The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1895-01-03
NOTED hotel BURNED.
Tho DeIavnn House In Albany, N.
r., In Ashes

r., I'm Ashes.
Albany, N. y, Jan. 1.-The Della
van house, that famous hostelry
known from Maine to California, the
mecca Of politicians and the center OF
al big state political events for forty
years, was completely destroyed by
fire last night It was $40, and the
political headquarters OF both Mr..
Fish and Mr.. Malby, candidates for
speaker OF the assembly, We're filled
with politicians and newspaper men.
State Factory Inspector Connolly, who
had been In the lobby with a number
OF people, started to come MP the ele-
yator. He remarked that he smel]ed
smoke, and suggested an Investigation.
Before 1t could be begun there were
cries Of fire from different parts OF
the house simultaneously The out
burst OF flames before al. alarm could
De given to arouse the Inmates OF the
rooms was something appalling. Up
the elevator shaft there shot a solid
column Of flame, up the staircase near
this shot another column. AS the
mass OF Whlte-hot flame reached each
OF the five doors it branched out into
tongues of leaping destruction and it
seemed rs though the whole interior
OF the structure was seething mass.
Fortunately the guest list was not
very large and the majority of those
registered were politicians and were
down on the second floor where Mr..
Fish and Mi. Malby had Headquarters.
There was Il rush for the stairs in
the front and the servants stairs In
the back where the flames had not vet
reached, and in Il few minutes there
was q tumb]ing mass Of humanity
coming down. Those on the two upper
floors could not avail themselves or
the stairs for the flames were rushing
through corridors, and people on the
streets who had noticed the flames,
heard the crash Of glass and saw
figures come tumbling out Of the WIN
dows. Mrs. II. A. Foakcs. Of Cleve-
land and B. q. Heilnan jumped from
the windows and were fatally injured.
Several others were badly burned.
i The department with nine streams
Of water pouring into the building,
could do absolutely nothing at all to
stop the onslaught of the flames, and
the only work was to save the sur
rounding property. The hotel takes in
the entire block, about 11G by $50 feet,
and this was in fifteen minutes a
seethins cauldron only bound by the
four walls. The wires of the electric
light company were destroyed and a
section of the city was in darkness,
save for the light Of the fire. OF the
100 or more guests of the hotel not one
Is known to have saved more than the
clothes on their person.
Z The Delavan house was fifty years
old and was one Of the mast famous
hotels in the country. It is a part of
the estate of Edward G. Delavan.
Hurry & Moore, the proprietors, paid
$40, 900 a year rental, and lately had
made vast improvements in expecta-
lions of a big winter season. The to-
tai loss Is estimated at $5OO,QOO, with
an IL surance Of $500, 900.
There are rllmors that there are
bodies In the ruins and that quite a
number of people did not escape. The
clerk says that lie is positive all the
guests escaped, but does not feel so
sure about the help, Of which there
was q glEat number. There Is no way
OF fir ding out positively whether the
rumors are true or not, and it will take
q day or two to determine.