Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1883-12-24

suranco companies take risks on this sost
uf accident,
Ms,yoious Escape.
Miss Maggie Lu'z, the sister OF Mrs.
VIM. Blickondcrfer, was n, the residence
of the latter last CvAuinF, aud owing to the
snow storm that was prevailing Mrs.
Blickcudurfor urged her to remain all
night. Sho was almost persuaded To do
80, but thought sho had better 40 homo
and finally did SO. Had che remained
sho would have s'opt III bed In u
second story back room, which Is now a
mass of ruins tho bCdstoad and every
other article Of furuiture IN the room being
broken to pieces. One corner Of the bed
and tho pillows may nov bo seen crushed
beneath tons Of brick and lumber, while
the heavy headboatd of the bc,lstead was
thrust bodily through tho shattered wall
vt the building aud lies among tho debris
in the yard below.
Mr. BIiCkendcrfcr'H horses were In tho
stablo Mt the time the wall Of the market.
house fell against aud crushed It. The
animals, though surrounded by debris and
imprisoned in the wreck, escaped injury,
aud after several hOWs work were safely
taken out.
When tho front wall Of lho market houso
fell 1t carried down with 1t tho telegraph,
telephone aud electric wires, all Of which
were buried beneath the ruins The cleo
trio lamp III front Of tue markethouso was
| carried almost to tho ground, but fortu-
natoly the electric wire did not break and
the lamp continued to burn as brightly as
ever. Had the wire broken all OF tho
lamps in tho northwestern section Of tho
! city would have instantly gone out.
Uihsr Incidents
II Is said that the shock Of tue falling
| building was heard distance " two miles
IN the country, and was supposed to DO
the result of an earthquake.
When tho market people began to as-
semblo this morning thoTe was universal
| amazomCnt at the scene of desolation
where they had week after week, for years.
been in the habit of assembling. Then
| there was fhuddcr OF horror at what
might have been, followed by oxclamatiOns
Of thankiulness aud praise for the marvel
ouS escapes they had madc--many of them
| thanking God that the building had fallen
before they got into il.
| IL Is not known that any loss OF life or
| any serious injury to anyone resulted, but
there are some dark hiuts that q tramp
or two may be buried beneath the ruins
II is we'll known that the doorways and
recossos of the building were often Occupi-
ed as sleeping quarters by this class OF
people, but IL is hoped the bitter cold
| weather of last night drove them To some
more comfortable quarters.
Many of tho market men who had in-
tended displaying their marketing in tho
| Northern market this morning. made
arrangements for tho uso OF the central
market house, aud did q thriving business
there Many Others disposcd of their
goods along tho curbs in the vicinity OF
the ruins.
The roofs OF tho Eastern aud Western
market houses, which arc built suhStan
italy after the pattern Of the NOrthcrn,
we're relieved of the weight of snow upon
them this forenoon, gangs Of men with
ShoSclS being employed for tho purpose.
The Huins Photographers.
MessTs. Betz 4 Richards, photographers,
have photographed the ruins from thre
different points.
anIco House Damaged,
The large ice house Of Poter Il. Ford
ncy, at Koigart's Landing, was almost
| Tuiucd by the snow. Sometime during
tho night the ryyf Caved in, owing to the
heavy weight, tearing down the greater
portion Of tho walls. The building was
| lOi feet long and IL feet wide. Tho walls
were % feet . inches high aud over two
feet IN thickness. There was nothing in
the building except the tools at tho time
of tho accident. Mr.. FOrdnGy bad made
all arrangements ~ commcuce filling the
house with ice on Wednesday of this week.
The loss of tho caving in is heavy, a. the
building originally cost 81 300, and it il
almost a total wreck.