New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-12-10

Will IS deenltory ine3dents, sbeartrendipa
scenes an6 intervieWs with excited actor
in this terrible tragedy, which you must
throw into this excited story - best you
san.
Patrick Neady, IRE marshal Of the city Of
Brooklyn, took tho deposition OF the owners
and lessees, manakors, actors, actresses ono
employees Of tho Brooklyn Theatre, and
| Oshers. @
The story Of Jacques. FFoachard:"
About the beginning Of tho last act looked
upon and saw the roof over tho inclosed
scene ON fire. The caoDentor was trying to
get ne FIRE ont. Just ~ ! pulled Miss Clax.
ton Or the bed, she said, 10 it ire ~
said. "I'am afraid co." Both she and Mr..
the footlights and begged the audience to
be quiet, but the audience paid NO atten-
ton. Some gentlemen, whom / do not
know, took me ont of the theatre. The
audience WIS in goat confusion when left
the stage.
J. W. thorpe, tie stage manager, tssti-
fed was on the stage, asd fret saw the
fire in tie, lower part of the drop on the
scene that bangs from the rigging loft near
the centre,of the stage: 1t was then mere
handful of afe. and he'd just caught. There
must have been thres or forv men IN the
''tiies' at tho time. Nr. Weaver, master
carpenter, ead one OF his assistants, went
mp to put tie fire ont. I'ssw the assistant
climb On tie groove and try to reach the
drop, which Was on fire, but before he could
do 90 the fro was communicated to the
other scenes snd drops, and nloss- than a.
minute the whole was mass Of flame.
The fire must have caught from q border.
light which Wa placed between the bor-
de7s. The theasre took ife just after the
curtain had gc2e up for the last act, about
or twenty minutes past eleven
lo'c5eck. appealed to the-audienee to kesp
quiet and 60 cat quietly. l said: 'Rof
Code sake, get ont quietly" or something
to this effect.
! Miss Maud Harrison testified as follows:
4 live 1T No. 66 Livingston street, Rfook-
1yn, and played tho part of 9t,sriette in the
1.-TWO Orphans" 1T the Brooklyn Theatre
lat evening. / vas in the green room at
the TIM, with Clande Burroughs and Mr..
DAILY. heard q noise as it there was e
scufte. and told Mr.. Burroughs that I
thought there was fight or souffae. Mt.
room and went mp 70 the stage, and went
toward the stage in another direction. II
met Miso ClaxtOn and Mrs. FArren coming
down stairs. Mrs. Barren said tho theatre
was gone snd'we had better escape through
the front way. I saw only few sparks at
this time, and made my way through tho
private passage with Mfs. Farrea aud Miss
and the lobby. saw no confusion in the
audiences. They wero playing tho first par5
of the last act when tho fire occurred. The
lower pestiOn of the house wss fairly filed
and the upper part we'll filed, last night &
know that Mr.. Thorpe, the stage manager,
was very careful about fire.
TIE meNbers of 1lso Solomon family.
missing, and their frieads can learn nothing:
about then, although they have pursued
their inquiries for ther1 in every direction.
The family was composed of Morris Solo
mon, age forty seven; his son Philip, age
twenty -foar; Philips wife. Lena, age
twenty-five; and his sisters, Mary and
Deborah, respectively twenty-five and
twentE pears Of age: v v ss, hoped Ct fist
wOulc,be foHnd to be cafe, - they had Or
chestrs seats, and as it was supposed that
all who had seats down stairs were saved;
but they are certainly rot staying with any
Of their friends, and it 10 feared that they
also sre among the lost. and that not sin
gle one is left to return to the deserted
housos
The scene at the Morgne at Willoughby,
and Canton streets, yesterday, was awful
almost beyond description. The dead
wagons kept driving up and depositing
their loads until over .seventy-fve charred
bodies had been received, and it was an
nounced that the place was full and could
contain no more. Then.the waiting crowd
that had swelled until tie entire street was
blocked up, was allowed to pass through,
the rooms and view the cOrpses upon the
floor for the purpose of Identification. All
through the day the crowd would thrODg
the building III an endless stream. Never
theless, ample time was given to enable
friends to make thorough examination Of
clothing and ornaments found upon the re-
mains. so that large plumber were ldentl-
fed. Many persons brought pieces OF tAe
garments of their missing relatives by
which to identify their bodies.
The authorities would allow no bodies to
be touched, even by relatives. Nothing
was taken from the pocket of The dead.
Nothing was to be seen on the floor but
black and distorted cO,Pses, resembling fg-
ures cut from coal mofe-than the bodies of
what were once human beings. Most of the
dead were men, there being only five or six
women. Many women who had daughters
who did not return home, as was expected,
on Tuesday night, visited the MOrgue in ex-
pectstion that they 2ight have gone to the
Brooklyn Theatre aud been made victims
of the disaster. Every female body was
examined, but none answered the descrip-
ton, and one after another hurried away to
the improvised morgue on Adams street.
Matilda Ward and her husband, young
years of age, were both destroyed in the
theatre. They had occupied seats in the
| family circle, and endeavOred to escape
| with the crowd when the alarm of fire was
| given. In attempting to save the life of bis
| wife the husband lost his own life. The
| wifes body was taken to the morgue, and
| late yesterday afternoon was identified by
her relatives by some peculiar ornaments
found upon ner person. Her face was
charred and burned beyond semblanoe of q
human being, and one hand was reduced to
| charcoal.
| A medical gentleman stated that the po
| sition of nearly all the bodies indicated
that mighty struggle was going ON when
death overlook them. Arms were hexed
aud hands clenched in the act of pushing
Knees were bent and legs drawn mp al
though fighting of some advancing, over.
| towering foe. Whether this was caused
by the pressure of the crowd, or falling
debris, or even the heat of the flames. could
not be told. 1t was the general opinion
nevertheless, that some portion of thu
building gave way, precipitating the Grove
in the flames below. The rapid fall of thu
roof that followed buried those who co
capped the other catastrophe.
A young man named Dietz was identified
by his sister and friend, who, on discov
ering that it was the body they were il
search of, were so overcome that it was al
the authorities could do to keep them from
falling on and embracing the corpse. Thu
sister stood near it crying, and giving ven
to such ordinations as. "POcr Abe! Oh, i
mother can only stand this blow"
The body Of one young man was discov
cred by his sister, who, casting enc glanc
at what was left of his coat, gave a cry o
"My Toni and fell fainting in the arms o
her father, aud was carried insensible t.
the street. 1t was afterward tound tina
this young man was the only support OF hi
mother and sister. his father being drunk
ard. who had not contributed toward tn