The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1892-02-11
TOMBS OF FLAME
Hotel Guests Face the Horrors
of a Death Trap.
NEW YORK IN MOURNING.
A Dozen or More Perish While Penned Be
tween seething Fire and Brick Walls

No Avenue of Escape for the Unfortunate
Creatures, whose Blackened Corpses
Relate the story of Agony-The Mo-
ments of Alarm, the Struggles of De-
spairj Fights for Life Ending in Hor-
rors of Cremation, Make n Fearful
Picture at the Hotel Royal, at Fortieth
Street and sixth Avenue.
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 yesterday. The Hotel Royal,
at Fortieth street and Sixth avenue, was
burned to the ground and large num-
Der of people were burned to death,
many suffocated by smoke and others
crushed to death in the ruins. It is
known that there were 120 guests in the
house at the time the fire broke out.
There was also some fifty-fve employees
of the house. OF these six have been
found dead, six are in the hospitals and
SO have been reported alive either by
themselves or friends. This leaves 100
to be dead in the ruins The police have
searched that part of the ruins access
ible, but have found no bodies. They
believe that many of the missing per-
sons will be found to have escaped. Of
these many are supposed to have gone
to their homes. They are mostly tran
sient guests, and it is believed that a
large proportion will never report their
escape. AT this writing it is impossible
to state the number of killed or injured
with any positiveneSs. The police place
the number Of killed at fifty, while they
admit that the number of injured will
be very large.
A PERT He'll of Flame.
1t was a few minutes after in the
morning when the flames were first dis
covered. They never had better fuel.
The building was composed of several
old structures all amalgamated into the
Hotel Royal years ago. So far as can be
learned the flames kindled in the shaft
of the elevator in the basement at about
the middle depth of the building. A
janitor was at work in the basement at
the time and was suddenly frightened
by the flashing up of flames. He rushed
to the street and notified the policeman
on the Sixth avenue corner, 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 ele-
yatOr shaft, finding kindling as infam-
mable as tinder in the framework. In
fifteen minutes the whole of the six
story structure was ablaze. Flames
shot out every window in the front of
the house and people in the street could
- I
fro on every floor of the burning build
ing. One, two, three alarms were sent
out in rapid succession and the streets
and avenues were soon filled with fire
engines and trucks.
A Fearful Picture.
People leaped out of the windows to
the sidewalks, and We're gathered up
unconscious, burned. manned and
mangled, by the fremen and carried to
places Of safety. The most heroic
efforts of the tiremen were impOtent
against the devOuring element, and the
whole middle portion of the city was
brilliantly illuminated by the tremen-
dous fire which the doomed Hotel Royal
made. Crowds gathered, and Captain
Reilly, with reserves from the Thirtieth
street station, had more than their hands
full in controlling the excited throng.
1t was known that the hotel was full of
people, for it was a popular resort for
thousands, and the prospective loss of
life Is appalling. The windows were
filled with people in their night clothing,
making piteous and heartrending ap-
peals to the people below for help, while
behind them was a great sea of flames.
Indeed these unfortunate beings seemed
to be actually in the fire. Narrowing
scenes were witnesses by those who were
assembled in sight of the burning hotel.
One unknown man sprang from a win
dow on the third floor and was dashed
to death on the sidewalk below before
the Mortified eyes of the spectators. This
terrible scene was enacted on the Sixth
avenue side Of the building. A moment
later another man leaped from win
dow on the Fortieth street side and was
mangled to death on the pavement.
Shortly afterward two women Jumped
from windows on the Sixth avenue side.
Willing hands soon grasped them up
but they were dead. Their bodies were
at once removed to the morgue. Thus
already had four lives been sacrificed.
From other windows of the doomed
structure men and women had leaped in
their mad endeayor to escape from the
flames, and so far as known none of
them were killed outright, but many
were badly bruised. The numerous
ambulance surgeons who were sum-
mOned as soon as the fire was discovered
had more than they could do to attend
70 the burned and injured people.
Saved from Most Horrible Death.
The hotel burned like tinder box.
The flames ragged fiercely but above all
could be heard the cries for help from
the unfortunates penned in the building.
Fremen and spectators helped TO rescue
the imprisoned guests and employees.
Many were taken from windows, where
they had sought refuge from the flames,
and the tiremen dared smoke and flames
TO save life. Sergeant Ward and Patrol
man Phillips went into room on the
fourth floor and took Walter H. Phelps
and his wife in safety down ladder,
Officer Phillips succeeded in saving Mrs.
Samuel Knapp, of Chicago, who was
unable to save herself and was about to
leap from a window on the third floor.
Mr.. Frederick Uhlmann, well-known
dealer in hops, has been guest of the
hotel for years, his mother and brother
also making the hotel their abode.
Saturday his brother, Simon, with Mrs.
Dhlmann, went to their country resi-
dence at Lakewood, N. ]. Mr.. Uhl-
mann had gone to bed shortly after 1
o'clock and was sound asleep, when he
was suddenly awakened by the cry of
fire and the screams and shouts for help
of the other inmates of the hotel. He
got out OF bed and ran out into the hall.
He found the place filled with smoke
and he was forced back into his room.
Again he made the attempt and, after
falling over some distractions in the
passageway, succeeded in feeling and