The Lexington dispatch. [volume] (Lexington, South Carolina) 1870-1917, 1877-04-18
Details of a Fearful ConfIagra-
ton.
ST.. LOUIS, Ap.I11


200, but is now reduced to so. Man.
were killed jumping from the third
fourth and fifth story windows. kat
Claxton, the actress, who so narrowly es
capped from the Brooklyn horror, .brok,
both legs jumping from the thirdssory
The fire originated in the upper stories
The windows in the upper stories wer
crowded with striking men and wpmen
whom it seemed impossible to save.
few were rescued by ladders placed OF
the Fourth street portico, but op- tn.
other three sides Of the building, boandec
by Fifth, Walnut and Elm streets, th'
longest ladders fell far short of reaching
the windows. Mr.. Peter Blow, ssn o
the former Minister to Brazil, was Sleep
ing in his room on the sixth floor, anc
succeeded, after strenuous exertiops, il
escaping with his life and broken arm
The building was six stories in Seight
and Mr. Blow thinks that the majority
Of inmates of the two upper stds i o
the building must have perished. Two
men unrecognized were killed by Jump
ing from the third story windows, dnd 6
third one was badly mangled. Five
women were rescued from the sixth HorJ
on the Fourth street side by the heroic
efforts of fremen, who, after ascending
the patent ladders, succeeded in getting
a rope to the half sufocated creatures
The fire originated in the store rooms.
| It is supposed from forty to fifty eere
burned to death directly, or first suffo-
Gated. The fire originated in the store
room in the basement. It first came
through the ground floor, north Of the
Office, had assembled the elevators and
rotunda and spread over the sixth sbry,
occupied by employees, mostly wo4en.
The smoke was so dense in some of the
halls that tho gas jets were extingnisksd,
which rendered egress, even to those
most familiar with the building, matter
of great difficulty. The density ofNhe
smoke in the halls drove many guests
and boarders back in their roomssSxnd
they rushed to windows as a mearY OF
escape Ladders were raised as sook. as
possible, and the women and childsen,
with nothing but their night clotheston,
were thus taken from the burning build
ing. Some tainted from fright, md
others sank exhausted to the gro4nd
from nervous prostration. The. ladders
generally too short to reach to the fhth
and sixth stories, bet by hoisting some
Of them on the one-story bolcony ON SGe
east side to the two o-story balcony eEGe
north side OF the building, these fo5Ss
were reached, and all those at the Hin-
dows were rescued. The Skinner Ere
escape was also brought promptly Tito
service, and was the means OF sayhg
many lives While this work was gohg
on, some frightfnl scenes occurred. 4e
on Walnut street. IN front Of he n! 81,
becoming desperate at seeing the delay
in cfecting his escape, with nervous
hands he tore sheets from his bed iato
slips. tied them together,s fastened this
impro;;sed rope to the window sill, and
disregarding the fact that it did pot
reach more than twenty feet, he let hlna-
self down hand over hand. Those oe-
low, WHO saw his position, turned away
their faces to avoid witnessing the sick
ening event that was inevitable. Finally
he reached the end of the rope, snd
then, for the first time, he seemed to
realize his position. He stopped, threw
his head back, revealing gha$tly face,
and swung slowly to and fro, swayed by
the breeze which the roaring flames above
created. His limbs swung around con-
vulsively, as though to catch upon soine-
thing; then lie let go, and groans went
up from hundreds AS he whirled round
ard round and finally struck on the stone
tagging with sickening thud., He was
carried to a saloon across the street and
died in few minutes. Two other men
Jumped from the fourth story windo*-
one of whom seemed rot to be DANCE
rously hurt.
LArER.-The fire engines are Still
playing on the fire. A force has been
organized to search for the dead bodies,
and several bodies have already been
TAXED from the ruins in more or less
turned condition, but have not yet been
identified. Also, several dead bodies are
at the morgue awaiting Identification.
Mrs Moran, a servant, was killed while
jumping from window. George Frank
Gouldy, Grand Secretary Of the Grand
Lodge of Free Masons of Missouri, is
supposed to have perished. Six persons,
whose names are unknown, were killed.
either by jumping from the windoVS or
we're sufocated by smoke, and dragged
out of the burning building. 1t is diff
cult to procure the names Of the dead,
but it is hoped complete, or nearly
complete, list will be obtained this after
noon. Sidmore Hayden, superintendent
of the American Express stables, is
among the killed; also Henry Hazen
deputy auditor of the Missouri Pacific
Railroad Company. An Englishmar
named Adams, said to be comnisslonel
of education, was identified at the morgue
A woman at fifth story window or
on Fifth street front became panic
stricken, jumped out, alighted on bel
T., N&a1. .or ,f