The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1897-05-06

| falling upon the unfortunate people
many of whom are supposed to have pre-
viously succumbed to the sitting smoke
In spite of the efforts of the fremen
some time elapsed before the charret
bodies could be pulled from the smoking
| and burning mass of debris covering thu
spot which but short time before hat
been the scene of so much gaiety. The
prerect, Nj. Lepine, was one of the frs
officials to reach the scene, and he di
rected the operations for the recovery OF
the bodies and distributed the injured
around among the various houses Of the
vicinity. In the meanwhile the pumps
played on the burning ruins. AS the
work progressed and the inquiries be-
came more numerous and pressing. il
was seen that the death rate would be
much higher than at first estimated. The
police officials this evening say they be-
lieve. it to be certain that the number OF
deaths will exceed 100, recalling the
awful fire at the Opera Comique.
Among the injured are the Duchess dc
la TOrre the Princess Kotchenbuy. the
ViscOmtesse d'Avenel and Mesdames
Moreau Dux, Browit Maleziux EgenC
Challemet, Recamier and St. Didier.
The missing, who are supposed to be
dead. include Gen. Meunier, the
Marchioness de Gallifot, the Duchess
d Alencon, the Countess de Nun, st
Pierier, the Marchioness de Flores, the
Viscountess Hunol Holstein, Baroness
Mackan. wife of the leader of the royal
lists in the chamber of deputies, and
Nine. Morlane Lamon, her son and fouI
daughters. One hundred cOrpses have
been laid out in the Palaise de fIndus
I trie. 1t is believed that another hundred
are beneath the ruins.
The building was erected in the film.
siest manner, the nudity of the scaffold
ing inside being concealed by tapestry
hangings of the most infammable mate.
rial Moreover, there was only one exit
The bazaar was in full swing. when sud
denly. about 4 o'clock, the cry of fire
rose in the quarter where the kinetoma.
graph was being exhibited One of the
survivors tells his experience:
"The place was crammed full of peo.
pie, and the heat was sitting. NV
friends and | determined to leave. but
somehow we could not NAL e much head.
way, through the throng. ! Jagged a lit.
tie behind, as l was offered a nosegay
by one of the stall holders, when of a
sudden the shout of fire was raised, and
instantly all was commotion.
I'VE tried to keep COOL but the rush
from behind forced us forward and we
were separated. When / tried to work
my way back | was carried off my feet
and carried backwards and forward in
the swaying. l lost my hat, then my
coat was torn off and then my waistcoat
All this happened in few seconds.
Immediately the full extent of the
calamity dawned upon us all. The
flames spread with startling rapidty
through the whole building, which roared
like furnace, but the uproar of the con-
tlagration could not drown the groans and
cries of the agonized crowd.
Gradually found myself pushed back
against the wall of the building and
finally succeeded in scrambling through
were near me. Two seconds later
would have been Il victim, for hardly had
| struggled through the hole before
heard dreadful crash as the blazing
roof fell in.
II can not describe the struggle for life
which ensued. No words can depict the
horror of the scene. 1t seemed, as |
look back upon it, like hideous night
mare.
'The whole thing was over in twelve
minutes and nothing remained but the
charred and blackened ruins Of the
bazaar"
The dead were piled in heaps. and
near the exit the charred remains were
five feet deep. In some cases only the
trunks remained, with no vestige of
clothing.
The firemen arrived at 6 o'clock and a
company of infantry followed to clear the
ruins and search for cOrpses. The news
spread like wild fire. All the cabinet
ministers now in Paris Immediately went
to the scene. Hundreds of equipages
streamed along the Champs d'Elysee the
occupants all anxious and with tear
stained faces, inquiring for their rela-
tives.
There were many heart-rending scenes
of grief and despair. One lady rushed
name. Some one told her the girl was
safe. whereupon she jumped. danced,
screamed, then rushed to the coachman to
tell him to drive her home, and fell in a
dead swOOn. Another lady went in
sane. A third imagined in her frenzy
that she recognized her daughters dress
and Historically called upon her husband
to tell the police to prevent the child from
going to the bazaar.
Cabinet ministers, ambassadors, noble
men and members of the high social and
financial circles were side by side with
the lowliest and the poorest, anXiously in
quiring for their missing relatives.
About thirty were saved by Pere Am
broise and Pere Baillai, who helped them
over the wall with a ladder to the print
ing room of the newspaper La Croix.
The staff of the Hotel du Palias lent
valuable assistance and saved $50 per-
sons through barred window overlook
ing the bazaar, where, while the hotel
employees were carrying away the bar,
they saw three persons burned to death.