Martinsburgh gazette. [volume] (Martinsburgh, Va. [W. Va.]) 1810-1825, 1812-01-10

VI r.
er besides, that came before the audience, as
sured the committee, that at the moment ne
first discovered the flame, it was not longer
than his handkerchief; that he repaired Im
mediately to the stage, as near the orchestra
as he could come there he conveyed to the
audience, not wishing to alarm them by ges
ticulation, to leave the house that in the act
of doing that, he discovered the flames NOV
ing rapidly, and then he exclaimed 1.-THE
house Tor the Theatre) is on fire :" that he
went directly to the stage-box where some
or ladies were sitting, intreating them to
lump into his arms that he could save them
by conveying them through the private stage
door; and that he still entreated until lie
found il necessary to make his own escape;
that his own retreat by the private-door was
intercepted by the flames that he found iC
necessary to leap into the stage-box, and JOIN
the general crowd in the lobby that he gam
ed one of the front windows assisted IN pas
sing out some 10 or IL females, but at last
found it necessary to throw himself from the
window
This narrative is due to the exertions OF
gentleman. who fiji st sounded the alarm ana
to whom there are few VINO have not done
that Justice which ne deserves--Let us now
return to the transmission of the fre-where
the point of flame reached the roof The roof
was unfortunately not piaistered and ceiied-
there was sl,eathing OF plank, pine plank we
are told nailed over the rafters and over
these, the shingles The rosin of the pine
had perhaps oozed out of the plank, thro' the
heat Of our summers sun, stood IN drops up
on it, Yet however this may have been, no
sooner did the splre of the flame reach the
roof than it caught. The fire spread with
r4pidity thr ough this com6ustiDie material
unparalleled, certainly never equalled by any
of the too numerous fires which have desolat-
ed our city--In 4 or 5 minutes at least, the
whole roof was one sheet of flame--it burst
through the bulls-aye in front--it sought the
windows where the rareiied vapour sought its
passage fed by the vast column of air in the
hollows of Theatre, fed by the inaammable
PANELS and pillars of the boxes, by the dome
OF the pit, By the canvas ceiling of the lower
boxes until its suffocated victims in the front
were wrapt in its devouring fame or pressed
to death under the smoufding ruins Of the
building.
Here might we pause in our melancholy
task We have traced the conlagraton TO
the fatal lamp, lifted as it was lit, then JerlIed
and jostled, out Gifts perpendicular position
to the scenery---to the roof; until every
thing was enyeloped in its fury----But there
is one part of the subject which, though 1t
does not fall strictly within the letter OF the
Resolution, or perhaps the liae Of eur detv,
is yet too interesting 10 Be passed over Why
THIS fatality? Whv have SO many victims
persisted on this melancholy occasionp 1t can
not be said, that it was the coinbustibity OF
the building and the rapidly of the fire. great
as they undoubtedly were, which altogether
produced this mortality of the speces-for we
cannot believe, if large vomitories had been
erected for the passage Of the crowd, if there
had been doors enough to admit them, that
more than one-tenth of an audience should
have persisted on the occasion
1t was in the opinion OF the Committee that
this i'll construction of the theatre itself, was
principally itscaRse- How numerous were
the occasions Oh Ugh it had loo pore
been said, as the was slowly ~
the end OF the play.V Suppose the nfSe,
we're on fire, what shot4 kLdo?" Yet w
slept with too fatal securiJ1 bSer, the evil
we trusted and we are ruined 4x>cAy doors
were not opened; the winding ~ >e was
not straiIened, the access to the az Nof
the theatre vas not enlarged =
Even the relics OF our fellow citizens as
they lay pointed out the causes of this fatal
ty They were found strewed in heaps at the
loot OF the narrow stair case which lead from
the boxes, and though with less profession
on the ground immediately under the lobby
OF the boxes above, from which lobby their
retreat down the stairs had been intercepted
by the crowd which choaked them up On
mat fatal night, there were in the Pit and
boxes 5lS dollar tickets and 80 children. ex-
elusive OF % persons who were in the gale
res. vi these 596 had to pass through one
common avenue, ana although all the specta-
tors in the Pit may have escaped, except
lew who may have jumped into the Boxes,
yet the crowd in the Lower and Timer Boxes.
had no other resource than to press lhrougha
harrow angular staircase or to leap the win