The semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1882-1886, 1885-01-21
An nlfnoas holocaust.

/ In mug - 49,
| in the furnace room and had got good
| head before it was discovered.
! The wood work of the building being
| pine it burned very rapidly. The
building was occupied by As I atients
| and one night Waterman. Seventeen
patients are missing and IL bodies
have ben recovered. All the patients
were infirm; the bedridden were res
cued first, but those able to assist
| themselves did not realize the danger
and many of them persisted. The at
tendants lost all their effects, and
many had a narrow escape. One OF
them had to tie the Oed cloths to-
gether to let himself down from the
top window. The building was a
new one and cost $4,000, but was NOT
vet provided with water works. II
was q two story stone and brick
| structure, with 40 wood about 1t,
except the floor and stairways. 1t
was comuleted last August, and was
used as an infirmary, with As Insane
inmates; q on the first floor, and 22
on the second. Attendants Brown,
Rose and wife were sleeping on the
second floor; Attendants Reid,
w llAld41sY anu Il1OntHh AoiuldSV,
sit pit on the first floor. The building
vas heated by hot air furnaces. 1t
was IL degrees below zero when the
Waterman. named Cobb, discovered
smoke issuing from the floor imme.
diatejy above the furnaces. He awoke
the attendants. Tue smoke at once
became drawn through the hot air
hdes and along the halls and stair
way to all parts of the building. The
fire spread so rapidly that ali efforts
to save the building, in the absence
of 3 fire alarm to summon help, and
for want OF facilltirs to quench the
flames, were found to be in vain. At
tendant w. K. Reid began dragging
and carrying out the patients, many
of whom were clad in their night
clothing, and they only rushed from
the bitter cold air back into the build
ing. r id, at the risk of his "
life, struggled on until q Of his %
| patients were rescued, when he be-
came exhausted and was carried
away.
Ga the second floor, attendant Rose
and wife heard the alarm, and
escaped down the stairway just bt-
fore it fell. Attendant Brown, sIeep-
ing on the same floor, was awakened
by the smoke and attempted to savs
Il patient in an adjoining room. but
failed. Sliding down by means of a
sheet from his window, he jumped to
the ground. Supt. r. :. Dewey
reacted the scene, and with ladders
climbed to the second story windows,
smashed In the windows, and was
able to rescue some patients there b.,
Almost all the patients r. fused to
cO-operat. in the eff,rts being made
to save them, aud We're oulv rescued
by being dragged from the flames
and forcibly prevented from Return
ing.
A marvellous escape was that Of ali
inmate who fell with the second
floor, struck the burning debris
above the furnace, and bounded
through the window TO the ground
uninjured.
The remains of the bodies of 10
patients have been taken from the
ruins, burned to fragments, only to
be identified by the location in which
they were found.
At the coroner's inquest this after
noon Supt. Dewey testified that he
had ask ,d.the legislature two years
ago for S2,50C to protect these de-
tached wards from fire; that $1,000
Was allowed, all Of which was used
In drains and hydrants; that the
amount was insufficient to answer
tho purpose. He suggested that the
floors above the hot air furnaces be
changed, it being shown in evidence
1t was but four inches fr@m the out
side and ten inches from the inside
of the furnace to the pine joist,. He
gave two reasons for the great nuul-
Der Of deaths first, the patients We're
almost all suttOcated by the smoke
before they could be reached, ana
second, the inability or unWiillngness
of che insane patients to try and help
themselves. The remains of the
bodies, with one exception, did not
aggregate each but little more than Il
handful of charred ashes. The entire
remains of ten of the victims were
spread on a small table. two feet
square. Friends are arriving il
search Of the lost ones. The scenes
on their arrival and view of the re-
mains are necessarily very heart.
reading. Telegralns are pouring in
iruul all parts of the tatefrom parties
asking as TO the safety of their friends,
among the 1900 inmates of tie hos
blta!.
The coroner's Jury, which at'
JOurned until tG-mnrrow afternoon,
Is investigating as to whether Che
furnaces were defective. The facts
that there is no general fire alarm
between the various buildings o. the
hospital, Or any system Of water
works to protect life aud property
there, account largely for jhe very
large loss of life.
ii. w. Belden, aged 81, of Gales
burg, one Of the victims. aud the only
q whose remains preserved the
semblance of a human being, WASH
prominent man in his section OF lne
State. He was on the second floor;
was an Invalid and unable to help
himself. Superintendent Dewey,
aided by an attendant, placed Il
ladder to his WindoN Dewey H.
cended it, broke the glass with bis
hands, but being unabe to break the
sash, descended for some implement
to break it with. In the ean,ime.
Belden's shrieks tor help were loud
and agonizing. AS Dewey reas-
cended his shrieks died away, and
smoke and flames poured from the
window, so hat 40 help could bt
given him.
DR.. Dewey hearing a call for help
from another window, hurried to hi.
re cue, and though 3 man Of light
build, dragged a lS0-pound patient
through the window and bore him
to the ground.
The burned building was used a.
an lntirmary, many # III. inmates
being unable from sickness 10 walk.
The only ctance for obtaining water
was from small wash-,tand iauc. t.;
not even t~ire-buckets or barrels be NJ
hand.
Night Wat"hmau Cocb test ies be-
fore the coroner's jury that he regis
a report Of Ills calls every halt
hour. The register showed that he
the furnace-room al $40 and
II all right THEN. and ~ lin at