Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1865-07-15
THE TRIBuNE's sALAMANDER SPECIAL

THE TRIBUNE'S SALAMANDER SPECIAL 4,
Several of our contemporaries copy as s.gra-
phic," &c, &c, the New York Tribune's mum
chausenish description of the fire at Barnum' s
Museum and terrible fight amongst the wild
beasts seen only by the Tribune man.
The writer, who must be special Salaman-
| der engaged for the Tribune, purports to give
such minute description as could only have
been written son the spot
He tells that as the confiagraton progressed
and the sslurid glare" began to play about the
beasts they ''sprang against their iron bars and
strove To rend them with their teeth, at the
same time sending forth savage and frightened
cries which were almost human in their agony
AT length when the flames burst throu oh the
top OF the door and commenced to lick the tops
OF the cages, the tumult reached its height
fells roars, howls, and screams went up from
the doomed brutes, which were heard to the
distance of half mile.
'sWfth q simultaneous bound. the lion and his mate
spraag against their bars, which gave way and
came down with a great crash, releasing the
beasts, which for moment, apparently amazed
at their sudden liberty, stood in the middle of
the floor lashing their sides aciM heir tails and
roaring dolefully."
The Salamander special, who was evidently
taking notes with red hot stylus upon a sheet
iron note book, goes on to remark that Just at
this time sthe flames and smoke rolled in like 4
The effect of the Hadean whirlwind was to set
all the s'animiles'' by the ears, in a sort of KILL
kenny fight, commenced by the tiger and lion:
and the big boa constructor, eager for the FRAY,
undertook TO chaw up the lioness. The sslurid
light" comes into play at this point, revealing
the tiger and the lion locked together in close
combat" and the boa constructor engaged i'm
deadly struggle with the lioness.
ga horrible howl in the right hand corner of
the room, yell of understandable agony. and a
crashing, grating sound indicated that the tiger
and polar bear We're stirred up to the highest
pitch of excitement"
Again there is crashing and grating, and
grating and crashing! The tiger and lion con-
tinue i'll close combat! The boa continues to
chaw upon the Honess and the lioness upon
the boa! The bars of the cages have now melt
ed upon the floor in puddles. The white bear
don't like it He isn't used to it, His snowy
coat is completely ruined He withdraws s:to
the coolest corneri'-that is to say, one that is
only at red-heat, mot white heat, and s:there
sat wonderingiy gazing 1t The scene before
him" No wonder. s!Accustomed," as the
Tribune man gnshingly puts it, s.to deal with
only the walrus and the seal in the cold. blue
listers of the Arctic regions, he was evidently
considerably alarmed at the excessively torrid
scene which was blazing through the ROOM
the room. The monkeys are now heard from.
1h"y are seen frying with heat yet sShivering
with dread" They are afraid to get out of the
windows. Again the lurid flame lights up the
torrid scene, blazing and burning and flaming
through the crashings and gratings, disclosing
4 new element of horror-THE STAKES. They
are seen ':writhing about, crippled and Bills
tered by the heat, darling out their forked
tongues and expressing their rage and fear in
the most sibilant of Misses"
TThis settles the question .sdo serpents
hiss ~
The Iurid flames have now reached the
Happy Family completely singeing every
hair (as accurately counted by he Tribune
writer from the cats body
Then IoIiows the following remarkable piece
OF matter of fact description:
THE adder was slowly burning in two and
busily engaged in impregnating his agonlZed
system with his own venom The rat had lost
ais tail by falling bar of IRON and the rabbit
perforated by red-hot nail. looked as if nothing
would be more grateful than cool corner in
some ESquimauX farm yard.
Mean while the lion and the tiger were con-
tinuing their contest, now with the advantage
ON one side, now on the other: and the boa was
slowly Tightening his coils round the painting
body of the honcss, which, however, bit and
struggled, decorating the striped skin of its adj
Sersary terribly. The floor was already GRIM
son with their blood, while the commingling
Kisses, bowls, yels, and roars utterly surpas s7
ed all efforts at description.
Sat this moment the flames rolled again into
the room and then retired. The whale and al
ligator Were by this time suffering dreadful
toIments. The water III which they swan was
literally boiling. The aIligators dashed fitrcely
about endeayOrlng to escape, and opening and
shutting their great jaws in ferocious torture
but the poor whale, almost boiled, with great
ulcers bursting from his blubbery sides, could
only tecbly swim about, though blowing eX-
ceasively, and every now and then sending up
great fountains OF spray. (Steam y
"At length crack went the glass sides OF the
great cases, and whale and alligators rolled out
the SSr ,. the died prag and
been pretty well used up before. A few great
gasps and cOnvulsive flap or two of his mighty |
fukes We're his expiring spasms.
Gone of the alligators was killed almost i'm |
by falling across great fragment of |
shattered glass, which cut open his stomach |
and let out the greater part of his entrails 10 |
the light of day The remaining alligator be- |
came involved i'll controversy with an ana
conda and joined the melee in the center of the |
blazing apartment.
CLOSE OF THE Thrilling SCENE.
sat this moment the floor, undermined bv |
flame, gave way with an awful crash, and the /
living, struggling, bowling, writing mass was |
launched into a gulf of red and yellow fire,
sending up whirlWind OF smoke, sparks, and |
cinders to the very heavens.
'The last object saw the polar bear |
upon whitehot square of sheet-iron, with ali |
the hair burned from his hide, and standing
stark and stiff, and rapidly baking brown.
''Before the whale went down with the rest,
4 stream of sptrmacen ran from his carcass |
down the sides of the building taking fire and
making impromptu candles on a colossal
scale.
There We're confined i'll the same room
few serpents, which also obtained their liberty; |
and soon after the rising and devouring flames |
@gan to enwrap the entire building, splendid
aud embematic sight was presented to the
Wondering and up gazing throngs. Bursting
though the central easement, with flap
Owing and flashing coils, appeared an eagle
an a serpent wreathed in fight. For n mo-
met they hung poised in mid-air, presenting Il
noel and terrible conflict 1t was the earth
AMI air Tor their respective representative,)a at
VT tor mastery. The base and the lofty, the
grselIer and the soarer, were engaged; in
dealy battle. At length the fiat head OF the |
seIIent sank his writing, slnG0us form greM
still and, waited upward by the cheers of tire
gazag multitude, the eagle, with screarn,ofI
truYph, and bearing his prey in his talons, |
Soa1d toward the SUM- i