The Cairo bulletin. [volume] (Cairo, Ill.) 1872-1878, 1877-04-12
A HOLOCAUST.
Destruction Of the Southern
Hotel, at st. Louis.
Three Hundred Guests Hurried
from Their Beds and Many
Of Them Forced to Flee
In Their Night
Clothes.
Probabilities that from Fifty 10 One
Hundred Persons Perished in the
Flames


At ten minutes alter one o clock TINS
morning the dread alarm OF fire sounded
over the metropolis. ana livid glare IN
the heavens reflected from the central
portion OF the city toid the hideous tale
OF fearful confiagration. Fearful it
proved TO be, for the southern Hotel, the
gigantic caravansary, the ornamental
pride of st. Louis and n triumph OF
Western enterprise, succumbed TO the
devouring element.
When the alarm was first sounded the
precise locality OF the mighty lire was
not known, but the Heavens indicated
| its dimensions and the whole strength OF
| the lire department was brought TO bear
upon the central grand thoroughtares.
As the engines ratified through the silent
streets toward the scene of the contlagra.
ton. citizens drew back their window
curtains aud expressed their tears that
| the southern hotel was the scene of the
| calamity. The expression OF this opin-
! ion gave place TO profound sentiment OF
| horror as the idea flashed through the
mind that such calamity signitied not
| only the destruction of valuable prop
ertV but tho loss of hundreds OF lives by
all clement possessing in lis boundlcss
fury ten thousand trighttul tcrrorS. The
helpless condition OF hundreds OF men,
women aud children slumber,ng in the
presence of awful darger aroused the
uoblor instincts OF human nature and
within twenty minute, the great
thorOu9hiareS were alive with halt
| dressed people rushing toward the hor-
rible scene of the disaster, many 1t is
true attracted by an excited degree of
curiosity, but by tar the greater num-
Der bent upon lending hand TO the dis
tressed if the means OF savin. lie were at
all practicable.
Meanwhile the mighty fire increased
with giant strides IN its awful fury.
When the first engine arrived the flames
were discovered 10 be protruding from
the upper portion Of the mamoth build
| ing facing on Walnut street, but before
| the hose could be attached the devour-
! ing element enyeloped the eastern and
western wings and the whole OF the up
| per portion OF the great three-sided house
| presented scene awful in its grandeur.
| With the shouts OF the iiremcn directing
their gear and their lie-saving apparatus
to the walls OF the great burning estab-
| Iishmsnt were mingled the screams,
| sickenihg In despair. of the unfOrtuna, G
| inmates OF the hotel. At every upper
| street, liith street and
in the rear of the building appeared TO
the ipdescribable horror OF the specta.
tors the blanched faces Of men, women
and little children In their night robes.
| Their screams Tor help were terribly
heartrendiug and il appeared for a time
that nothing could be done for them
| Some few OF the guests in the house who
had not retired for the night, or were on
the point OF retiring, managed TO reach
the main floor and rushed into the street,
only 10 become witnesses of the most
fearful disaster that has eve- afflicted IT.
Louis; only 10 herr the agoniZlng shout.
for help OF friends and scores OF relatives
within the burning building. "Can
nothing be done for them;' cried hun
dreds OF horror-stlicken people below
in sickenin2 despair as the enormous
| fire spread in all directions
| filling the great house aud the
neighborhood with clouds Of smoke anG
showers OF burning cinder.. Yes, some
thing could be done Tor them and ii wa,
being done rs fast as human hands in re
Spouse to human hearts and in the dis
charge OF noble duty could manipulat,
the appliances for saving life. The fir,
department directed all the ladder. with
IN reach to the windows OF the burnin.
building, and ladders were stretched
from the roofs OF the lower buildings OF
Fifth street TO the rear windows of IN
hotel, By this means several lives wer
saved, but many females, agoniZed be
, You'd the power of reason at the awful
peril Of their situation, jumped from tn
: upper windows some forty and fifty ie,
, TO the roofs Of the stores and saloons be
/, low, some iniuring themselves for litt
Others 1t is feared being killed.