The herald., 1895-12-28
A STRICKEN CROWD
Frightened by a Flaring
Gas Jet
RUSH FROM A BALTIMORE 1HEA1ER
Men, Women and Children Fall
ing Upon One Another
PACK THE EXIT THIRTY DEEP
While Hundreds Struggle Over Them to
Reach the Street
Some Die OF Bruises, Others by Suilocation
and Some Escape
An Idiots Cry of "Fire' in q Crowded Thea
ter Causes a Panic and the Death
or Injury Of 7any
People
Associated Press Special Wire.


Lena Lewis, aged %.
- Salzberg, aged II (boy).
- Wolf, aged % (man).
Leo Cohen, aged 20, 25 North Front
street.
Jennie Hensele, aged 1S, 200 Albemarle
street.
Jacob Rosenthal, aged 10, 226 South
Eden street.
Morris MALICIOUS, aged 80, tailor.
The others are at the morgue awaiting
Identification.
The injured at the city hospital are:
Mrs. friedman, aged 25, crushed.
Mrs. Goldman. aged 40, badly crushed.
Milda Goldwait, aged 10, Commissions and
shocks.
Morris >chaeffer, crushed.
Jacob Goldsein, aged 20, crushed.
Abraham Rosenthal, aged 30, crushed.
Unknown boy, aged 10, will die.
Unknown woman. aged 20, will die.
Unknown man, aged -, seriously hurt
about the body.
Unknown boy, aged l6. seriously in
Jured.
Almost all the victims are of Polish ma
sivty and Hebraic extraction, and many
OF the injured were taken to their homes
by friends, rendering it almost impossible
to get a complete list at THIS lime.
The theater, which is probably the old
est in the city, was filled from pit to dome
with people who had assembled to listen
to Hebrew opera, which had been given in
the old opera house twice week for The
past month. The ticket office receipts
show that over 27OO tickets had been sold
when, at 8 o'clock, the sale of seats was
stopped because there was no more room
Left. General admission tickets were sold.
however, after this. and it is supposed
there were at least 5000 people within the
walls when the curtain went up in the
first act. As the capacity of the house is
less than 240O the density of the crowd
NAV be IMAGINED.
Ten minutes after the curtain rose, one
of the attendants went up to the second
tier to light gas jet which appeared to
have been extinguished. AS he turned the
cock and applied match, the light fiared
up and it was seen that there was no tip on
the burner. Tue Jet was we'll down toward
the stage on the left side of the house, in
plain view of the greater part of the audi
ence, but as the glare from it showed
against the wall someone in the gallery
shouted, "Fire! Fire! Fire!" In an in
stant there was wild scramble for the
door, in which the whole audience took
part. The vanguard OF the terror-stricken
multitude reached the entrance on From
street, pushed on by the bowling, shriek-
ing mob behind them. There those in the
foremost rank were compelled to turn to
the right and to the left to reach the double
entrance way, built in the form of a storm
door. Passing through these doors, they
reached fight of steps leading from each
a broad stairway of moderate height would
have carried them into the street and to
safety. The steps leading from the door
way are but five feet high, but the landing
at their base is narrow. Down these the
frightened people hustled themselves in the
frightful struggle to reach the open air. As
the crowd reached the landing, one 10 the
right and one to the left, they met. There
was brief struggle, and then someone lost
his or her footing and fell. In moment
A.
from the rear, crowded upon the PROSTATE
forms, and began in turn to stumble, reel
and presently fall upon the floor under the
myriads of feet coming down like herd of
buffalo behind. In less time than it takes
to tell it the landing was packed twenty or
thirty deep with the panic-stricken multi
tude, and the hundreds behind them were
struggling over them to reach the street.
The tumult attracted an immense crowd
from the outside, many of whom tried to
gain entrance to the theater, thus adding
to the confusion. A dozen policemen also,
attracted by the shrieks of the frightened
crowd, hurried to the scene, and using
their clubs on those outside, pushed their
way through the door and to the writhinp
macs on the landing. Among the first to
reach them was Officer Kelly. Forcing
his way in through the main door. he
Grasped a pair OF arms, and pulling with
all his might dragged woman from under
the surging crowd. A glance at her face
showed that she was past human aid, dead
from suffocation.
Again he reached into the mass of hu
manity and pulled out a boy about 7 wears
old. He, too. was dead, from suffocation,
with scarce q bruise on his body. The
other officers, by this time reinforced bv n
dozen of their fellow officers, dragged out
the PROSTATE ones. passing them to those
on the sidewalk.
Ambulances carried the dead 10 the
morgue and the wounded to the city hos
pital.
When the masses on the landing had
been cleared the frightened mob inside
were quieted down sufficiently to enable
the police to clear the theater. Then it
was found that there had been no danger,
and not soul would have been injured
had the audience but remained in their
geats.
Nine bntiies were taken to the morglle,
all OF them dead from suffocation. OF
those taken TO the city hospital, fifteen
are dead. Two more will probably die be-
fore morning, as they are desperately hurt.