The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1894-05-14

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haeae on the road TO destruction, ss no
water eoald reach the hre there. The
guests aad sosf no time in making their
escape They waited oniv to snatch IN .
few valnhles and run. Wearing apparel
ana oiner effects had to be Jeff 10 the
greedy flames. Prom the nth door of the
nease. Ms Loonts. one of the guests,
ana her newly horn babe, had TO be car.
RED down the are escape to the street. A
woman appeared at Q window on the
e'gatn door. shrieking and waving her
hands TO the horror-stricken crowd below.
sne was brought down the trs escape in
safety.
The heat Of the shower. Of sparks and
emoers made the situation Q trying one
for the fire department. and one man.
ueorse Cunningham. of engine COMPANY
10. bad to bs carried from his po.t when
the neat was most intense, bat he after
ward returned.
After the flames had licked away the
supports beneath nearly all the IRE es-
capes on the north wall OF the hotel q
large portion Of the wall itself fell
into the mass of debris with q
roar like = distant cannonads. This
was quickly followed by the fall OF
section about thirty feet In height on the
Wsverly averSae side OF the hotel. and
from that time up to 8 p. m. huge masses
OF wall continued TO fall At last accounts
two more firemen. Edward Sheridan and
John Kelly. of truck No. !. had been pros-
trated bv heat.
Tho furniture in the hotel, which cost
from $4,000 to $50, 600. il entirely de-
stFoyed, the total loss on the building and
Its contents footing up in the neighbor-
hood OF $S5o.OOa The loss tails upon the
brooklyn Hotel Company.
The loss on the Hotel Regent 10 placed at
$sco,ooo by the manager, but this will bs
largely increased by the individual losses
To the guests. The loss on the church is
not far short Of $5ooooa Russell Sage,
who has mortgage of &i25.0oo on the
church property and 10 also the owner of
the site on which it stood. Is fully insured.
He said this evening:
1T is probable the people OF BROOKLYN
will come forward with q big subscrip-
ton. The insurance will cover the rest
Ii they want TO rebuild will put no OBJ
stacic IN their way. In other words.
| will let the debt and interest stand over
for an Indefinite period. Let them rebuild
on the insurance money and " hat they can
raise IN subscriptions and in other ways.
l have sympathy for the church and its
people, and. above all. / am imbued with
the deepest affection and admiration for
pr. Talmagc. who has been my close per-
sonal friend for many years. On his &C.
count l will do eli can to help him."
The trustees of the tabernacle met this
afternoon and decided to rebuild tho
church. but not on the same site. The in
surance. receipts and tho money realized
from the sale Of the present site would en-
able them to pay of all the debts. Then.
according to the plan. they would raise
&D0,oO and within year would
begin to build. About S70,-
600. II was thought. would b
sufficient to pay for site. and less sx-
IL was decided that DR. Talmags's tour
a. arranged. He will start in
the evening for Philadelphia, and
procssd from there 10 Atlanta. After
to San Francisco and sail thence % Homo
lulu. and aftsrward to New Zealand, Aus.
tralia, India, Spain. England and other
foreign countries.
IL was impossible tonight 20 ascertain
the amount Of insurance. IL was learned.
however, there was $3.50. coo on the taber.
Globe. the Royal. the Ph0nix Of Hartford
and the Ph1nix Of Brooklyn. The resi-
dencss damaged were fully covered.
THE first Brooklyn tabernacle was built
about 1870 on Schermsrhorn stresk and
seated 1900 persons. The seats were Ar
ranged IN the form OF m amphitheater.
The building Was destroyed BY iirs In 1872,
and DIR. Taimags preached In the Academy
of Music until new sanctuary was COM
pieted ON the same site. IL was on the
same general plan a. the first Tabernacle,
but Was built Of brick and seated 3, 900 per-
sons. This edifics was occupied until about
five years ago. when II also was destroyed
by ire. IL was thought az the time that
the fire was caused by an electric storm
as the building had been newly wired for
electric lighting, and the switchbo
showed whore the fire started. Again SER
vices were held in the Academy OF Music
until . new church could be built. This
was erected on Clinton avenue. and cost
about $350,000. Il vas the largest Protes-
tant church In the country, seating 4O10
in the main auditorium and loo in the
Sunday school room, which could be
thrown into the church when desired. Il
was heavily mortgaged to Russell Sage,
who threatened nov and then to forecIose.
These threats raised great uproar. Public
subscriptions were taken up and tho
calamity averted. The last hrs will prob
ably break up the congregation. Taimage
WAS n failure in the pulpit. He drew .
big crowd. but the people were curiosity
seekers and did not put money into tho
contribution box. He Was sensational,
often bsasphemous, in the pnipit. and after
i've years leaves his church $50 900 in debt,
though he has taken no salary from the
congregation for i've years.
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