The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1877-04-21
burning OF "a ~. Louis Hofei-M0nv
LiUes Lost.

| LtUes Lost.
ST. LOUIS, April 1.-THE most frightfu
calamity that has ever befallen st. Loui,
took place at a very early hour this mornins
involving the destruction of the Southern
Hotel by fire, aud the loss of large number
OF lives. The exact number can not now be
given, but it is feared some forty or fifty
persisted, either by being burned directly OF
\ first smothered by the smoke, and then con.
tuned. From the best Information at hand
st seems the fire caught in the store room in
the basement, and was first seen coming
through the ground floor just north of the
office, and, in ten minutes,i it had assembled
the elevators and rotunds, and spread itself
over the sixth floor under the roof. This
floor was occupied entirely by EN-.
ployees ct the hotel, the largest part of whom
were women. The FIRE spread rapidly, filling
every room and hall with flames and smoke,
and the scene was Of the most terrible de-
soription.
Frantic men. women and children raa
through the halls shrieking in most heart
rending manner, in their wild and desperate
efforts to escape. The smoke was so dense
in some of the halls that the gas jets were
extinguished, which rendered egress, even
to those most familiar with the building, a
matter of great difficulty.
The Fire Department was on the spot
promptly, and humid eds Of people congre-
gated at the scene, ready aud willing to rem
der any aid necessary. The density Of the
smoke in the halls drove 'i1any of the guests
and boarders back into their rooms, and
they rushed TO the windows as means Of
escape. Ladders were raised as soon as pos
sible, aud women and children, with moth
ing but their night clothes on, were
thus taken from the burning building
Some tainted from fright, and others sank
exhausted to the ground from nervous
prostratiop. The ladders generally
were too short to reach to the fifth and sixth
stories, but by hosting some of them on the
one-story balcony on the east side and the
two-story balcony on the north side of the
building these floors were reached, and all
those at the windows rescued. The Skinner
Fire Escape was also brought promptly into
service, and was the means of saving many
| lives. While this work was going on some
| frightful scenes occurred. One man who
had been occupying window on Walnut
Street, in front of the hotel, became despor-
ate at the seeming delay IN effecting his es-
cape with nervous hands he tore the sheets
from his bed Into strips, and tied them to-
gether fastening his impoverished rope to
the window sill, and disregarding the fact
that it did not reach more than twenty feet,
he let himself down hand oyer baud. Men
below who saw his position turned away
their heads to avoid witnessing the sickening
| event that was inevitable. Finally he
reached the end OF the sheet, and then for
the first time he seemed to realize his
position. He stopped, threw his head
back, revealing ghaslly face, and swung
slowly to and fro, swaved by the
breeze which the roaring flames
above created, his Ii lbs swung around con-
vulsively as though to catch upon some
thing. Then he let 60, and groans went up
from hundreds as he whirled round and
round, and finally struck on the stone flag
ging with a sickening thud. He was carried
into saloon across tie street, and died in
a few minutes. Two other men jumped
from the fourth story window, one OF whom
seemed not to be dangerously hurt, while
the other expired in few moments A
woman in a. fifth story, on the Fifth Street
front, became papic stricken, and jumped
out. She aiighted on her feet, and was car
ried to the st. James Hotel, still alive. Her
husband, who had been standing by her side,
then tore up the bedding, and let the strip
SO made cut of the window. To this the fire.
men attached a rope, which the man hauled
up, makingit fast to the window sill, and
safely descended by II. A man named j.
E. Wilson jumped from the fourth story
window and was killed, and MIR. Ensman aud
Mrs. Scott met their death in the same way.
Tie mortality among the female help OF
d
some two hundred of them, all OF whom
were lodged in the upper story of the build
ing. The panic among them was perfectly
terrible and a number of them jumped
from the upper windows on the Elm Street
or rear side of the house. Among those
known to have been killed in this manner
were Bridget Mead, Mary Carey, Bridget
White, Ellen Reilly and several others, who
were carried away by their friends, and
whose names are not yet ascertained.
At 2:15 or about an hour after the sse was
discovered the entire roof was ablaza, and
the flames were rapidly descending ~ re
lower stories.
Half an hour later the floors ard tie in
terror walls began to fall. The r00s next
fell in, aud there is now nothing left of one
of the fines hotels in the country, except
the Walnut Street front and parts OF the
Fourth and Fifth Street faces.
VIM. Felix Munster, said to be member
of the English House OF Commons, who
was married in this city q few months ago,
was residing at the hotel with his wife.
They became separated, and under the i'm
preston that she was killed, he became in
| tensely excited, and evidently lost his men.
tai baiance. About six o'clock this morning
he went to the room of a friend at the corner
of Fourth and Oliver Streets and shot him.
self. The Coroner held an inquest, but
could not decide whether death was caused
by suicide or accident. There are various
reports regarding the matter, one TO the
| effect that he kne his wife was saved and
that he killed himself while laboring under
mental arrangement.
The origin of the Southern Hotel fire is
not yet definitely ascertained. Chief OF the
Fire Department Sexton was on the ground
all day, his left arm in q sling from The re-
cent injury he sustained. He was by no
means mincing in his words concerning the
story about the origin of the fire. He plainly
said he did not believe it.
| His theory was that the fire did not start
| in the store.room, as reported, but in the
wine-room, which is situated under the ele-
vator. The store-room is at least one hundred
feet away from the wine-room. There was
also an undue hardness in giving the alarm,
and this can only be attributed to culpabie
negligence.
In. alarm had scarcely been sounded
when Eug,ne No. s was on the way to Fourth
and Market, the station from which the
alarm was sounded. When it arrived there
the fire was ascending the elevator ia
columns, and it was impossible TO cut it off
ALI the engines were on the scene in good
| time from The moment the alarm was
| sounded, and the FIRE had gained too much
A HEN was recently found in the mid
die of hay-mow in barn in Tennes
see, which had been there six months
without water or anything to eat excep,
what the hay afforded. Being covered
up when the hay was put in the barn
the hen could not get out. Her toe