The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-01-17

I
had increased to thirty-one. The blackened
and unrecognizable forms of three girls, side
! by side, in the laundry room, were taken out
| Just as night enshrouded the ruins with its
shadows like a pail of gloom. Eight bodies,
in all, have been recovered along the west
| foundation wall of the house, the remains
| of servant girls, who were undoubtedly
struggling to reach reach passage-way into
| the bank building when they were cut oil
| by the smoke and flames. The north
wall having been torn down, workmen
began excavating the two sections that were
| left untouched on account of the danger that
menaced from the lettering pile of brick and
mortar They were rewarded in their work
| by the discovery of the body of large man
at the foot of the old entrance for ladies,
which was closed when the elevator was
| placed in the house. The body was doubled
over the foundation wall, the greater portion
| OF 1t lying out on the sidewalk, face down.
The unfortunate victim had, without doubt,
made his way 10 the head of the stairway,
| found it to be on fire, and, all re-
treat beiEg cut off, made a tremendous leap
through the sea Of flame for the pave
ment and struck the outer walls. The
mating at the street entrance was
baked and matted in the flesh of the abdomen,
but there was nothing on the body to lead to
identification. 1t is the body of very
large man.
Quite distance has been excavated into
the court where it was expected a large
number of bodies would be found, without
revealing any new Victims and the opinion
now prevails that the inmates of the house
| who were aroused by the roar of the flames
made their way to the Michigan and Broad
way front, and that the worst features OF
the terrible disaster are now known, and
| that very few bodies remain in the ruins.
The crowd of people that stood about the
sidewalks, outside the Gordon, was as large
| to-day as it was at the beginning of the
search, the modification in the weather hay
ing added recruits to the watchers. The first
| impressions created by the awful calamity,
however, have worn off, and the appearance
of patrol wagon to convey its horrible
| freightage TO the dead-house is often greeted
with coarse jeSts and laughter by the hard
hearted wretches who gather in groups about
| the premises.
RESULT OF THE FIFTH DAYS WORK.
The fifth days search through the ruins of
the burned Newhall House for the remains
of the victims of the conAagraton ended last
night with the result of discovering the frag-
ments of eleven bodies between the hours OF
7 and 5 o'clock, making total of thirty-nine
found since the work was begun, last Friday.
The labor is no more than half done,
and Captain O'Connor, who has
the matter in charge, thinks the
last inch of debris will have been
examined by Saturday afternoon. The heap
of bricks piled over the space known as the
open court of the house was penetrated yes
terday, but contrary TO prevailing belief,
no bodies were found. 1t was thought that
many had endeavored to find some avenue of
escape by leaping from the windows of the
| inside rooms into the court. only to be bur
| led in the falling walls. and the removal
of the timbers and bricks would reveal
| wholesale slaughter. No trace of any body
| has yet been found, however, within the con-
fines Of this space, and it was not believed last
evening that any now would be- 1t is at the
back of the ruins, adjoining the alley, that
| the charred traces of what were so few days
| ago human beings moving with life are being
unearthed by dozens. Often it is only a tell
tale thread of white ashes in bold relief against
| the dusky cinders that speak of flesh and
bones calcined TO a mere sign; then the veri-
est shred is upturned. and then again the
| greater portion OF one of the sacrificed bones
comes out. Here is where the poor girls
| employed about the hotel went down by
| scores, and the cruel wreck is softly lifted.
Such remnants of their bodies as were not
wholly dertroyed by the remorseless flames
lie thick and deep. The crisp and blackened
fragments of seven of the females have al
ready been taken from an area only few
feet square at this point, and the hunt has
only just begun.
OPENING THE SAFE.
The principal interest OF the afternoon
among most of the spectators and officials
present, was the uncovering and opening of
the safe of the house. 1t was freed from all
surrounding bricks during the forenoon, and
was the object of critical attention during
the noon hour, as it lay front up,
where it had fallen from its place, on the
of IN ip oil Inc
passed. when labor was resumed at l o'clock
in rolling it up to the street and twenty
minutes were consumed in breaking the
bolts so that the doors could be opened. 1t
had been reported and expected that the
hotel register and transfer book had been
thrown Ito the safe when the
fire was discovered, and anxious hearts
were waiting all over the land for
the disclosures the pages of the two books
could make. As the warped and blistered
doors of the safe were at last swung open,
disclosing the interior to the gaze of the little
party crowded close around, every breath
was held; the next moment an involuntary
sigh swelled up from every breast. James
An tisdel and some former attaches of the
hotel stood at one side; near them
were reporters OF the Sentinel
the Evening Wisconsin. and the
HEARD, with Captain OConnor, Lieutenant
lockwood, of the police department, and
number of Others completing the circle. All
waited and watched the locksmith with his
chisel and hammer as he cut the combining
bolts. AS he pulled first one door, and then
the other open, every eye endeavored to
pierce the dark recess The contents
of the safe were badly tumbed
and tossed, but not the least trace of any
book or paper of the slightest importance in
showing who was in the hotel one week ago
last night was there. There were numerous
papers and documents, and the nk-books,
but no register, no transfer-book, no memo
randum of the guests-ore employees. Mr.. An
tisdel hurridly threw the matter in a box and
basket, and with his men left the scene
at once. The theories advanced as
to the cause of the disappearance