The Indianapolis journal., 1889-12-02
THE MINNEAPOLIS DISASTER
Probability that the Number Of Dead viii
Increased tn TWENTY.


Probability that the Number of Dead VIII Be
Increased to Twenty.
Special the indianapolis Journal.
MINNEAPOLIS. Minn.. Dec. 1.-All night
long the steamers threw water on the
burning and smoking ruins of what was
once the Tribune building. The force
that was on duty during the night was re-
lieved by another and the good work went
on increasingly. A few spectators stood
around during the entire night, and as
soon as light began to dawn in the east
others came. so that as early as s o'clock
there was considerable crowd on hand.
Dark and forbidding the walls of the
wrecked building loomed mp in the gray
light of early dawn, and as the spectators
gazed, the awful tact that frenzied human
beings. half stihed with smoke aud singed
with flames. had but a few hours before
made the death plunge from the giddy
height to the hard. cruel stone pave
ment below, the scene seemed to dawn upon
them afresh with all of its terrible
force. AS the day advanced and the light
became more distinct. the completeness of
the wreck became more and more evident.
The upper floors had given way, and their
weight, together with the job presses and
heavy iron safes, had carried all before 1t
into confused mass in the basement.
Here and there an iron girder remained in
position, but so insecurely fixed that it ap-
peared that but slight jar would be re-
quired to send il crashing to the bottom.
A few of these girders were bent and
twisted out of shape by the heat and the
heavy masses that fell upon them from
above.
1t had been hoped that the solidity of the
first floor, supported as it was
by heavy iron posts and girders.
would support the everything mass, and
TINS protect the presses in the basement
But an examination of the ruins proved
the probable delusiveness of this hope.
Everything had given way before the
stupendous weight and the basement was
piled full of the heavy debris. The vaults
in the newspaper offices appeared TO be in a
good condition. and unless the heat was
too intense the contents will be found to
be in q good state of preservation. The
walls are cracked but little, and. in the
opinion of Chief StetsoD, there is no danger
of their falling.
The ruins probably drew a much larger
crowd to-day than did the churches.
1t looked as though everyb body had
turned out to witness the terrible
work of the tire-fend. This was
especially the case In the afternoon, when
the sidewalks were lined with spectators
for some distance from the building, and
the overflow found standing room in the
middle of the streets. The day was warm
enough for spring and the melted snow.
together with the water thrown about by
the fire engines made a mixture, about the
consistency of mortar, on the sidewalks
and in the streets. Soiled and bedraggled
dresses were the order of the day, but
the ladies persisted in turning out
1t was good-natured crowd, but an i'm
quistive one withal, and to keep it back
wires were stretched across the streets and
a Gordon of policemen employed.
The one question uppermost in the minds
of all was. "How many bodies are there
in the ruinsf" 1t was generally accepted
fact that bodies were buried beneath that
heterogeneous mass, but how many. no one
could tell. Chief Stetson aud the other
members of the fire department appeared
to doubt whether all the inmates of tho
building had escaped. Chief of Police
Brackett, who has handled many fires in
the past, thought there could not be over
two or three bodies buried in the ruins.
Careful inquiry failed to show that anxious
friends had made inquiries for lost
ones. But one report OF missing
man could be traced to a reliable
source. That came from Burke OBrien,
who said man who had worked for him
had disappeared and he feared his body
would be found in the ruins. The elevator
man. who was reported missing, turned up
safe and sound this afternoon.
Charles A. Smith. the elevator man on
the night service, did very creditable work.
He was new man. having only been In
the place since the first OF the week. After
the lire broke ont he made five trips-the
last when the shaft was actually on fire
and saved q number of people. Smith says
he smelled fire for three-quarters of an
hour before be could lind its location. After
looking on all the foers he finally felt
was ABOUT to break in the door of the fate
full room when the transom burst and the
flames sprung up. He is confident that the
fire originated in E. A. Harmon's office and
breaking into the hallway, but this seems
well-nigh impossible. Smith is sure that
more people were burned than have been
reported. He says tnat about five minutes
before the fire was discovered he carried n
heavy, dark-complexioncd lady To the sixth
floor. She asked for the editorial rooms of
the Pioneer Press. He did not take
her back in the elevator, and he
is sure she could not have gone
| down the stairway. Smith also says
that tall young man, with a black mus
tache. shot himself. on the seventh floor.
| near the composing-room door. Smith was
| up on his last trip. and called to the young
man to come into the elevator. but he
| seemed dazed by the heat and smoke. and
deliberately drew revolver aud fired into
! his own head. falling as Smith snpposes.
| quite dead. just before he fired the shot
| he exclaimed, MY God. My wife and
--r then the bullet did its work.
Chief Stetson charges that the loss OF
| life IS due to the absence of proper fire
! escapes. There was some apparently
unaccountable delay in turning in
| the alarm for the fire department
on Saturday evening. and after they
arrived on the ground it seemed to be
a long time before they got TO work.
/ This was a general cause of comment by
| the spectators. In an interview to-day
| Chief Stetson talked as follows on the SUBJ
| ject: In the first place. there was some
| objectionable delay in sending in the
| alarm. i had no knowledge that there was
fire until IL had made such headway that
it could not be checked. The man who
| pulled the alarm box was so excited that
he did not do il properly. and sent
IN call for police instead of fire.
/ This he did three times, as the records
at police headquarters will show.