, M€, who, with his wite, was killed In th$ Enickerbocker Theater disaster, 788 one of the most prominent men dnithe Fredericksburg section of V1 g’ He was president of ' tl nters National Bank of Fredericks- ‘burg, president of the Fredericksburg Company, president of the ers’ Creamery and owner of the field Hall herd of Jersey cattle dairy farm near Fredericksburg. urviving Capt. and Mrs. Vance are n and daughter, both of whom are atiending school. Capt. Vance leaves & Prother in South Africa and a sister ‘England. Mrs. Vance leaves a ther in Magsachusetts. SS PRICE G. W. STUDENT ater Vietim Daughter of Capt. Price, Beverly Apartments. ‘Ul- Helen H. Price, eighteen years ' age, who was killed {n the crash, the daughter of Capt. Price of the Beverly apartments. She was :Jrld\llte of Central High School at the time of her death, was t&lgy‘ a course at George Washing- niversity. formerly lived in Oakland, Calit, and attended the Technical High School thers. Her body was from the theater to the First of Christ, Scientist, and was by her fathes Splendid. Co-operation Shown by Staff at Scene and in_Office to Give Public All Possible ‘When catastrophies such as the one which befell the Knickerbocker The- ater Saturday night occur, and people eagerly beseech the newspaper offices for information and glean every line in the paper itself about the accident, there is perhapd little thought given to the organization which must be maintained to gather that informa- tion. In the military service there i8 no better generalship, and the forces in the field are no better trained. Such occurences as that of Saturday must be handled without notice, and there i4 no time to map out a cams paign. Just a few minutes after 9 o'clock Saturday night the big fire alarm gong in The Star office rang out box 8-1-7. It showed it was 18tk and Co- lumbia road, and the city editor, knowing every part of the city, vis- ualized there was a possibility of se- rious trouble there, because he knew there was a big theater in the vi- clnity. “Call up the Knickerbocker, called to an assistant. The order had just fallen from his lips when his telephone rang, and the reporter who always stays at police Feadquarters said: “The Knickerbocker Theater has collapsed!™ Reporters Rushed to Scene. That was enough. Two reporters, working on their regular night news, were dispatched immediately. One of them had been brave enough to bring his car out in the storm, and in a few minutes they were speeding through the snowdrifts, bound for the scene. In twenty minutes they were there, and went right into the wreckage to ascertain its extent. Once the city editor knew he had two men to start the work of covering the scene, he began marshaling the other reporters. The Associated Press| was notified and in a few brief minutes the first news of the disaster was known throughout the news- paper offices of the ocountry. Additional men were dispatched to the scene as they were reached on their regular assignments, and others were sent to the hospitals to assure aocuracy in the lists of injured. ‘Arriving at the scene of the disaster, a line of communication with the| office by telephone was established in the National Sport Shop, on 18th street, just opposite the theater. Call to Injured for Names, The first two reporters on the scene set about getting the names of people in the ruins by calling to them, and getting information from those who were conscious. Each person who was brought out was interviewed to get_every bit of information, which made possible some early forecast of the extent of the dead, maimed and injured. Dressing _stations were established in various houses. The reporters had to locate them. and everybody who was sent out was followed by & re porter to ascertain where he was be- ing treated. Once these sources of information were established, more attention could be given at the scene. Many of the first identifications of the dead were made by The Star men first on the scene, When a body was laid aside they searched pockets for pa- pers or other means of identification, eager td provide information for fran- tic people who knew they had rela- tives or friends in the house at the time. Frantie Appeals for Relief. A scramble through the ruins, a voice heard, a frantic appeal for re. lief, or a request to notify “home. The reporter would crouch on hands and knees, peer down through llttil; cracks in the concrete ang talk wi & man bare, on & B Information. child pinned there. There was no time to think of or to fear the possi- bility of falling walls or_ further slipping of the wreckage. The peo- ple must know who ‘was in_there Giving the people accuirate informa- tion was the purpose uppermost in the minds of the reporters. Every name and address and extent of injuries, obtained was telephoned immediately to The Star news room. where a force had been:organized to compile the informatior, and put it in order, cutting out duplications, for once the reporters were on the scene they saw little of each other, meeting now and then at the telephone. There was no time there to stop. chat or to compare notes. They knew that was being done for them in the office. Reporters in a number of instances crawled down under the wreckage where there was an opening, in order to obtain a name or a bit of infor- mation, or possibly to obtain identi- fication of a body. When additional hospitals were put on the list of those recelving victims a reporter would be placed on one of the firat ambulances to leave for that insti- tution, with instructions to remain and check up the list of injured. Two Dressing Stations. As the numbers were increased in the two main dressing stations that were established, that at the Chris- tlan Sclence Church and at the of- fice of Dr. J. B. G. Custis, 1815 Colum- bia road, opposite the theater, men were stationed In them to get details as the injured were brought in, while other reporters remained in the wreckage to gather further informa- tion. Injured taken out of the Columbia road entrances were taken to the dressing station in Dr. Custis’ home, where first aid was applied, after which the cases were immediately evacuated to hospitals. Those taken out of the 18th street entrances were removed to the Christian Sclence Church. Later in the night The Star estab- Ushed another direct line from Evans’ barber shop, Columbia road east of 18th street, and this line was kept contliguously open until 9 o'clock last night. In The Star office & man sat with & head receiver, like that of & telephone operator, on, while a re- vorter remained in the store with the recefver continuously at his ear. Relatives Beg for Information. Every time a Star reporter came out of the scene and rushed for the telephone he was beseeched by anx- fous relatives and friends of those known to be in the building for some bit of information which would give hope of life.” Many times the sad story had to be broken that thé body of the relatiye had been found. There was & reporter with each rescue party, helping to drag off wreckage until the form of a victim was exposed, then starting his duty of getting the identification and ex- tent of injuries ‘if the person were alive, or getting a description to write, if life were extinct, all in an effort to be first to provide accurate information for anxious ones. ‘This procedure was repeated over and over again all during the night and day, reporters remaining stantly on duty, seeking no. relief The descriptive story of the disaster out of the way early, the later work consisted principally of identifying those taken out of the wreckage, Phone Calls by Hundreds. In The Star office ‘a force of men worked -teadfl%'rmlvln the infor- o mation, compill it, and “getting it in type,” whil anothe 'orce an- swered the numerou ephone. in- uiries from relatives and friends, the volume of calls for information increasing as the news of the disaster spread throughout the city. e re- porters on the scene kept the:infor- mation in the possession of the effice up to the minute. eveining clse ot o tHoat page, erything else from ot page, was “covered” ) —?: Detective Fred -M. Cornwell, in charge at police headquarters, from midnight until 8 o'clock in the morn- ing, was one of the busiest men in the’ police department yesterday. So busy was he kept answering tele- phone calls and arranging for as- sistance at the scene of the accident and other places that he was unable to leave tge telephone long enough to get a bite to eat. Police officials on duty at the scene of the accldent were in frequent communication with him in efforts to get additional as- sistance and to have him transmit numerous orders to the department. A number of persons in official lite, among them Col. Theodore Roosevelt, assistant secretary of the Navy, tele- phoned offers of assistance, the as-| sistant secretary being most persist- ent. Motor trucks, sledge hammers and acetylene torches were in great su ':iemlnd at the scene of the acci- ent Col. Roosevelt told the night chief of detectives that the department could have anything the Navy De- partment could furnish. Trucks and sledges were soon on their way to the scene. Requests from all directions to fur- nish laborers to shovel snow were re- ceived by the night chief. “We'll pay them a dollar an hour, said the representative of one big corporation. At Union station, where laborers were in demand, the want was sup- plied by the military authorities, be- cause of the urgency to operate mail trains, and two of the soldiers were injured while at work. HERO TO THE LAST. Scott Montgomery, Dying, Said, “Help the Women.” Scott Montgomery, chief of the ac- counts section, United States Veterans' Bureau, killed in the theater crash, was a veteran of the world war. i ch he served as a sergeant in the Medical Corps. He lived at 1824 Biltmore street. He was taken from the ruins alive, but died at the hospital four hours later. His body was taken to Speare's under- waking establishment, 1208 H street. Sergt. Montgomery was & hero to the last. Found by his rescuers pinioned by a heavy steel girder and almost buried in a mass of cement and plaster and ted that he was Arrangements will be completed late today for the funeral of Ho G. Kneess! of 5501 Colorado avenue, who was killed and whose wife was injured in the Knickerbocker cave-in. Charles W. Semmes, president of the Semmes Motor Company, of which Mr. Kneessi was vice president, treasurer and active partner, is aiding the fam- ily to make plans. Mr. Kneessi entered into partnership with Mr. Semmes in 1913 and they have been associated in the automobile busi- ness since that date. He was only thirty-four years of age and is survived by his injured wife, two brothers, a sister and his mother. He was a member of the Columbia Country Club, the City Ciub, the Racquet Club and of the Automotive Trade Association. He was a member of the board of directors of the Dupont National Bank and was well known in local business circles. Mr. Kneessi was educgted in local public schools and was a graduate of McKinley High School. WAS NOT AT THEATER. Miss Etta Underwood Was Wrong- ly Beported as Injured. Miss Etta Underwood, listed as one of the injured at Emergency Hos- pital from the Knickerbocker Thea- ter, was not in the accident at all. Miss Underwood was taken sick at her home, 2506 K street, and was taken to the Emergency Hospital as a medical patient just about the time of the accident. —_— THREE SURVIVE VICTIM. Funeral Arrangements for Miss Mellan Not Made. Miss Agnes M. Mellan, nineteen {years of age, of 1437 Belmont street, i who was killed at the theater, was the sister of Mra. Grace ert, Mrs. Em- ma Bensinger and John Mellan. Her body was taken to Chambers’ undertaking establishment, but ar- rangements for the funeral have not been completed. CARD GAME SAVED LIVES. If Coroner Nevitt and his wife had 1 been | not decided to play a game of cards 26001 Veronica Murphy street and she was It was in her for -hel Funeral services for Miss Murphy will be held at the chapel of Geler's Sons Co., 1118 th street. 1860 8 killed by his side. that the dying JANITORS BALCONY MAIN GN"RANCE; corridor alons ¥ o 15th s dropped ever the eatire DIAGRAM SHOWING CONSTRUCTION OF THE KNICKERBOCKER -THEATER. The two syartments at the left, the candy kitch :lummm $he rear wall which rurs perpeadicalar to Saturday night instead of ~olnc ‘o the movies. they, too, might have been victims of the Knickerbocker. Dr. Nevitt, it was learned last night, suggested a card game in lieu of the theater and while he and his wife were still playing word came 10f the crash. the balcony at the Knlckerbockeri Theater. “I know it saved my life.” said Dick | Kracke, fourteen years old, 1917 18th | street, who escaped without a scratch. | Dick and three companions, Billy | Pogue of 1820 20th street being one| of them, attended the performance, | where they had balcony seats. 1 heard a cracking nolse,” said “Then there was a second sim- | ar noise, and I realized something | was wrong.” It was about this time that the warnige “duck™ was shouted, Dick stated, and many persons occupying DR. GEARHART LOSES LEG, DUE TO THEATER CRASH Feared His Other Foot Must Be Amputated—Friend Aids Him by Blood Transfusion. Dr. Clyde M. Gearhart, one of the injured victims of the Knickerbocker Theater disaster, is at Emergency Hospital with serious injuries. Dr. Gearhart was seated about in the middle of the wrecked theater and was pinned under the wreckage for several hours before being rescued. After his removal to the Lospital he ‘'was placed on the operating table and one leg was removed. It was feared today by other foot would have to be ampu- tated on account of its condition. Mrs. Gearhart, who actcompanied Dr. Gearhart to the theater, was killed. Dr. F. H Edmonds, an optician, gave & quantity of his blood for his friend, Dr. Gearhart, when the operation was performed on the latter at Emergency Hospital yesterday. Dr. Edmonds also is at the hospital. He was not in the wrecked theater. Dr. Gearhart, whose office 15 at 1624 I street, is well known in dental circles in Washing- ton as a specialist in treatment of the teeth and gums for Riggs disease. —_—— MRS. BARCHFELD KILLED. Daughter-in-Law of Dead Ex-Rep- resentative Here on a Visit. Mrs. Elmer Barchfeld, daughter-in- law of Dr. Andrew Jackson Barch- feld, who met death in the Knicker- bocker disaster, was also killed. Mrs. Barchfeld, who was here on a visit from Pittsburgh, had been in Wash- ington about five days and planned on staying five weeks. She and the for- mer Pennsylvania representative at- tended the theater together. Their; ‘bodles were removed from the wreck- age about 3 o'clock yesterday morning to the Christian Science Church, and ‘were later taken to Hines' undertak- ing establishment on 14th street. ‘where they now remain. It is planned to take the body of Mrs. Barchfeld to Pittburgh_tonight. Elmer Barchfeld, an attorney of Pittsbu is now in Washington. ‘The ds . r l;nln l:svlu h:wo chndrehn. ages about six and eight years, who are now In Pittsburgh. Dr. Barchfeld is survived by his widow and son, Elmer, an attorney of Pittsburgh. If arrangements can be completed, it is planned to take the Pittsburgh tonight, where in- take phuct HAD JUST BOUGHT TICKET. Police Surgecn Borden Has Narrow Esocape From Death. The story of the narrow escape of Police Surgeon Borden from death in the Kickerbocker Theater crash was related last night by detectives at the scene. According to one of the headquar- . Borden had just bonghl: |DR. BARCHFELD SERVED hospital officials that the ® i t | | ing thte concrete far enough above them to save them from death. The dust was stifling, the b and the place was so dark that it impossible to tell just which w. make a move. Biily Pogue struck a match and found an opening in_ the covering. The bovs and others clfmbed through and succeeded in reaching the badly shattered stair- wa. A ‘man with a broken arm and his wife joined the b Dick _stated, and the husband called to his wife, who had assisted him from the build- ing: “Honey, get a taxi.” She man- aged to get such a vehicle, and the couple sped away from the theater. 14 YEARS IN CONGRESS Victim of Knickerbocker Disaster Also Was Delegate to Brus- sels Peace Congress. Dr. Andrew Jackson Barchfeld, one ‘of the Knickerbocker victims, served as representative In seven esses from the thirty- Pennsylvania distriet . seoond e was born in Pittsburgh Al 1663, was educated In ihe’ mytits schools there and received his pro- fessional degree in 1884 at Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia. =~ He early became prominent in public life, serving as a school director and @ councilman for several years. The former representative was a delegate to the republican mnational convention, in 1886, 1894 and 1900, and was a member of the republican state committee for many vears, He was first elected to Congress in 1904, and in 1905 was a delegate to the Brussels peace congress. nce his retirement from Congres he had made his home in Washington, DIES OF HIS INJURIES. W. A. Brosseau, Jr., Was Student at Georgetown University. ‘W. A. Brousseau, jr., who died early yesterday morning from injuries re- celved in the Knickerbocker crash, is a native of North Adams, M: His father is the city pnymbnft gosltlon corresponding to that of ealth officer here. Mr. Brosseau, who 1s twenty-two years old, was a stu- dent at the School of Foreign Serv- ice, Georgetown University, and was a member of the Knights of Columbus and the Kappa Alpha Phi Fraternity. He lived at the fraternity house, at 19312 16th lttedeth nolr'lhweat. rosseau and his friend, Willia; Peters, also,a resident at the K;np:{: Alpha Phi house, went to the theater and, according to Peters, were set- tled in_their seats when the crash came. Peters sald he threw himself under a seat and Brosseau tried to follow his example, but was caught on the arm of the chair. Peters said he prayed for “just one ray of light” and that his prayer was answered. He succeeded in extricating himself and then went back and to the rescue of Brosseau, who, when found, was severely injured. The body will remain at the fra- ternity house until midnight, when it will be taken to North Adams for burial. The Knights of Columbus and the Kappa Alpha Phi Fraternity will have charge of the body. The fra. ternity yesterday announced thaf friends view the body from § until 1 ck tonight. —_——— v MISS VIVIAN OGDEN. 1 Vivian Ogden, twenty-four years of age, of 3121 Mount Pleasant street, one of the victims of the Knickerbocker, was private secretary to H. H. Shelton, lawWer, of the Mun- sey building, and was a night student of George Washington University. She was a native of Louisiana, Ark. and her body will be sent there fo burial Funeral services were held at Hysong’s undertaking chapel, 1300 N street, this afternoon, ibe held there. The members, there- upon, met in the church. Two theaters, operated for colored people, were closed yesterday, out of 10 lost thelr lives n the Knickerbocker Theater dis: ter. ! The Howard Theater T street be- tween 6th and 7th streets, of which {J. Thomas is proprietor and manager. nd the Republic, U street, near 1ith street, of which Walter Pinchback i { manager, were closed all day yester- |day. The managers announced they { would not open the places and placed signs on the outside stating the were closed out of respect for the {dead. —_— iRED CROSS FOLK FORM SERVICE HOSPITALS AID Rescue Workers Supplied With Va- rious Comforts at Knicker- bocker Theater. Shortly after news of the Knicker- bocker Theater disaster reached offi- cials _at Walter Reed Hospital the Red Cross fleld directors and the as- sistant in charge of home service were summoned from their homes in the city to report at once for what- ever duty might be necessary. Miss Margaret H. Lower, field director, and Thomas Blandford., assistant, started immediately for the hospital, but duse ‘to traffic congestion and the shortage of transportation got only as far as the scene of the disaster. M. I Reckord, assistant director of camp service at Red Cross quarters, ac- companied the Walter Reed workers. At the scene of the tragedy there wae much work to be done, and the uni- forms of these workers made it poe- sible for them te be immediately ad- mitted as rescuers. H. G. Davis, in charge of Red Cross at val Hospital, also was summon- ed, and these four people collecte? and distributed sweaters, helment gloves, socks and cigarettes to am bulance drivers, policemen, firemen and to volunteer rescuers. They also requested residents to start a cau- teen service. —_— ARE FOR ORPHANED BOY. Mr. and Mrs. Albert F. Elkins of 1302 Delafleld street are taking tem- porary care of Oscar Grant Kanston, the twelve-year-old boy whose fath- er, mother and two sisters were kill- ed in the Knickerbocker disaster. Aulyn Kanston of Louisville, Ky., the boy’s uncle, will arrive here tomor- row to take care of the estate. 0. G. Kanston, sr., was connected with the Interstate Commerce Com- mission here. The boy will probably be taken to Chicago, where his grandfather and grandmother are living. H | —_— ANOTHER VIRGINIAN DEAD. ‘Willlam Lovick Schoolfield of Dan- ville, Va., who was killed in the crash, was the son of Mrs. James E. School- fleld of Danville. Samuel Schoolfield, a brother, wired to relatives in Danville informing them of the positive identi- fication of the body. The mother, brother and two sisters of young School- fleld at present are in this city. The family is widely known in the section of the state im which they live, the textile town of Schoolfield near Danville, belng named for one of its members. The body will be taken to Danville for interment. FREEMAN SOUTH BEND BOY G. Sidney Freeman, a violinist in the orclestra of the Knickerbocker ‘Theater, who was killed when the roof fell, came here from South Bend, Ind, about a month ago to: take a position with the Knicker- bocker orchestra. He lived with his wife at 2409 18th street. The Musicians’ Union of the District is in charge of the body. which will be sent to South Bend for interment. rah S i