The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-11-07

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structure to its foundations. and was
heard several squares from the capltoi.
1t occurred in q small room, tightly IN
closed by heavy stone walls. IN the SUD-
Ierranean basement Immediately below
the main entrance to the old capitol build
ing. In thi sroom was n JGJ-hght gas. me-
ter. which was fed py a four-incn main.
Very little gas IS used in that part. OF
the building. but at the time OIL tne eX-
plosion the gas had not been turned OF
at the meter The meter lIseII was wreck
ed and. the gas pouring from the main,
caught FIRE. The flames originating from
the explosion dSrted up the shaft Of the
elevator, which had been completely 0e-
stroyed BY the force Of The explosion, and
communicated with the record room OF
the supreme court, the Office Of the mar
shal OF the court and the supreme court
library. Before the flames could be sub
dued the priceless documents in the rec
ord room had been almost totally de-
stro.ed and serious damage had been
done in the marshal's ONCE and some mi
nor rooms in the immediate vicinity
LIBRARY BADLY DAMAGED.
The library of ths~supreme court, locat-
ed Immediately beneath the supreme court
room, was badly damaged by ire, smoke
and water. practically destroying the
great collection OF law reference BOOKS.
The library contains about 2J00J volumes,
and was USED not only by the justices OF
the supreme court, but by members OF
congress and lawyers pracucing before
the supreme court MI. Justice Harlan
said tonight that the library was very
valuable Many of the works it contain
ed would. he thought, be clIicult TO re-
place. Librarian CIari1e, after a cursory
examination necessarily. made by the Light
OF lanterns. expressed The opinion mat
many OF the books could be saved, al
though they had been drenched by water
from The streams poured INTO the library
for two hours or more after the eXplo-
sion occurred
The most serious damage in the opin-
ion OF the justices OF the supreme court
is TO The recor1s stored in the sub-base-
EtH r1HH saftF.fs
OF cases and opinions rendered by the
fathers OF judiciary of the government.
Apparently The oocum ents IN this room
are either totally destroyed or so badly
damaged by me ana water as 10 be use
less. Justice Harlan said that while the
loss of the records vas irreparable, ii was
fortunate that the later records OF the
court, which are kept IL the ofnce Of the
clerk, on the main moor, were not injured.
As documents Tor reference at this time
ard Ia Ter. Justice Harlan thought these
were Of far greater laIue than tbs records
destroyed. Fortuna teiy. the clerk 5 Office
was not in the least damaged by nre and
the explosion do 10 damage in it except
10 blow one window out.
MAY SAVE PRICELESS RECORDS.
Mir. James McKenney. clerk of the su-
preme court, expressed The hope after
making an examination OF the Odd room
that some a. least of the documents,
priceless, from the viewpoint Of the his
,-tor1an, coul0 b. saved. Iongnt, now
ever, owing to the INADEQUATE lighting ia
ciiiIieS ia that portion OF the building
where the explosion and ire occurred, IL
was Impossible Tor him 10 make an intel
llgent or thorough investigation of the
manage. The supreme court room was
damaged pT1ncipariy by water ana smoke,
the Itre not reaching tnat point Acloln-
1n- The court room, however. both The
marshal's ofnce and the senate barber
sE5p furnished food for the flames.
y hile many theories are offered as to
the cause Of the explosion, II seems be-
ycnd doubt TO have peen due 10 escaping
gas. AT seven minutes after ., Lieuteu-
ant Ne4SOH OF the caplLol ponce force oe-
tecteG an odor OF gas from the corridor
ADJOINING the supreme court room. Not
beng able TO locate it, he proceeded 10
StaIuar-- hall-thc old nall OF The house
OF repres eutat iVes-tAinking the gas might
be escaping from burner II that Vicln-
lIy. Mnile endeaNoring to locaJe the
escape OF tle gas Inc e2ploSlon occurred.
Only few persons principally officers OF
the capitol police. We're in the building at
the time but several of them had narrow
escapes. Before the fire department. which
responded TO an alarm sent in by a po-
lceman three squares from the capitol
had arrived. {. L. GLEN, chief electrician
OF the capitol, ana h ". Taylor, chief
engineer OF the house side, hao a stream
playing into .he supreme court record
room which by that time was u roaring
furnace. Within q few minutes after the
arrival of the ire department, the flames
We're under control although as a pre-
cauuonary measure, streams we're pour
Cd TITO the malshalS oi1ce, the library
and the subterranean basement Tor TWO
hours.
GAS BATTLES FIRENEN.
The fremen were unable, however, for a
considerable time TO eEtngulsh the fame
Of gas which shot out OF the four-inch
main in the meter room. From this main
the fire swept through an orilice in the
. basement moor caused by the explosion
and attacked the consultation room OF
Ethe supreme court Justices on the main
fl0Or some damage was done to The fur
4 niture and nltings OF this room, but 1t
1 was inConsiderah.e as compared with that
done elsewhere. 4 ne roeing room OF the
justices practically was unchanged. Ii
was evident tnat the fire cOulf NOT be ex-
unguished unlil the gas nom the main
1lished, the nrcmen turned Two streams
upon the main. choking the hoW OF gas
ana a. tae Same time cooling the pipe.
Electrician Glenn, craving me intense
heat, entered Inc meter room and cut of
the gas ~ The Nor valve OF the main.
IhrOuEhOu- the lower central portion of
a. I'D g-o,,ftof ,,-,s1,7{-.-r - "a "
and fittings IN committee rooms and Other.
apartment are DaGly damaged. just nor. h
OF the cLEp t an drcnWay amos over the
meter room was cOInpletcl} blown out,
and great masses CT masonry we're torn
from the tlCor and hurried to the ceiling
with such 1crce as TO burst the stone and
plaster OF The walls above. PoHderous
Hagstones were wrenched from their rest
ing places and throughout the corridors
the ATescolns on the ceilings and walls OF
Ire coTT4oCrs were utterly ruined. No
damage was done 10 the main foundations
OF the building, as these are of solid ma
sorry deeply imbedded, and 70 feet /
inches thick
The electric Lighting apparatus. fnclud-
ing oyn1lnuS, bOHers ana Writings was not
damaged. In order to enable the firemen
10 work without peril from live wires.
Electrician GleiEn cut off the current from
all wires except one circuit, which lighted
the lower western part OF the building.
Within 50 feet of the scene of the eYnlo-
sion a solitary incandescent ianap mark
ing the exact center OF the capitol str1lc-
ture and hanging directly over the bier in
which il was proposed to lay the remains
Of George Washington, burned brightly.
WORKS OF ART DESTROYED.
Among the losses which Will be most
sincerely regretted are those Of busts OF
\ Chief Justice Marshall and other disttn-
iG1isheo members OF the supreme court.
Switch were arranged oh small pedestals
about the supreme court chamber In
me smoke and ruin which followed the
were either badly damaged or wholly de-
country has suffered an irreparabie loss
Many of them have been treasured as ex-
hfblts in the supreme court chamber for
half q century.
The capitol building has been damaged
a number of times before by fire but h
Is believed that tonghts fire viii prove
% be the most disastrous in the histo-y
II The building. on two occasions prior
% this fires have been started by explo-
lions OF gas. Seventeen years AGO a
aroa amount of Iaraa "a mo- 7a,-, ~ = n