St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1877-04-20
The St. Louis Hotel Horror.

that the number of lives lost will fall |
considerably below the first estimates,
and very likely will not exceed score.
Only lS are positively known to have
perished but there are many missing
people, and there is no telling what the |
search among the ruins will reveal. of
the 200 employees of the hotel, 159 have
reported, and others are expected to
report. Probably not many of them
are lost Sidmore Hayden, reported
among the dead, is found to be living.
There is great complaint against the
fire department, the men being accused
of bewilderment and inefficiency, while
the apparatus is said to have been in
adequate. The main reliance was the
Skinner tire-escape ladder, which could
not be put in position in much less than
an hour. The hotel had plenty of fire
apparatus, there being hose that could
be carried to any room, but it wasn't
used so far as is known. One of the
guests says that the alarm bell of the
house was not rung at all, and that the
fire was seen on the street nearly 30
minutes before any alarm was given.
SCENES AND INCIDENTS.
During the progress of the fire some
uring to reach the fifth-stOry windows,
where there were an elderly and young
lady, mother and daughter. The form
er shouted to the men, ''Save my
daughter ~ The woman then tied two
blankets together and fastened one end
to something in the room. The ladder
reached only to the fourth story, but
by means of the blanket the young
woman reached the ladder. She got
down in safety and her mother endeav-
ored to follow. She clambered down
almost to the end of the blanket, but
evidently lost control of herself, let go,
struck the ladder and fell to the roof
below. A couple Ofmen carried her off
She apparently had been killed instant
ly.
Women displayed uncommon bold
ness and facility in lowering themselves
from the fifth and sixth stories on ropes,
and a number saved their lives in that
manner.
c. w. Saunders, reporter for the
Globe-Democrat, saved seven or eight
servant girls by ascendinga Il ladder to
the fifth story and throwing IA rope to
the story above.
Miss frankie Mcclellan is in very
critical condition. She jumped from
the fourth story to the roof of IL one
story saloon adjoining the hotel, and
received severe cOncussiOn of the brain
and spinal cord, and other injuries.
The scenes in the saloons where the
rescued persons were placed Temporal
rily were most heartrending. Many
swOoned when they realized the dan
ger they had passed. Many were in
jured i'll the crush ; most of them were
III Il wretchedly fOrlorn condition as to
clothing, and in some of the saloons the
dead and dying were stretched out
waiting the coming of friends.
WONDERFUL PRESENCE OF MIND.
The Trihune's special fiOm St. Louis
) says the escape of Edward p Tyson OF
, New York may he said to be owing to
his remarkable cOolness and presence
of mind. He says he was awakened by
/ hearing noise as of somebody scuffiing
or quaIrelling in the hall. The smoke
. and fumes of fire very quickly told him
l the whole story. Instead of madlN
rushing into the hall and endeavOring
to make his way through the smoke and
} flames, he closed his room door, got W
: and shut the transOm above, and ther
2 coolly proceeded to dress himself. He
: says that it took only few moment.
+ of thought to convince him that hi,
e road to safety was out of his bedroom
I window and not through the Railways
e He went to the beds, of which there
were two in his room. Taking the
t blankets from them he cut them int,
$ strips to make rope, with which he
8 intended to lower himself to the one
5 story building Immediately under hi
window. After he had tied his blank
ct strips together he went over all thu
knots again, and thoroughly testeC
them to make sure they would not slip
Then, to be certain of having enough
rope to reach the ground, he took tn
;, counterpancs of the bed and addet
" them to the blanket strips. People ap
peared on the roof of the building i'm
- medately underneath him, and pre-
" pared to get Il rope to him. Then h
- let down his bedclOthes rope and haulet
u up first ii small twine rope and then
- larger one.
This done he endeavOred to throw
the small rope, still attached to th
large one, to the window at which wer
; the women above him. After il mum
II Der of unsuccessful attempts he detach
IL Gu the SlllttlI l.'pS llOuI luC lll &c ohS
# and fastening the latter to the leg q
! his bedstead, succeeded in THROWN!
- the small end to the women, who man
= aged to catch it at last. 1t dangle
down il long ways from the ground
- however and was practically of no us
II to them. Mr.. Tyson then prepared t
= decend to the ground. He pitche
his trunk and valise out of the window
- He got down to the sill of the windo,
in the story below, and went on down
= hand-Over-hand, reaching the gIOun
without "a scratch or injury of any kline
k A BRIDE BURNED TO DEATH.
!, Mr.. Munster of England was marie
u to the daughter of DR.. Henry c. Lyme
o of this place three months ago. The
is returned from their wedding journe
: recently and were occupying rooms i
the Southern when the alarm of fiji
IS was given. In the din and cOnfusio
:, of the fire, Mr.. Munster and his wit
o became separated, the husband escap
:, ing, leaving his wife in the burnin
e building. Reports soon reached hi
d ears that his wife had perished in tn
is flames, and the poor fellow at once los
|. his reason. He procured a pistol an
d went up to Mr.. COnroy's sleeping room
" which is Oh the northeast corner {
1t Fourth and Olive streets, and placin
1t the muzzle of the pistol against In
N right temple, fired Il shot which il
il stantly killed him. A somewhat sin
t, ilaI incident of the disaster was vii
messed by many of the spectators O
IN | tba Enurth Straat side Inst aS th