The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-12-28

now bro ught to his aid and he descended in
safety. His beard was singed and bis hands badly
cut by glass.
Assistant Inspectors of Gas. 1t is part of
their duty to attend all fires, cut off the gas, and
save the meters, which are of value to the city.
In the performance of this duty, they we're
promptly at the scene of the fire yesterday
morning, and having saved the 100-light meter,
worth about S75, they went to the rear, and
having gained access to the cellar, went for
ward to the vault under the pavement to save
the 10-light meter While they were there the
floors of the hotel suddenly fell in with crash,
and their retreat was entirely cut off. There
was an immense cloud of smoke, and the flames
seemed about to swallow them. In ten minutes
they would probably have been suffocated or
burnt to death, when one found the grating in
the pavement above, and poked his fingers
through. Fortunately, somebody's attention
was thereby attracted, and the CRATE being
lifted, both were drawn out alive.
Captain Rives Hoffman, conductor on the
Petersburg Railroad, and Mr.. Archer, express
messenger, occupied a room together. A shuck
mattress was spread on the pavement below,
and they were told to jump; but thinking the
provision for their reception too slight they
adopted the plan of making rope by tying the
sheets together. By this means they were
enabled to reach the ground without sustaining
any injury.
Mr.. Arthur Segar member of the House of
Delegates, had room in the fifth story, and
was awakened by the smell of fire. He got down
stairs somehow or OJn6T, out was minus coat,
hat and shoes. He sustained no personal in
jury
Mr. Eldridge, OF New York Ga friend of Gov
ernor Walker's), was on one of the higher
foors He had in his room a valise containing
500 in money and a check for $1,000. Taking
this in his hand, he wrapped blanket about
his face and tried to escape by the stairs, but
was driven back by the threatening flames He
then gave up all hope of saving his money, and,
dropping the valise and blanket, succeeded in
getting out of the window by aid of painters
ladder.
On the fifth floor there were more children
than in any other part of the hotel, and it seems
almost miraculous that any of these escaped,
when strong men like Robinson, Hines. and
Ross perished. Here were the families of the
proprietors, Messrs. Sublett Luck, and Bishop.
These gentlemen, with their wives and little
ones, without exception, got out before a single
floor fell, and escaped serious Injury. Mr.. Luck
was afterwards badly scorched in attempting to
get the papers out of the office. 1t is not known
that any children we're lost. If so, they were
the children of transient boarders.
THE LESSON TO BE LEARNED-wHAT HOTEL
KEEPERS SHOULD DO.
There is lesson to be learned from this Gala
nifty from which profit may be gained. 1t is
notorious fact that in the large hotels in this
and other cities the only employees awake at 9
o'clock in the morning are on the lowest (oflice)
floor of the house. In the four or five floors
above, containing, probably, 150 rooms, there is
not a servant or watchman of any sort awake.
The silent rooms are filed with several hundred
sleeping and, therefore, utterly helpless guests.
fire breaks out, and the wooden staircases
and slight room partitions go off like tinder.
tbs utterly impossible for the two or three
employees awake to arouse the sleeping guests
on the four or five floors above and the appal-
ling spectacle is exhibited of burning men and
women shriekiDg for help from windows that
cannot be reached. There are no fire escapes,
no means in mans power by which they can be
saved. There should be watchman on every
floor and a roundsman to see that they are
In e hnta ie 6nin h1eina =
can afford this outlay to save human life, and if
they cannot, why then the pit of death should
be closed. 1t is useless to say that these dis
asters are so nfrequent that such precautions
would be exaggerated care. This is not so. On
Thursday night last hotel in St. Louis burnt
and on Friday night Rutherfurd Park Hotel, in
New Jersey, was burnt and Saturday night the
Spotswood. In one of the first-named hotels
two guests were burned to death. We guarantee
to inform the public of the first hotel proprietor
who is humane enough to insure the life of his
guests by proper care and we think we may
also guarantee that he will have more guests to
iOgnrp