New-York tribune., 1890-03-29
now Interrupts In all other portions !" '0o ''' '1''
- a resuming IT. usual channels.
sirned by the Relief Committee Board Of TRADE.
WILLIAM 7. ROLF, Chairman
q CROWDED HALL DESTROYED
HUNDREDS OF MEN, WOMEN AND CHILDREN
CAUGHT IN THE RUINS.

HUNDREDS OF MEN, WOMEN AMI SnAA
CAUGHT IN THE RUINS.
sr,scxr rx WITH PANIC, BUT UNABLE 10 ESCAPE
xrow WORK OF REsCuE-FIAMEs
IN THE WRECK.
rnu;.ville. March es.-Probably the greatest
,oss 6f life occurred al the Falls City HAIL. wRion
WAS the centre Of the tornado IN tne iowvi
rooms Of the hall were fifty or seventy-hve chii-
dren. with their mothers and other reiauves'
taking dancing lessons There were at least i~o
nersons on the lower floors and seventy-hVe moi'
attending lodge meeting on the upper nooi
when the wind struck the buiiding~ Inc en0'ie
structure in less than five minutes was sn"p
les mass of brick and mortar, burying 2oo neip-
les.s Victims of whom few escaped unin]ured'
Immedi- ely upon the outpurst OF 'ne S'o,u,' ,'s
the fre-bells sounded and the police were oai.u -
Within ten minutes posse appeared al 'he an'
tytv HaIl. The walls of the adjoining mouse
were first propped up, and then began 'ne wv.A
~ cuttine through the heavy slate roof tha'
cov.r.d the ruined hall At first work was diff
cu,t and laborious, on account of the ANXIOUS
vru,titude that crowded near the wreck. IL was
a heartbrcaking task to clear the ruin OF women
who were found digging at the slate with theI
spgers crazed at the groans beneath, each VI
which they thought came from their dying ohes.
Every one did noble work. After an hour "a
ceaseless labor the first victim, MIS-. oaIan
Kelley. was rescued. She was found sit'ihg III
an unripbt position her head bruised ana one arm
broken. She said:
AT the first quake q mad rush was maze 1or
the entrance. Women were knocked down anu
tramuled on in the mad haste to escape oeeins
the overwhelming jam at the door, seVelai IT.
ma;ned behind The last saw OF my iriehos WAC
inst before the floor gave way and the ceilihs 'ei
The work was continued, but none OF those
,vho Mrs. Kelley said, were near her couio NC
found. The work of excavation was theh tfahs-
terrod from the rear of the building 10 the llohc
,vhere IT. was supposed that the greater crown was
gathered As soon the roof was IemoNeu an"
the mass of brick beneath, the sight tiat ieo oe
evcs was sad enough. Ten women, iockeo III e"0i'
sho-., owns wore drawn out. James liasson,
,vhose wife had been at the lodge meeting was
yoramoet in the work. and the first person whom
bs drew out of tho ruined building was MS "iie'
who died in his arms. He laid her by the side
~ the others who were dead and continued 10
work for the living
In the next hour thirty men and women wero
drawn out dead. but with no wounds on uheir
bodies. and it is thought all met their uea'i
from suffocation The sas-plpes had orokeh'
causing the lights to 90 out ana saving the ruinS
from fire for the time. ways were plerceo in''
The breast of the ruin to reach the dead ana oSi9
Cns mart of the building was reserved for the
dead, but the wounded were taken into tne stores
and bouses on the opposite side of the street.
At 10 o'clock the opening up of a portion of
the wreck caused draught to penetrate the ruins.
whcreupon the smoldering fire broke out fiercely.
II suread RAPIDLY and forced the workers to desert
the nile. As soon as the fire gained headway the
croans of the imprisoned people became shricKs,
md so great was the horror of the moment that
tho watchers became frantic and screamed ana
ran about like madrncn, the terrible suflerings
which they were unable TO alleviate driving them
TO despair Several lines of hose were soon throw
ing water upon tic flames but it was more tI'an
an hour before work could be proceeded with and
then il was carried on with much difficulty on ac-
count of the heat.
Up to noon only about thirty-fvc dead bodies
and twenty-five wounded and dying were taken
from the wreck. The corpses were laid IN the
various houses across the street, and i'll Dough-
erty g. Remnants undertaking establishment, ore
block below. At the latter place people passed
in and out, one by one to look at the pocles.
hunting for friends and relatives. One man SAID
he was looking for Louis Lipp. and the hrSt
sheet lifted revealed the corpse of the person
wanted. The man covered his face, groaned, and
would have fallen had he not been caught.
At about IL 80 a. the room where the
children were dancing was reached. LOUIS
Sinms, jr, of No. l,lo4 Market-st, han lor
hours been moving about in agony of grief
in front of that portion of the wreck where inns
room had been, for his wife and four little
<1,o cd
Mrs. Simms was the first one found, and she was
fatally hurt Then. within ahoIt fifteen minutes
OF each other three of the Simms children were
recovered. They were unconscious and there is
only faint possibility of their living. While
the father was mploring the workers to get his
other child, fire broke out and work was sus-
rended. The last man taken out alive before
the flames started was John Hepden. of No. 2,1oo
West Broadway, and just previous to that time
a woman was rescued, who was unable to give her
name when recovered. 1t was not possible
70 tell the extent of the injuries Of either
A thrilling experience was that of George X.
Capito of No. 1,43l Stewart-ave., who was present
at the meeting of Jewell Lodge, No. . Knights and
ladies of Honor, in their lodgeroom on the top
floor of the hall. when the building collapsed
under the terrible impact of the storm lie says:
aThe first intimations of danger we had were
two distinct rockings of the buildings, ABOUT
which time q dormcr window in the lodgeroom
was blown from its castings. and Immediately after
the plastering began to drop from the ceiling
A wild rush was made for the anteroom, which
carried me with it, and had just reached tine
door when the entire floor gave way. and we were
preeipitated to the basement, blinded and almost
suffocated by cloud of dust and crushed ana
damned by falling timbers. In some way the
door frame fell with me, and maintained an up
right position when it stopped. and was enabled
10 extricatc myself from the wreck and make my
way to the street through an adjoining house.
whose doors kicked in. Meanwhile the shrleks