The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1894-04-13
NINE DEAD.
Firemen Lose Their Lives in a
Theater Fire.
BURIED UNDER A FALLING ROOF,
List of the Dead and Injured-Work oil
Rescuing the Bodles-One Corpse
SIN to Get Out-The Loss
and Insurance.

MILWAUKEE, April 10-Nine fire.
men are dead. six are seriously in
jured, and Milwaukee's leading theater,
the Davidson, is in ruins, the result of
a fire which mysteriously started in
the roof of the building at 400 o'clock
yesterday morning. The loss of the
building, scenery and equipments OF
the Lilliputian Co aggregates 10000,
on which there is an insurance of $751;
600, of which $40, 600 is carried by Ros-
enfield Bros, owners of the Lilliputians
Their loss will be $4,000.
Twenty firemeh were upon the roof
of the building, working under the
direction of the chiefs, and it was
thought that the blaze was under con-
troll, when the roof seemed to bulge
under their feet, and in moment
every man was pitched into the audi
forum of the theater, some falling into
the parquette and others upon the bal
comics
Deeds of heroism were numerous as
usual under such circumstances.
Michael Dunn, captain of one OF the
fire tugs, slid down rope, made 1T
fast to several of the men who were
not imprisoned by the debris, and then
climbed the rope hand over hand to the
roof of the Davidson hotel, which es-
capped destruction. The fire took new
start amid the debris, and amid the
groans and shouts of the imprisoned
firemen the work of rescue began and
was kept up until o'clock last night,
when the eighth body was taken out,
and the work abandoned until to-day.
with only one corpse to remove, that
of Third Assistant Chief Jansen, a
brother of Chief of Police Jansen.
DEAD
Third Assistant Chief August JAMS.
sen, POS Eighth street
Frank McGurk, lieutenant truck
company No. and acting captain No.
IA. 397 Park street.
Frank Kroesschmuer, pipeman chem
zeal company No. .
Capt Archie Campbell, of the fire.
boat Foley, II Twenty-seventh street
Allie Ries, company No. 3, killed by
falling ladder.
James C. Freeman, lieutenant COM
panv No 4.
Frank Whine, chemical No. 4, FOUND
in balcony of theater.
Thomas Morgan, engine company
No /.
John Farrell, chemical No. 2.
INJURED.
Charles Schunk, captain chemical No.
., compound fracture of leg and hand
and severely bruised about the head, 81
years of age
John Y. Ice, pipeman No 4, badly
burned about the head and arms, "a
years of age.
Frank Schroeder, No 5, back badly
sprained and head cut, 81 years of age.
Fred Mather, No. 5, foot crushed and
back sprained, "a years of age.
Patrick Lineham. captain No. 4, col
lar bone fractured and internally in
jured.
Lieut. Curran. No. ., internally in
jured, probably fatally.
John Crowley, No IA, single, badly
burned and crushed.
When the fire was seemingly under
control the theater roof, on which a
score or more of the fremen stood as
they fought the flames went down
and the brave men were carried with
it to the floor of the auditorium below.
Some were extricated from the furnace
of flames, in which the whole interior
was enveloped, by their more for
tunate comrades who risked their
lives to drag out the dead and injured.
Seven or eight men were soon brought
out and those who are able to speak
said there must be more in the ruins,
where living death awaited them. For
these poor fellows there was no chance.
The burning roof had fallen on them
and they were roasted to death, if they
had not been killed in the terrible
plunge from the roof
A cry of horror went up from the fire.
men who saw the awful catastrophe.
The members of the insurance patrol
were covering up the seats in the par
quette of the theater w:len suddenly a
light was seen through the roof above.
The men in the theater ran back just
in time and the next moment the roof
fell into the parquette. Several of the
men Tic NCEC w Iuc
falling timbers- The scene that fol-
lowed is never to be forgotten by those
who witnessed it For a moment all
was dark. then suddenly tremendous
sheet of flame shot up and with it came
the cries of the firemen who had fallen
through the roof to the theater below.
One man was heard to cry: MY God,
help me, am roasting to death"
The work of rescuing the bodies OF
the killed and the men who were not
killed began Immediately after the roof
fell William Crowley remained in the
ruins alive for several hours, and his
comrades put forth tremendous efforts
to save him. There was fire all around
him. and the spot where he was pinned
down was kept flooded When the fire.
men got near enough to him to speak
they were a good deal surprised to find
him conscious and able to talk. He
asked his rescuers to be careful and
not drown him with the streams.
FOREIGN NOTES.