The daily gazette., 1883-01-15
ANOTHER HOTEL FIRE.
FoUR PERSONS KILLED AND
OTHERS WOUNDED.
A FR1GHTFUL PANIC CAUSED.
Men Women and Children Rushing About
In Terrible Excitemont-Another Wis
con6tn Hotel Burned.

ST. LorIs, Jan. 14.--The Planters House,
at one time the largest hotel in the country,
was visited by fire at O'Clock this morning.
A man on watch in the engine room was
the first to see the blaze. 1t was In the
kitchen and fast communicating to the ad-
Joining apartments and to those just above,
where all the servants were sleeping soundly.
| The watchman ran to the corner Of the
hotel and pulled fre-alarm box. In one
minute and 80 seconds from that time this
fire engines were upon the ground. The
quick work saved the main structure, for bad
she fremen arrived q moment later the fire
would have been beyond control, and even
| as It was there was a great blaze and it
looked as though the Milwaukee disaster
| was to be repeated.
The night clerks, bell boys and porters on
watch ran through the building awakening
| the guests. They began at the top floor aud
knocked at every door as they ran through
/ the halls and shouted that the hotel was on
fire. From the sixth story they descended
| to the fifth and then downwards all through
the hotel and walked up about everybody in
it.
They cried as they raped on each door:
"Fire Fire Wake up. Don't wait
minute" The halls were soon filled with
frightened, panic stricken crowd of men
| and women and children, who had followed
Il bhC huNtSC WlluOdL tahluk IllhC W 0ICb1N
and, therefore, everybody rushed down the
stairs dressing as they went and crowdlng
4 each other in frantic endeavor to reach
Il the street. The rotunda was filled In very
short time with mob of grotesque- looking
Il people, who, as they failed to see anything
but smoke, stopped to put on what few
articles OF clothing they carried. They
/ poured out into the street in thick volume
| without head or feet covering and with little
Il n no n a. HRof
| really tell the extent of the fire. The great
est excitement appeared to be In the serv-
/ ants quarters. AS soon as they were told
| that the house was on FIRE they became
| frightened, and q panic for few minutes
/ ensued. The women shrieked and rushed
out lightly clad, each striving to be the first
to get down stairs. All succeeded eventu-
| ally. Their quarters were over The kitchen
The house was surrounded by engines
almost Immediately after the alarm was
i given and the effect of their efforts was to
Il check In q short time the progress of the
Il flames. 1t was then found that the scare
was greater than the fire. The fire origi-
mated In the kitchen, probably from the
range, and, spreading rapidly at first, filed
the few who were aware of the existence of
It with horror. The smoke found its way
all through the halls and accelerated tho
speed of the guests In evacuating the build
ing. Lights were turned on then and some
thing like order followed the retreat. On
| the streets were groups of men
and women, shivering in the cold.
Those driven out found shelter any and
everywhere they could. Hundreds hocked
into the Globe Democrat office, which is on
the corner opposite the hotel. Two hours
after the fire was discovered the engines quit
work, the hremen having confined the
flames to the kitchen and helps quarter
The burning of the kitchen crippled the
hotel and forced 1t TO close It's doors.
After the fire the rooms visited by smoke
or flames were looked into. A man en-
ployed In the kitchen was found lying In the
middle of the floor In a room in the second
story. An investigation proved that he was
| dead, though the body was still warm. He
was an Italian, named Rebel Carno,. and
| was about 40 years of age. 1t is thought
that In trying TO make his escape he rushed
| into the smoke and was sutocated before he
could get out or call for aid.
On the fourth story, over the storeroom,
man was seen In bed by the tremen. He
Sufiocated where he lay. Efforts were made
| to reach him, but 1t was an hour before his
/ body was recovered. He proved to be
Dennis Raparri, meat carver, who came
from Italy with Carno.
Late this afternoon another body was
found in the Planters House fire. The only
man now missing is Henry Blaney, and,
though this body is cfarred and unrecog-
nizablc, 1t is supposed to be
| his. He was q man Of 60 and for 80
| years had been a waiter In this hotel. His
| body was found on the stairway leading
| from the helps quarter to the alley. Run
ming down those stairs, he perhaps dropped
| from smoke and exhaustion and was then
| burned to death. OF the injured, Julia
| Hassell, 80 years old, an ironer, left the
servants quarters in fright and leaped
/ down the stairs, which were very narrow,
breaking her right leg and forcing the ankle
down to the heel Jennie and Annie
Coomer, elderly scrub-women, were cut and
bruised in the excitement of getting away.
STILL ANOTHER HOTEL FIRE.
GEENAH, WIS.,, Jan. 14.-This city was
/ thrown into terrible state of excitement
/ this morning by fire which destroyed the
Russell House and several other large build
/ ings. The fire broke out at a few minutes
before 4 O'Clock in the rear of Gatfney's
| clothing house and spread with terrible
| rapidity. The Russell House was soon in
| flames and scene of the utmost terror and
excitement ensued. Efforts were made to
rescue the guests and employees of the house
| at once. Many of the inmates seemed dazed
/ and crazed with terror and rushed in all
directions except that which led to safety.
The servant girls and many Of the guests
ran out into the snow clad only in their
/ night clothes. The weather was bitterly
cold, the mercury standing at fifteen de-
| grees below zero, and some of the sufferers
were badly frozen. The Fire department,
aided by citizens, did all that was possible
to save the building and to rescue its In
mates.
1t was reported that several lives were
| lost, but a comparison of the register and
the list of employees on the payroll with the
| list of those saved shows that all were res
| cued, although many are seriously injured
| by the fire, by falls and by the cold.
|