Mexico weekly ledger., 1876-12-14
A

Particulars of the Burning of the
Brooklyn T~hsater-Over SOC Lives
lost.
NEW YORK, Dec. 6.-The fire in the
BROOKLYN Theater last night was at
tended by an appalling loss of life, and
it is thought that not less than two
hundred persons were killed in the rush
to the exists, or burned to death, being
unable to escape. The fire broke out
during the performance OF the last
scene of the "Two Orphans, !" in which
Miss Claxton, who plays the part of
the heroine, was on the b~oat-house
floor. In five minutes more the audi
ence would have been dismissed, and
there would have been nothing more
serious to record than the destruction of
property. The house was about two
thirds filed, those below sitting we'll
forward toward the stage. For those
in the family circle, dress circle
and galleries there was no way to
escape except by Washington Street.
THE PANIC-srRICKEN PEOPLE
rushed pell nell towards and down the
stairways, and the main exit became
Immediately choked up and a scene of
terror, confusion and distress ensued,
which beggars description. Just above
the landing-place of the stairway a
woman in the crush had her foot push
ed between the banisters and fell. The
crowd behind, forced forward by the
terrified people still further behind, fell
over her, and piled on top of each 9TH
er four and five deep.
The police from the sta~tion-house
next door were promptly at the scene,
but, owing to the manner in which the
people were piled upon the top of each
other and massed together, they could
extricate comparatively few, and these
were all bruised, bleeding and MANNED.
The firemen got to work on the ruins
shortly after daylight this morning.
They succeeded in getting as far as the
fall of the dress-circle, where they found
a great number of bodies. Immediately
began the work OF removal, and up to
IL O'Clock 65 bodies had been removed,
and what appeared to be 20 or 80 more
were seen in the basement, into which
they had been precipitated by the fall
ing of the burning floors.
ORIGIN OF THE FIRE.
Kate Claxton, at the preliminary in
quiry of the Fire Marshal, said: "At
the beginning Of the last act, just as the
curtain went up, L heard "a rumbling
noise on the stage, and two minutes
after l saw the flames. The fire seemed
to be all on the stage. Mrs. Farren,
myself, Mr.. Studley and Mr.. Murdoch
were on the stage at this time. We
four remained there and endeavored,
as best we could, to quiet the audience,
and prevent a panic. | said to the peo-
pie, BE quiet; we are between you and
the fire the front door is open and the
passages are clear Not one of the
audience jumped on the stage. The
flames were then coming down on US.
l a out and jumped over several peo-
ple."
Mr.. II. S. Murdoch, after endeavor-
ing to calm the fears of the panic
stricken people, went to his dressing
oom to get his clothing and must have
been sutfocated.
ESCAPE OF STAGE PEOPLE.
Actors and actresses escaped from
the stage into Johnson Street. j. w.
ThOrp, stage-manager. states that the
fire occurred in this wise: A drop vas
ignited from a border Light by some
means inexplicable, as n was guarded
from the other. He Immediately di-
rected the stage carpenter, Weaver, and
two supernumeraries, to endeavor to
extinguish the flame, but the difficulty
was to reach the part on fire. The
stage carpenter with the supernumera-
ries essayed to effect the object by low
ering the drop, and in SO doing added
fuel to the flames. The scene, the last
in the play, embraced a ceiled apart
ment, and tie instant the burning drop
came in contact with it the infiamma-
BILE ceiling served to spread the exist
ing flames in a flash, as though powder
had previously been scattered about the
scenery. The entire properties were in
a blaze. The usual avenues of escape
were thus summarily closed at the rear
and an exit, if at ali possible, had to be
made by way of the box entrance. All,
except perhaps one or two, thus es-
capped.
SCENES OF HORROR.
Wagon-loads of rough boxes were
brought in front of the theater, and
corpses are placed in them and cover.
ed with t~arpaulins and carried to the
Morgue.
the scene grew more terrible every
minute. Men and women were crowded
around the station-house and theatel
entrance, making inquiries for missing
friends. In some instances whole fam
lilies have persisted.
The bodies present eryform of con
tortion, just as they stiffened in theil
last agony, when the floor gave way.
and they plunged down in binding
smoke and flames. Arms and legs are
bent and twisted in every way. Hand;
are clenched and reached out, as il
grasping for help.
The Post says that about II o'clock a
horrible discovery was made. In the
midst of what was the lobby of the the
alter lay an immense pile of rubbish
smolderinp beams, fragments of CIR