Evening journal., 1892-02-08
AWOKE TO PERISH
New York City Startled by An.
other Fearful Holocaust.
FLAMES RAGE AT MIDNIGHT
Fifty Persons Perish by Fire in a
Death Trap Of Hotel.

We're Seen az the Upper Windows
Screaming for Help aud they Wore
Engulfcd In the seething sIass-Ths
Victims Taken from the Debris . Mass
Of Charred Cindcrs.
NEW YoRK, Feb. s.-A disaster parallel.
ing in horror and probably exceeding in loss
Of life the terrible occurrence in Park place,
the remembrance Of which is fresh in the |
public mind, occurred In this city shortly !
after midnight. The Hotel Royal, at For
tieth street and Sixth avenue, was burned |
TO the ground and large number Of people |
were burned to death, many suffooated by |
smoke and others crushed 70 death in the |
ruins. 1t is known that there were 100
guests in the hotel at the time the fire broke /
out. There were also some hfty-hve en-
ployees Of the hotel OF those five have
been found dead, eight are in hospitals and
sixty-three have been reported alive, either
by themselves or friends.
This leaves 100 persons missing, and they
are supposed to be dead Ia the ruins. The
police have searched that part Of the ruins
accessible but have found no bodies. They
believe that many OF the missing persons
win be found to have escaped OF these
many are supposed to have gone to their
homes They are mostly transient guests,
and it is believed that large proportion
will never report their escape. At this
writing il is impossible to state the number
Of killed or injured with any positivenesa
The police place the number Of killed at
fifty, while they admit that tho number Of
injured win be very large
A Death Trap.
The flames never had better fnel The
building was composed Of several old struc-
lures, amalgamated into the Hotel Royal
years ago So far ns can be learned the
flames gindled in the shaft of the elevator,
in the basement, at about the middle depth
Of the building The janitor was at work
IN the basement az the time, and be was
suddenly startled by the flashing up 81
flames He rushed 70 the street and noti-
fed the policeman on the Sixth avenue cor
ner, who sent in an alarm, while the janitor
rushed back into the building to arouse the
sleeping guests
The blaze had already shot up the elevator
shaft, finding kindling as inhammable az
tinder in the frame work, and James r.
Powers, Of the straight Tip company,
smoking his good night cigar on the piazza
Of the Gedney House, at Broadway and
| Fortieth street, saw 10 flames Mr. Pow
! ers rushed TO the nearest fire alarm box and
sent in an alarm before the Sixth avenue
] policeman could reach his nearest box.
In fifteen minutes the whole of the six
story structure was ablaze Flames shot
| out at every window in the front half Of
the big hotel, and people in the street could
see persons rushing frantically to and fro on
/ every hoor Of the burning building.
One, two three alarms were sent out in
I rapid succession, and the streets and ave
nues were soon filed with fire engines and
trucks. Other alarms brought ambulances
from every hospital in the city.
Jumped to Death.
/ People leaped out OF the windows to the
I sidewalks and were gathered up uncon-
scious, burned, MANNED and mangled by
the firemen and carried to places Of safety
The most heroic efforts OF the flremen were
impotent against the devouring element,
and the whole middle portion Of the city
was brilliantly illuminated by the tromen-
dous fire which the doomed Hotel Royal
made. Crowds gathered, and Captain
I Reilly, with the reserves from the Thirtieth
street station, had more than their hands
fun in controlling the excited throng II
was known that the hotel was fun Of people
for Il was popular resort foE thousands,
and the prospective loss Of life is appalling
The windows were filed with the people
ia their night clothing, making piteous and
ReaTtTepding appeals to the people below
4, FOR help while behind them WIS great sea
Of flames. Indeed, these unfortunate beings
seemed 70 be actually IN the fire. Harrow
(, ing scenes were witnessed BY those who
were assembled in sight Of the burning
hotel. One unknown man sprang from a
window on the third foor and was dashed
TO death on the sidewalk below before the
Mortified eyes Of the spectators. a moment
later another man leaped from a window
on the Fortieth street sideand was mangled
| to death on the pavement. Shortly after
| ward two women jumped from windows on
the Sixth avenue side. Willing hands soon
! grasped them up, but they were dead
I Their bodies were at once removed to the
morgue
Thus already had four lives been sacri-
feed From other windows Of the doomed
structure men and women leaped in their
mad endeavor to escape from the flames,
and so far as known none of them were
killed outright but many were badly
! bruised. The numerous ambulance sur
geons, who We're summoned as soon as the
fire was discovered, had more than they
could do to attend to the burned and in
| jured people.
The hotel burned like tinder box The
flames ragged fieroely but above all could be
heard the cries for help from the unfortu-
mates penned in the building. Firemen and
spectators helped to rescue the imprisoned
guests and employees. MaRy were taken
from the windows, where they had sought
refuge from the flames, and the iiremen
dared smoke and flames to save life.
Some Narrow Escapes.
| Sergeant Ward and Patrolman Phillips
went into a room on the fourth floor and
/ took Walter H. Phelps and his wife in safety
down a ladder Officer Phillips succeededin
saving Mrs. Samuel Knopp, Of Chicago, who
was unable to save herself and was about to
/ kap from window on the third floor. Mr..
Frederick Uhlmann, wen known dealer in
hops, escaped in his night shirt MIR. Uhl-
mann lost everything in his room, including
i $4,000 in cash, several checks and notes and
other valuable business documents.
A tall, handsome young man climbed
down the Sixth avenue front from the top
most window He slowly clambered from
sill to sill until be reached the ground He