Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1876-12-13
The Brooklyn Horror.
rnonAmv THREE uumnrD LIVES LOST


been the most horrible In hss Of life that has ever
occurred in this country. The details show that
the building was crowded at the time, the play
being The Two orphans. The las, act had been
reached when light fell from the upper part Of
the stage scenery upon the canvas roof below,
setting It on fire The flames started in the
" flies, part OF the appointments where the cur
tain recedes from yiew when it is raised to dis
close the progress Of the play. Catching from a
gas jet the flames ran along the light and highly
combustible material as though II were train Of
powder. Tho upper gallery, where most Of the
victims were located, was at once a mass Of flame
and smoke, and being entirely without adequate
means Of egress their doom was sealed from the
start The employees Of the theatre attempted to
extngush the ilames and at first seemed to sue
coed Miss Kate ClaNton came to the front Of the
stage and told the audience To remain perfectly
quiet and no harm would I've done The people
were quiet for a moment, when the whole scenery
burst into one sheet Of lame and the room was
filled almost at once with smoke. panic imme-
diatey ensued and the people rushed for the
doors. Men, women and children, in one solid
mass pressed and crowded for the places Of exit,
tamping upon the weaker ones and rctarding
their own progress by their haste. II appears
that most of those in the lower part Of the theatre
escaped with more or less bruises but the narrow
stairs leading from the gallery were soon choked
up, and great number Of people were thus
penned in, until finally the floor gave way and
preciptated them all into the pit Of flames below
The occupants Of the galleries were, Of course,
mainly Of the medium class, and mostly men, and
scarcely any well known names appear among the
i liaf ,f via Iurn uf no 1
S. Murdoch and Claude Burroughs, persisted.
When daylight dawned upon the smoking ruins,
the work Of oyerhauling and tearing away the
debris was vigorously begun It was known
that the gallery had been packed during the per
Torrance, and the narrow, i1-contrved entrance
to It justified the fear that the majority of the in
mates could not have escaped the flames, which
with lightning-like mpidity swept through the
structure Of tinder-like material The rearmost
might have gained the gallery door, but they
never passed beyond its threshold. The crash Of
falling floor heard so distinctly, a very few mo-
ments after the crowd below had fought is way
into the street, was undoubtedly the death knell
Of over one hundred human beings on the gallery
vestibule Then the one terrible roar, that mag-
nation mightattribute to tends fighting In agony,
which numbers in the streets recollect as having
swept up and out ON the midnight air, ceasing AZ
suddenly as ii had begun, was probably the united
walls of these victims, rs they were precptated
into the red-hot furnace beneath
As timber after timber was removed by the fire.
men in their search, body after body was brought
to view, burned beyond recognition, with here an
arm missing, there leg again a head. The sight
Of the hali-roasted and charred trunks was sick
ening, and drew forth sincerest expressions Of hor
ror from even the 6remen, whom long years Of
service had in a degree accustomed TO such spec
tacles. In many cases the clothing Of the dead
had been only partially consumed, while again it
was as charred a. the limbs which Il onyeopcd
and which yielded TO the touch Of handling.
There was a large pile Of ashes and debris ex-
actly opposite the first door that opened into the
theater from the vestibule Suggestive spots were
noted around It's edges and the stontest nersed
themselves for the trial at hand Shovels were
brought into use, and, carefully as miners At
work under an enibankment, the work of unoarth-
ing was begun First. a head was uncovered
and then, the direction Of tie trunk having been
Indicated the ashes were still further removed,
and the form Of another human being was added
to the long list Of dead.
In one part Of the pile several bodies were i'm
arm, and the search was for few minutes sub.
ordinated to that Of removing the bodies to make
room for further excavation. The bodies found
were mainly those Of men, but occasionally q
woman- charred form was discovered and a
dozen willing hands were stretched forth 10 save
it from further injury, II such thing were posi-
BILE, and wrapped in a blanket it was tenderly
moved to the rear.
A.. l.
position Of the bodies The excavations had not
been begun deep enough, and bodies were found
under the very feet Of the workmen in the space
where they hurried to and fro. Invariably they
were buried face down, while the arms seemed to
have been stretched over the head, as II In mute
appeal for mercy
Box after box Of the rough description familiar
to visitors at the morgue was handed down to the
hremen, and receiving its CHASTITY burden was
lifted up and out Of this pit Of destruction and
given in charge Of undertakes for removal 10 the
morgue, The braye-t quailed and grew sick at
the contemplation, and turned their faces to
the wall
More than three-quarters Of the bodies taken
out we're those Of young men, and only a small
portion were females. They were so closely
packed together that the heavy parts Of their
bodies were generally preserved from burning
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