The evening world., 1894-03-31
PANIC AT THE SAVOY.
Trifing Fire Sends Guests in a
Hurry to the Street.
Col. Jay Carried from His Sick Bed
to The Office.
Handsome Ceiling Ruined by a
Flood of Water.

There was quite a panic at the Hotel
Savoy. Fifth avenue and Fifty-ninth
street, at 8 o'clock this morning. 1t was
caused by a fire which started In a
closet on the second floor.
From the main hallway on the second
floor, about the centre of the hotel build
ing. there Is a narrow. ~fireproof stairway
leading directly through the building to
the thirteenth floor. 1t is used as a
private stairway for servants. although
the original idea of 1t was to have 1t as
a means OF exit in case OF fire.
1t was just a few minutes after q
o'clock when one of the servant who
sleeps on the tenth floor, within a few
steps Of the door of the stairway, no.
ticed smoke coming through the key
hole of the door. There was a light burn
Ing near her bed. she girl had a
toothache and had been unable to sleep.
She got out Of bed and opened the door,
10 be met by a great cloud of black
smoke, which rolled up the stairway and
nearly suffocated her.
She forgot her toothache and remem-
pered the instruction which all the SER
wants had received as to the mode of
acting IN case Of fire. Picking up an axe
which Is part OF an automatic fire signal.
she broke the alarm box in her bedroom
This carried the alarm down to the
Office. and the clerk Immediately had
every alarm box in the hotel Changing like
The three hundred n twenty guests
In the hotel with the army Of servants
were not long In awaking. Screams OF
Won women M and hoarse cries Of men mingled
hotel bootblack and one Of the
names. found the, source Of the fire in
the closet. and had a hose playing on the
door while the others were running
through the halls and down the stairs to
The bootblack tried to open the closet
door, but the knob was red hot.
From almost every window of the
hotel. women shrieked out wild cries Of
siarfn. This attracted the attention Of
aiarm rom r F \ ksEftn; st Ess s sss IL ma; AZ
syenne. At almost the same moment
Policeman Curren sent in an alarm
from Frfty-eighth street and Madison
BY the time the engines and truck,
commanded by Chief Shaw, reached the
hotel the bootblack had succeeded In
getting into the burning room. while the
guest a run another hose down the
working order.
The fire was almost out, but the fire.
men GOT a III Of hose into the building
damage than the fire did. The second
story was flooded, and the water de-
stroyed the exquisitely frescoed ceiling
OF the dining-room on the first floor.
But the e~xtinguishing of the fire did
not end the alarm Of the guests. Panic
stricken, despite the efforts Of the hotel
star, headed by Proprietor Judge Henry
Dugro. they ran through the house and
collected In groups on the pavement.
John Jay. the old-time New Yorker.
who has been III in the hotel for several
weeks, was carried down from his room
and placed on a cot in the office. Gen.
the hotel. was an early riser. and es-
capped the general panic.
1t was 40 o'clock before the guests
We're fully treasured that 1t would be
safe Tor them to return to their rooms.
Hot coffee was served to them there,
but few Of them slept after that.
The y OF the fire is not known
PHI .Kapi Psi. held its annual dinner ir
the hotel, n 1t Is thought that one OF
the may have thrown q lighted
cigar on the closet floor.
The guests in the Hotel Plaza were
aroused by the general excitement ant
the changing Of the engines. Many O
them left their. rooms. but there was ne
excitement in his house.
The damage Is reported by the police
as 1900 to furniture and 500 to build
ing.
Judge Dugro. however, as he stood ir
the big dining-room. from the ceiling OF
which water dripped. said that the dam
age would be far above that. The dam,
age by fire, he thought, would not b.
more than 500. but as the frescoed cell,
ing had cost thousands Of dollars n
would, at least in part. have to be re
placed, an estimate of the damage coult
mo- be given for several days.