St. Paul daily globe., 1896-04-30
WHAT WAS LEFT OF CRIPpLH
CREEK SWEPT BY FIERCE
FLAMES.
DYNAMITE PROVED FATAL.
FOUR KILLED AND MANY WOUND.
ED BY THE USE OF Ex-
PLOSIVES.
THOUSANDS ARE NOW HOMELESS,
Property Loss of Another Million
Added to the Destruction of
Last Saturday.

GILLET, Col, April 29.-The Cripple Creek
hre has broken out afresh. 1t is now extend
ing to West Cripple Greek, and it is feared
this suburb will be entirely wiped out. The
greatest confusion prevails. Free fights are
the rule and nobody knows what will happen
before morning.
CRIPPLE CREEK, Col, April ga fire
which broke out in the Portland hotel shortly
after noon today destroyed about all that was
left of Cripple Creek, after the great con-
hagration of last Saturday. One person
was killed by explosions, and at least four
teen injured, several of them fatally. The
names today spread with great rapidity, and
aithougn strenuous efforts were made to check
tne progress OF the fire by blowing up the
buildings with dynamite they proved of no
avail The principal business buildings are
in ruins, and nothing is left of the town
proper except the railroad station and a few
scattered houses. The fire ragged fercely all
the afternoon, and only died out tonight for
lack of fuel on which to feed.
The origin of the fire appears to have been
purely accidental, though the general belief
is that 1t was tncendiary. There has been
TAX credtting Saturdays fire to such origin
and this one coming so close upon it gives
rise to suspicion. The facts appear to dis
credit the suspicion. Frank Angel, the Port
land chef, cannot be found. 1t is reported
tnat pan OF grease on the range blazed up
and caught the grease-soaked boards at the
Dack The entire side of the wall was ablaza
In an instant. Miss Kelly, one of the wait
resses, says she had gone into the kitchen
on nr1A
running up the wall and believes they came
from the outside from the Chicago cafe ad-
joining. She rushed from the kitchen tn
the office, crying "hre''
Inc nre department was powerless The
water supply held strong as long as il couJd
be used to any advantage. Dynamite was
the most powerful ally of the firemen, but
even 1t failed to check the spread of the
nre. The water reservoir was in open ground.
Many focked to it from the residence por-
tlon and the scene around was one that
Deggars description. Below, the fire was
burning over fully seventeen blocks of build
1ngs, and its swift approach, street by street
and house by house could be watched SInoke
rolled high into the heavens like a cloud of
doom' from fringe of flames that leaped
ABOVE their prey. Here and there about
the oroad open hillside families settled with
the loads they had carried from their burn
ing homes. A thousand of the distinct LITTLE
piles dotted the open ground and bv tben,
stooa guard, the homeless wives and chill
oren, while the stronger heads of the famif-
les were down somewhere in the caldron
OF fire trying to add to the pile. While the
nre burned over the territory saved from
saturdays hre, carpenters were busily en-
gagged getting up many light frame struct-
ures IN the area then burned
The heart Of the business section went I'D
IN 64t,II4
nre One million dollars seems a large
amount to ascribe to loss in a hurrfedly
pullt mining camp, but there can be no
question that today's loss will more than
reach the figures. The insurance loss Of
$l5o,O00 on Saturday must be fully $3.50, 600
today
At 9:15 this evening car of provisions was
brought in by w. S. Stratton, who turned it
over to the relief committee for distribution
tomorrow. Special trains are being run out
of camp by the railroads and are going out
loaded. Many people will find shelter in
Victor and neighboring towns tonight. Many
will go to Colorado Springs and Denver. To-
night the fire is finishing its work, and the
town is lighted by the flames from debris
not yet burned.
At 6 O'Clock Mayor Steele telegraphed Chair
man Webber, of the fire and police board Of
Denver, that fremen and policemen were
not needed. A special policeman shot and
killed an unknown man found carrying away
valuables from burning building. Mayor
Steele telegraphed Mayor Murray, of Dem
yer, follows:
Thousands homeless. Send tents. We
have plenty of blankets
There is not a building left standing IN
the business portion and only a few resi-.
dences on the outskirts remain, and thous-
ands are homeless. revised list of dead
and injured is as follows Dead, ]. Griffith.
Barrett; two others unidentified; injured, w.
H. Small. John Rice, G. Evans George e,
Youngston, George Lyden fatally; John
Kreigger, fatally; e. H. Smith, superintend-
others, names not yet learned.
The people are on the streets, walking
from ruin to ruin, discussing the catastrophe,
wondering and waiting for whatever may
happen next. City Marshal James Marshall
has sworn in about 150 special policemen, and
Company G, Second regiment. has also been
utilized. Many of the men are mounted and
the burned district is being thoroughly pa
trolled. About twenty arrests have been
made for theft and other causes, but the
police now feel confident that they will be
able to prevent further depredations by van.
dals. Stolen liquor is plentiful. Many sa-
looms were looted, and firm hand is
necessary to control the crowds.
George Griflths' head was blown nearly off,
and he died in half an hour. The others,
while seriously hurt, may all recover. Those
injured are:
George Youngstrom, Georgetown, head and
face cut. badly confused A. K. Hinkley;
George Layden, Georgetown, hands broke and
lacerated, head and face badly cut; E. q.
Bradway, Nebraska City, badly cut; C. Rags
dale, Washington, Ind, skull fractured; Fl.
B. ordway may die; Charles Mccain. actor,
bad fracture over left eye
j. w. Criger, Aspen, head and face badly
cut; T. E. Geurber, Kansas City, head badly
cut. ]. w. Lynch, Loveland. o., arm blown
off, C. Staten. Aspen, seriously bruised;
John E. Rose, druggist, arm broken; Larry
Maloney, slightly injured; E. H. Smith, SUI
perintendent water works, face injured; -
Dickinson, carpenter, slightly hurt; Willis
Walker, mining engineer. seriously injured;
Lew Cochrane, arm broken; John Evans, cut
on face and head; Chris Cofmer, fireman,
severely hurt; Capt. Tom Scwell, Denver,
leg fractured.
DENVER, Col, April 29.-T. J. Moynahan,
owner of the Portland hotel in which the fire
at Cripple Creek started. is In this city, and
makes statement, which. in the light Of
today's events, is regarded as tending to
show that the fire was Of incendiary origin.
Mr.. Moynahan stated that $4,000 insurance
was carried on one-half OF the furniture, and
that the furniture had cost but $500. Mr.
Moynahan came to Denver to have the insur-
ance Cancelled. He says that an attempt
was made to burn the hotel last Saturday.