Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1884-08-05

ksuit'oh that divided the basement alonx
the line Of stone PIERS Tho Colonel couid
communicate with these above, and Icarn.
ing the retrre o! the obstacle. set At work
70 CUT through, but ~ the boarding. 10
thick and the working SPACE so ANAL ibst
but one could act al time In . narrow ro am
atIi;30 he had not got through. The ni,a,
where be was was on the same aide ~ t.s
PARTITION that Chief Cronin and his jittIe
party bad rescued Mrs. Beldeu. bnt a
thick wall OF heavy tmbers and brick nre-
vented communication.
At 1890 o'clock the working forca VA.
rspidly clearing away the flooring of The
story next above that OF the wrcct cd
kitchen. but the work had to be done
slowly In fear OF injuring further those inn
prisoned below. From Whist was explained
by Dickson and the boy white, The victims
bad crashed through and were then under
the Kitchen floor among the ruins on the
floor OF the basement. so that s.ill another
large layer of.rubbish and another fIoor
than that the workers were then ON must
be cleared away and burrowed through be-
fore help could reach them. At the hour
lsst named no word, or cry, or groan had
been heard OF the three others OF the seven
known 10 have been In the fatal kitchen
when the crash came.
Within twenty minutes after the accident
Captain Vernon arrived In charge OF fjftv
officers, forming tie reserve OF nearly All
OF The precincts. The officers stretched
ropes across the avenue leading to the
building and kept the immense crowd
back. Msjor Dye arrived shortly after 10
o'clock and dir, cted the officers.
The crowd steadily increas d until thou.
sands OF people surrounded the building IN
every direction, but there was little 10 see,
| - al - l.A ali III
stretched at the entrance 10 the alleys, and
high buildings shut of the view from all
other points. The widest rumors were In
circulation among these outside crowds UP
to IL O'clock Long after tue workers
knew pretty well the extent OF the disaster
II was told on the outside that forty ;ests
Of the house were eating In the dining.room
ct the time ofthe accident, and were buried
| In the ruins. This was one OF the first ru.
mors, and II was with feeling OF intense
relief that many people heard the clerk say
that the dlnner-hour was over, and tn.
dining-roOm locked at o'clock. 1t w..
aiterward learned, however, that the door
| was not locked.
There were probably fifty people who
had been near enough to the hotel when it
fell TO have interesting stories about the
accident.
DIoWUIUU IN N3e NJ
! fhe hotel. He said that he anticipated the
fell OF the building when he first cam. in
| tie house, - the walls looked unsafe On
Friday last be had written letter to
Building-InSpector Entwisie calling atten-
ton 10 the unsafety Of the walls. when
| the crash came he was standing beneath the
steps leading from the Office. and saw one
| OF the bell-boys rush out. He knew there
| were a number OF persons in the ruins, but |
could not tell how many.
Charles William Fisher was q bell-boy ut |
the hotel. About five minutes before the |
crash he went to the coal-bin, which il |
situated under the kitchen, at the rear por-
ton OF the building, TO get some coal. He |
yas standing up when the building eaved |
in. He felt the force OF some blow, and |
Was thrown forward. Some Of the dt6ris |
covered his legs up to bis knees. He |
the wall was enabled TO crawl through a |
passage. which was undisturbed. and gain
the front part OF the house without injury. |
He then gave the alarm.
John Henderson, a colored man en-
ployed in Shocks restaurant. which adj |
joins the hotel, was sitting on a back fence
talking with three sons OF Mr.. Shocks.
When the crash came, he said 1t was be-
hind him. He sprarg up and caught up |
Robbie Shook, and dragged him to the
centre OF the yard Just az the walls fell on
the spot where they were sitting. He did |
not see Ernest, who was with him, and he
went and told Mr.. Shook that Earnest
was under the ruins. Frank Shook, an-
other son, was on the kitchen steps and
sprang inside Of the door.
William Smith, the dining.roOm head
waiter, was walking through the dining
tal.0 Ill hi h.
cause the dining-room is closed at O'Clock
Sunday evenings-toward the pantry door,
which was at tae south end Of the room,
but in the back building. As be was about
the middle Of the room he heard crash,
look cd quickly, and saw the rear gone in.
He ran ahead 10 his pantry, grabbed his
h,t, and rushed out just ~ the whole plan
fell In. No one else got out that way, and
II was Gods providence, he says, that for
onoe the diHing-room door was unlocked
ct that hour, II being usually locked TO keep
guests away after I. He rushed ahead
through the upper ball, down tho stairway.
and out the front door. where be met the
clerk, MIR. Clark, who asked: "For Gods
sake. what's the matter!" At that time
Mr.. Belden, the proprietor, was ont OF the
house, was down the avenue. and came
running up franticaly. He had only been
DIth uIrsbdlis icuS tuouSu W hC
could get into his pantry, where bis own
clothes were kept and which he found all
right. Then the dning-room door could
not be opened, and all beyond the pantry
wss Q mass OF bricks and broken lumber.
at was Gods good mercy" Smith said.
",hat this didn't take place at night, for
we'd sill have been killed. All the help OF
the house, including the clerks. slept intthe
back building, and every one OF us would
have been killed"
At the time Smith left the kitchen those
present there were Mrs. W. J. DeIdeD, the
wife OF the proprietor; Annie Dixson, the
pastry cook; Adde Fletcher, chamber.
maid aged thirty.ive); Addie Dickson,
cbambcrmaid (the first one rescued); Hen
~ Hall, dish-washer; the cook, hiddle-
aged colored man, whose name Smith did
not know, as he only began work yester-
day morning; and Charley" young
colored boy OF e,enteen. who're name
Smith does not know, but knows that he
lived IN Georgetown. All these were col
ored except Mrs. Belden.
All OF the servants knew there was
danger. None oithc transoms would shut.
the gas was continually le,king from the
twisting of the pipes, and the falling plaster
was so thick that it was cleaned Out only |
last Saturday by men who came there. "lt
any one had gone then on the third floor"
said Smith. "he would have said 1t was
dangerous"
Alexander Brown, b0arder, was Just
going into the dining-room for his supper |
when tho crash came. He Is painter, and
was at work on the inside OF the building |
month since when he noticed extensive
cracks IN the walls on the north and west |
side. This he told to Mr.. Belden, adding |
that he was certain that the building would |
come down about their ears before long.
Rufus Fletcher, the husband OF Annie |
Fletcher, one OF the servants in the build |
ing when 1t fell, was loud in lis declara.
tons that he had known what would hap
pen months ago. and tried To get his wife TO |
leave. He had even endeayored TO induce |
her 10 take walk with him last evening Tor |
fear OF the place falling down, and she was |
probably preparing TO do so when the cash |
came.
Harry Ford, white boy. six years OF
age. said that he and his father and mother |
were in the hotel when il fell. He ran out
OF the front and they ran to the back, and
were possibly caught, as they were not
seen In the crowd sfterward. Mr.. Ford.
the boy said. lived on Fifth strees near h,
was blacksmith, and worked at Conner's