New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1899-04-25
CAUSE OF WINDSOR FIRE.
.opoSERs JURY FINDS THAT ITS ORIGIN
WAS ACCIDENTAL.
ILLNESSES TELL HOW THE FLAMES WERE FIRST
sEEN-INcENpIARY THEORY SECUTED
FIREMEN REACHED THE BLAZE IN

spEx-INCENDIARY THEORY SECUTED
r1REMEN REACHED THE BLAZE IN
THREE MINUTES
adjourned inquest into the Windsor Hotel
ivas begun yesterday before Coroner Bausch.
~ ,s sitting in the illness OF Coroner Fitzpat-
VIZ MANY Witness were called. among them
I..ron Chief Binns. who said that although
p. srst thought the fire had originated on the
- aoor he now thought II had started in the
s-.,rsnt He stated that the fire had been burn
= Cor AT least ten minutes when he reached Il.
"sssserick s Corbett chief engineer Of the hotel,
,'.,s-ed that the fire had not originated in the
~. he first saw flames coming from the Turk
-,or on the second floor. Forty-s.xth-st side
- re building lie did not believe there was any
..u,h IN the theory Of incendarism, saying that
".n,,g Of that kind was impossible. inasmuch
- ,nsre were on duty a sufficient number OF hall
,-sneu An effort was made. he said. to put
. -. Ere by the employees before the arrival OF
" sreengines but this proved OF no avail. In re-
-, % 4 question the witness said that there was
p' ..s,ctv OF water as the tank on the roof had
.a,aei,v Of 1000 gallons of water, all Of which
=. available for fre-hghting purposes.
co-rslius 3. De La Vergne. another Windsor
,,ots guest was next called. He said he was in
- =, the parlors when the fire alarm was given
u testified that there were curtains in the pay
-snaou ~ the Turkish smoking-room. In passing
,h,s room the witness said he say the curtains
sblsze ,-,,,u.. 80,
do YOU think the fire was Of an incendiary orr
sn~' asked Corner Bausch.
.srba, was my impression and which ] main
,ned until after had talked the matter over with
M Leland" the witnes answered Il saw one
mar who had the face Of cutthroat. He was on
,he second floor and when the report was spread
that persons were being burned upstairs he Kept
asking for the room numbers ne WAS Wei uiesseu
I'D lna
David : Dudley colored. who is employed as
~ ~, Miss Helen NJ Gould. testified that when
a, 6rs saw the blaze he ran into the hotel and told
,be clerk who paid attention. Then he told
the cashier that the place was on hre, with the
sanoe result Dudley was persistent, and Kept IN
sorrnine employees until some of them got out a
hose No water from the pipe the witness
john J. Foy. the waiter who was reported as
having declared he saw man throw hghted
match into the curtains OF the Turkish parior said
he did not remember making such statement. he
said however. he saw a man smoking near the
Simeon Leland the room clerk and Tst cousin sin
dongs In the hotel up to the time m when man
with a black mustache, derby hat (dented on sioel
and rubber shoes rushed up to me clerk ana saa
was scheme to cause panic and rob the hotel
Then another man told him 70 turn In an alarm
telephone Witness rang the hotel fire signals
and heard the proprietor Mr. Leland, say: Boys
the house is on fire! For Gods sake. send some
one to get my family out''
He denied hat Mr.. Leland had any. enemies or
had received threatening letters. He also said that
Dudley did not tell him OF the fire.
After celebrating for thirty minutes. the jury
returned The following verdict: We find that Isa-
bella C. Leland. Helen NJ Leland. Mela A Pad
dock and others came TO their deaths on or about
the 18th day OF March. 1899. by confagration Of
the Windsor Hotel Fifth-aye. between Forty
sixth and Forty seventh SITS. We find that the ORR
gn OF said confa grafton due TO accidental
causes. and was not in any way due to lack of
proper and usual facilities for extingushing fires
we also find that within three minutes from the
time the alarm OF fire received In this In
stance by the Fire Department the first company
al the scene OF the fire and had water upon
the flames"