The Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1885-1886, 1885-12-28
A BLAZING TREE
INTERRUPTS THE CHRISTMAS FES-
TlVITtES AT A COUNTY HOSPITAL.
Two Hundred and Fifty Persons Receive
Hurts and B 3rns, but No Fatalities Re
ported-Eire in a MassacIiusetts
Toun-Loss of Life.

CHICAGO, Ills Dec. 2S-After a say.
ory Christmas dinner, Friday afternoon,
at the county hospital, over 800 of the pa
tlents We're ushe:ed int t:ie amphitheater
of the building, where Christmas tres
stood. Besides the patients there were a 1ou
or more guests, including many ladies and
gentlemen prominent in charities, who were
on hand because they had in one way or
another contributed to the scene The amphi-
theater is not large room, but is made to
hold 600 seats by having them ranged tier
on tier from the floor to the ceiling
AT 4:3o O'Clock the amphitheater was
tightly packed Il hundred little children
being in the audience, and more than a
dozen cots standing in the aisles, holding
patients and blocking egres' just as Santa
Claus, in his conventional costume was
slowly making his way toward the tree a
little tongue Of flame shot out from one side
of the tree. In an instant the whole great
tree, reaching to the ceiling was ablaze, and,
owing to the queer funueliike arrange
nents of the :eits nearly every person
IN the hall soorchng with the heat The
resinou5 tree suffered and cracked and
sent sparks over the persons OF every body.
\ dozen attendants sprang toward the
blaze with sponges, but it was too late for SO
poor weapon Then the fire extinguishars
work. The great peril was from the panic.
The blaze did not last more than five min
utes, yet screeching women and wailing
children We're trampled under foot by the
fugitves. The door on top had been reached
and down its narrow stairway the dense
mass of struggling humanity tumbled and
fell and crawled, the weaker ones going
down and the stronger ones being on top
a few had had presence of mind onou III
to lie down under the benches, where the
heat was not SO intense, but even they did
not IS ape entirely. Some had climblei up
to the windows, and few had Jumped
through them, In the rush and crush near
the upper door and dowA the stairs, quite
numLer We're injured.
AT the hospital it is claimed that at least
250 received hurts and burns, most of these
trivial. Among those that We're so injured
that their recovery will take SOME days
We're: Mrs. 4. A. Carpenter, lib broken,
collar-bone fractured, and face and hands
scorched in the rush: Mr.. A. c. Bartlett, of
the Hihbard, Spencer & Bartlett company,
painfully burned; Commissioner Van Pelt
scorched i'll the face.
At the foot of the tree there had been ar
ranged in order nearly $500 worth of pres
ents for the children, II large part Of which,
as in previous years, had been furnished by
Miss Kate Buckingham and Mr.. A. C.
Bartlett, who was injured during the fire,
This array of gift; is now biackened mass
of charrcd remains, and great grief pre-
vailed among the little folks, who had looked
forward to receiving them Their spirits
were revived. however, by a message from
Miss Bucking -.am saying that she would see
that they had their Santa Claus and Christ
mas gifts New Years day. Warden Me
Garigle said he was willing that they should
have their fun, but without ''trce.''