The evening herald. [volume] (Shenandoah, Pa.) 1891-1966, 1892-02-09
The DEAD
Taking the Bodies from the
Hotel Royal Ruins.
SEVENTEEN so FAR RECOVERED,
Several Anxious Days Must Pass Ere the
Full Number Gan Be Known.

Were Lost VIII Not BE Reached Before
TO-niaht-Curious Freak of the Flames
--Origin of the Fire in Dispute--One of
the Hotel Employees Thinks 1t May
Have Been Started from the Furnace
Rumors of Inoendiarism Discredited.
New YoRK, Feb. 9-The work Of
searching the ruins of the Hotel Royal
still goes on. All last night the men
worked under the glare of electric lights.
The heaps of debris grow higher and
higher as the work proceeds and body
after body is removed. at
The contractor having the work in
charge says that he thinks it will be
three days before all the debris can be
examined, but that gangs of men will
work every minute of the day and night,
even if it takes ten days.
If his estimate of the time re-
qxired to complete the work is correct,
several ANXIOUS days must pass before
the number of lost can be definitely
known.
The cowds surrounding the scene seem
to be held by some spell, so earnestly do
they watch the progress of the work.
They are generally very silent, except for
the shuffling of feet, but every time a
blackened, shapeless mass, all that is
left of what was once a man, proud in
the consciousness of life and strength, or
a woman, light-hearted and happy in the
knowledge of her beauty, is brought out
of the ruins a ashuddering, long-drawn
sigh passes through the throng.
The terrible fascination of viewing
grim death in most horrible form keeps
thousands about the site of the burned
hotel, and all through the night there
seems to be no diminishing of the num-
Der who watch the men carrying their
CHASTITY burdens, the feeble earthly tene-
ments of souls gone to face their Creator
and to render their last account.
, Up to noon II bodies had been recov-
cred The number of dead, as now esti- i
mated, is in the neighborhood of forty
but there is no way Of giving an estimate
with any degree of accuracy
Five bodies have been identified. II is
not vet known what names twelve of the
bodies bore in life Twenty-three injured
persons are in the hospitals of the city
or are being cared for at other hotels or
at the house of friends. Sixty-three are
known to have been saved without in
jury fllJy-nNt are lllloolhS anu uhoS-
counted for.
The work of Identification is very slow.
This is due partly to the horrible condi-
tion of the bodies recovered. But a
stronger reason it is believed, is the fact
that many persons do not wish to make
public, through Identification, the names
OF relatives and friends possibly among
the dead in order to avoid scandal.
As indicated yesterday the extent OF
the disaster grows with every hours
work of the forces engaged in removing
the debris from the burned building.
There was great excitement rmong the
crowd of workmen employed on the
ruins and among the large crowd which
had been hanging about the scene all
day, when word was passed around that
a cry had been heard from the vault on
Sixth avenue.
The Italians who were at work close to
where the cry was said to have been
heard say that the sound heard was the
mewing of a cat.
1t will be remembered that a somewhat
similar incident occurred at the ruins of
the Park place disaster, some time ago,
when the searchers, after three days of
digging and delving, found large, black
cat which had escaped unscatbed both
the collapse Of the building and the fire
which followed ON that occasion.
AT the first break of dawn Contractor
Galligan marched on the scene with 100
fresh men at his back. They were all
brawny men, and their nationality was
miNed-Iiish aud Italian. They were
armed with picks and shovels, and as
they were halted before the ruins, the
contractor read them a little speech, and
told them that dead bodies lay beneath
. fl..t larr
were expected to work with speed and at
the same time exercise great care. The
men went at their work with both dill
gence and caution.
In connection with the discovery of
one of the bodies, that of a woman, a
curious freak was revealed The woman
had worn light chemise at the time of
her death, and while her body was
burned almost to crisp, little rim of
flesh and chemise around her breast es-
capped the flames. Nesting in this little
nook that the fire passed over was tiny
purse containing twenty and ten
dollar note. The body has not been iden-
titled
Fire Chief Bonner took charge of pull
ing down the walls and recovering the
dead early in the morning. Assistant
Chiefs McCabe and Gicquel worked with
Trucks IL and ~ under command of
Foremen Sullivan and Shaw, had their
crews at work ON the ruins throughout
the day
Chief Bonner said early in the day that
all the work that had been done up to
that time was purely preliminary, and
that he did not expect TO get TO the point
where the true extent of the loss of life
would be shown before late tonight
This preliminary work consisted in
tearing down the walls and clearing out
the cellar. Ii Yves carried on with rapid
ity and precision. Chief Bonner said
pointing to heap of bricks in the center
OF the ruins; "Ihat is where | expect tC
ind most of the bodies Of those lost il
the fire 1 am afraid there are not lesl
than fifteen to twenty bodies under that
pile OF debris. That is the bottom Of th'
stairway, and that is where most of th'
people perished have talked with th'
employees OF the house As well as tn
GUESTS who egcaued and thew all aQrc