New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-03-01
SEVEN LIVES CRUSHED OUT.
A TOPPLING WALL DEMOLISHES TWO
HOUSES IN CHICAGO

RUINS. IN WHICH FIRE QUICKLY BREAKS
| oUT-THREE PERSONS REsCUED-FIX-
| ING THE BLAME FOR THE DISASTER.
| Chicago, Feb. 2s.-The lives Of seven persons
were instantly crushed ont in their sleep this
morning. At the same moment other per-
son vas fatally injured and two more were dan
| gcrously hurt heavy wind overturned the
topping walls of the recently burned drygoods
store of John York. at IIalscd and Nineteenth
SITS, and an enormous mass of brick. mortar and
| timber fell upon the two-story structures adj
joining, occupied bv the families Of fJohn schmidt
a liquor seller. and William Kunzc, a jewclnr,
| smashing the buildings. York's wall five
stories in height. and it came down with terrific
| force. revised list of the killed and injured
is follows:
| MESTERLE. George. aged two orty-eight
MoRT1NA. raulina. AGED twentvone years
| SCHMIDT Hattie. aged three yCars
| SCHMID DT John. aged forty years.
| SCHMIDT Lizzie aged eleven years.
| KUNZE. Mrs. Mary aged siNty.f,e vars.
| KUNZE. William. aged sixty.sevcn years
| INJURED
KUNzE. Fred. aged wrnty--ix years; head limbs and
body bruised VIII
| 'N'HMIDT AnnlA ac,d nine years; shouldcr.blad, ,
broken; will
SCHMIDT Mrs Carrie skull fractured and internally
injured cannot recover
The wall shaken BY the high winds last
| night. but no danger was felt until after mid
| night, when the cracking was heard by persons
| in the street. hut no alarm gi;cn. Th"
| buildings were crushed into the easements and
covered by the rubbish. The crash reused every
| one on the block: and the ruins took fire AT
| once from an upset stove, "2-ll' alarm was
turned in ten engine companies responding. y"
| hot the blaze that il was impossible for any
one TO get close enough 10 discover IN" eAt"ht oi
| the damage or do anything in the way Of rescue ::
| and the iiremcn compelled 10 throw water
| on the smoking ruins. realizing that their work
| might he ending the life Of some unfortunate
| lying half dead in the w:eckagc
| In the building No. .63 was the faully OF
William Kunzc. who keeps the lew"lry stor" on 'he
| ground floor. The family consisted OF the father
| mother and son Fred, who is associated with his
| father in the store On he ground hoor ol No.
,6l was the liquor store of John schmidt, who
with his family occupied IN" second story In
;his structure, which received the weight OF IL"
! ton Of the wall, and which now lies in heap
| in the basement lcvced with the street. the
| greatest loss Of life occurred. The family con
! sisted Of John chmidt and his wife, their three
dauehtcr> the servant. Pauline M)rtlna, ana III"
| bartender, George M"ster".
| Chief Swcnic responded 20 the first alarm oi
| fire. and the moment he arrived al the seen" u"
| turned in a second ell" calling five additional
cngines and four hook and ladders soon hc s'nf
| in "A special call for more hook and ladder com
| panicS and in fifteen minutes hfty bremen were
| hard al work the pil" Of brick from when
| flames and smoke were Issuing. Alter IN" IRE
Was undcr CONTROL the work Of rescue bc-rn. IL
was no easy work 10 get through the tons oi
wreckapc, but the iircmcn and several hundred
| rl.u
1 their Efforts.
| IL was evident that nothing less than Il miracle
could save the lives of any Of the persons IN the
| buildings An hour nara WORK ma L. apparently
| little impression on the mound OF ruins u" hI'
men were fearful OF working too clo>' 10 IA" >oU'h
| wall OF the schmidt building, which fhrntri'"
to fall with every gust Of "ind. ia" chnh'y Oh
the York building also ont of plump. SET
ccnnt Iaurnran Of the CanalpoIt-av". station,
| had in the mean time arrived with u d"laH "i
officers, and the work Of r'scuinS th"s" VINO
| had been buried was at one" begun " NM u =
was working near the centre Of III" ruln-. th'
second crash came. Iauehrdn Was ,tldck III N'
back BY a brick and thrown on Als face. ~
| he WAS struggling TO arse, another brick 7tTucN
! his right hand, crushing the thumb. oh'"'I
smith was also strucn On the back. but was not
seriously injured ~,
The first person rescued was FRED kuliLr' 'h'
| twcnty-onc-ycar-Od son OF the lcwrlicr: II" was
| pinned down by heavy door that had fallen
across HIM. II" was taken 10 liquor St"i&c near i'nr
| by and cared for, as hc coHld not stand H'"iN
| thirty feet from whrr" young hun1" was i""u'
the police heard sroans. and Tia" rnins were Up
IDLY G"area nMnS ;nEJ lving beneath % sorrion Of
| tho wall that was still held tOe"thcr witI III"
mortar This made II all the more difficult TO
| cxtricatc her aud II WAS ifrcn minutes rIorc
| Sin. WAS lifted out She viii dm
| The rcsc,. alive of lit'" Annie Schmidt was
surprising. It was alter 10 oclocK "ho, ,, ',r
| ruhh,.n near the front wall >h" had hc'il "i'I
der the ruins exposed 10 the smoke ana hear ana
| tho water thrown rs the fire engines Tor over
ill
| { little later the bodies OF :wo oi III" N"hnri' hn
girls. Lizzie and Hattie, wcr" rrcov'lc"' ~
body OF the hired srl rannh M"rn''' ,I,Smr
| - had been located two hours before. " was III
such a situation that the iircmen wrr' "ha"n , ="
| n~tric,.c H. Al . o'clock th" bodies ~ J"hh
SSIrrG' Srhmidt and Gillian Kunzc and his wife were
"rn fommd and were taken to tn" Morgnc u ,,u
| 4, 40 O'Clock the top Of th" east wall IeI'
| ;,,n ,bc street hut no WAS lnlhrrl u p"'-
| ,in nf rho fourth floor, which had been "it alt"i
thc recent fire was carried with H. ms H',' ~ .ii
ruins in such condition tha, hn., ,t. cnJ,uacr"d
Id Iodl''rc cr~c,nt Iaughran ordered the search i'f
the bodies to he abandoned. ro.c,.d i. r..
Soon after Frank knnn was ,ou or hi. cxrori-
,.ornI sufficient composurc 10 tel ol ms 'Ni Ii.
co ;" was in the bcdropln Wl'r'' iN ''''i - IT,
and mother were asleep, Oh ih' i'r'' ,n nu",' omd
said Il was awakened ny a n,nr ,nru ,ya. bowinc
uH uuHlIa,Iv I heard an awful crash, ana ,h' no"'
hcnan To- trembc. spr1ng mp IN my ", w., nut
cailcd r. nv father. but h fore ! conI' 9r' ,h "I'
I ,.I feli and the door that led from rI' "'''
room roo into the hallway was throw" a a'I",. ,., " re-
% kmcw 'hrn ,ha, Ti,r thr bmlnr Ind collapsed ! wis
N hnT down by the door and MAJ; of hIrt' nrnhr &
former was all that saved my ilr Tor nI II IuH Inrl
ibn Inll of the bricks. we were J" 'o''' "''''
Coroner MclIaIc was early on III" Srouni, anu rn
issned an order that TN" ho!'' - 'lI, ar.,c n 70
o"nI,'h o"ait ,hc action of coron"rs jnry Sni,I
sccare ~ the best jury cap nd in thG ,hS1nsh cS Ti in
.nnec,;ao,;on NV have already learned that thrrr
direct responshy ,hc G@r r9S, 'g1 pnriT mr'f" All"
pr0PoSe ,,omcpt of the coroner refers, no donnt'
o. ,hc action Of the building commissioner: MT
n,x";u o who only yesterday issued p"rnl' a. a.,
" .''ii' A. nontr,ctnrs who putting up 'i"