Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1899-03-23
Persisted BY FIRE.
A New York Hotel Burns and Many
Persons Lose Their Lives.
WOMEN LEAP FROM The WINDOWS.
Tho Wallis Collapse and Add Horror TO the
kcsne-Many Rodie. Known to 10
Under the Debria- Helen Gould
Opens Her Mansion.

New York, March :8.-Flames whicl
originated from the igniting Of a lac
curtain burst forth from the secout
floor Of the Windsor hotel, at Forty
seventh street and Fifth avenue, short
ly after three o'clock yesterday after
noon, just as the st. Patrick's day
parade was passing the building, anC
in few minutes they had leaped W
to the roof and enveloped the entire
Fifth avenue and Forty.seventh street
fronts of the hotel. Ten minutes later
the flames were roaring through the
interior of the hotel and all escape
by means Of stairways and elevators
was cut off. There was the widest
scene Of excitement within and with.
out the building. Hundreds Of guests
and employees were In the hotel when
the fire broke out and for many OF
them escape with safety was impossi-
BILE.
Probably from ten to 10 lives were
lost within half hour, and 80 or 40
persons were injured in jumping from
windows and in rushing through the
roaring flames in the corridors and on
the stairways. Many who were in
jnred died later in nearby residences
and at hospitals, and others who made
wild leaps to the stone sidewalk were
SO badly injured that they are still
lowering between life and death. 1t
may be "a hours or more before the
complete list Of fatalities becomes
known, and it will be longer than
that before 1t can be ascertained def
nitely how many charred bodies are
in the mass of fallen masonry that
marks the spot where the hotel stood.
In addition to the regular guests OF
the hotel the windows were crowded
by large number of spectators, resi-.
dents of this city, who had congre.
gated there to witness the parade.
Soon after the first alarm was given
people in the1ower floors OF the hotel,
those who had easy access to the street
and the stairway commenced to pour
out Of the building in great numbers,
but 1t very soon became apparent that
a great majority Of the occupants Of
the hotel were either panic-stricken
or unable to make their way to the
ground floor. Windows we're thrown
up on every side Of the building and
guests mostly women, in all stages Of
terror, made their appearance and
uttered frantic appeals for assistance
to the crowd below. As the flames
gathered about them they became
more and more terror-stricken and
,ome of them stood upon the
narrow window stills and beckoned to
the spectators that they we're about to
leap. The men collected upon the
sidewalk ready to render any assist.
ance they could and in the mean time
some of the women left the window
sills and dropped to the streets. In
most instance the efforts to catch them
and break their awful fall were una.
valling, for they struck the sidewalk
and in most cases broken limbs were
the result At the corner of Forty.
seventh street and Fifth avenue, d.
recty across from the hotel, Is the
home of Miss Helen Gould, and at her
direction many of the injured were
treated by physicians and nurses who
she had sent for.
In the meantime the entire building
was being enveloped in flames which
shot out from every window and
formed picture which struck terror
to all those who were witnessing 1t.
Within 40 or As minutes after the fire
FIRST broke out, the walls on the Fifth
avenue side showed every indication
Of falling, and, presently, with an
awful crash, they struck the asphalt
covering of the street in front of the
hotel and caused the hundreds of peo-
pie who were standing there to scat.
ter in every direction. This fall weak
ened the walls on the Forty-sixth and
Forty-seventh street sides and thew |,
followed moment later
The loss on the hotel is estimated at
about Sl,OOO,O0O. Several adjoining
were damaged considerably,
but the loss on these is comparatively
small.
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Striking Miners Restrained.