The herald., 1895-11-07

which Is owned by the Newberry estate,
was separated from the rest of the s,ruc-
ture by fire wall. The first floor of that
section was occupied by the John DAVIS
ties, and by the journal mailing depart
ment. Tho second, third and fourth
fours were occupied by the Davis COM
pany, W. W. Dunlap & Co.. msctinists.
and Killers book bindery. The edi-
toiral rooms of the Journal are on the
fourth floor. but situated beyond the
fire wall, and the staff escaped injury
The Journal stereotype room, on the
fifth floor was directly in the path Of the
explosion and went down jim the wreck.
A few bad miraculous escapes and came
staggering from the ruins after the awful
what had befallen them.
Arthur d. Lynch,a Journal stereo-
typer, who went down with the wreck
from the fifth floor, was pulled form the
wreck, entirely conscious. He was under
steam table preparing a matrix. When
table and could plsinly hear the rescuers
at work until they reached him.
been in Hillier's binuery, had just I,ft
the building when the crash came. He
thought there must have been twenty
gilrs and four or FIVE boys IN the building
besides George Hitler, the proprietor, OF
which nothing has been seen or heard
since the accident.
George Hackett was found in the ruins
in the rear, to which approach was had
thorugh the alley. Before he was removed
in the ambulance he reported there had
been iour or five girls on the floor with
him. Charles Herbert, packer en-
ployed by John Davis e. Co., was on the
third floor when tho explosion occurred.
81 felt the crash and was surrounded BY
flying debris before 1 could realize what
had happened. The vinegar barrels and
acid carboys came down on US. 1 do nee
the fresh air after q scram BILE among tht
ruins, and knew I had escaped There
were four others in the building that 1
know OF, Alexander Campbell. Annie
Taplsy, Kittie Leonard and Joseph Vim.
ter. I 30 not know who got out alive"
From the lists Of tenants and en-
ployees secured it seems certain that
forty people in all were in the collapsed
section. There are still twenty seven
persons unnccounted for. and it is reason
able to presume that most of them are
among the dead.
At every hour reports are received of
others who are missing AMI whose rela-
tives and friends have been una BILE to find
any trace of them.
Two of tho injured who are IN the hos
pitaI will probably recover.
OF those who are now in the ruins it is
ihPOSSicAo sbao any Will bC lCCOtcEcu
alive. Those who were not killed out
right have undoubtedly per'shed either
from suffocation or exhaustion. The only
hope is that some OF thuse reported MISS
ing ma~ be safe with friends.
The total death rate Will not be known
before tomorrow night. 1t may be even
longer before the workmen reach the
basement floors of the ill fated building
and the total number of lives lost is
known to certainty.
The work Of removing the debris and
searching for the bodies is going Oh all
night by the aid of electric lights.
Carelessness 10 undoubtedly the cause
OF the isaster, but where the RESPONSE
b:lity rests is as yet problematical.
Thomas Thomson, the engineer. was
seriously injured. He said he could
assign no reason for tho explosion.
inspected the boilers last August and had
found them up to the requirements.
Some of the employees IN the bu lding
assert that the boilers were old and
known to be unsafe.
Still others have a theory that the ex-
plosion was caused by chemicals owned
by the Davis company stored in the pase-
ment. Another circumstance is consid-
cred significant. namely that carpenters
were engaged in snoring up the floor of
the second story directly over the boilers
in order to sustain the weight of heavy
laps machine shop. The men who were
at work on this job were buried in the
ruins.
The most shocking scene attending the
holocaust was struggle between Coroner
Butler and an undertaken in the employ
OF Giest Bros, against Undertaken Frank
Gibbs. The latter chung to the stretcher
while the body was being carried out
through the crowd. AS the spectators
were becoming excited over the shoulish
scene the police, in the interest of order,
rushed Gibbs outside the fire lines and
would not permit him to return.
The property loss will be entire. It 10
not believed that the ordinary insurance
policies covert loss by explosion. The
loss on the ruined part of the building is
about $50 600. The Evening Journal loses
about $l0.0 900 by the destruction OF its
machinery, etc. The total loss of the
other tenants Is placed at som citing over
$50, 600.