The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-10-31

the same force that he had had all day.
but will get largely increased force to-
morrow The ruins are yet so hot tnat
but few can get at them. and the men
have TO work at outside walls and deoris
in the streets.
There has been much difficulty In get
ting contractors carts In warren ana
Greenwich streets. What space is not
used by fire engines Is nearly all taken
up with piles OF debris. and only one cart
can back in at a time, thus allowing only
one load to be removed At the WASH
ington street end more carts can be uti-
liked and the work is progressing mucn
more rapidly.
Deputy Commissioner Of Sewers Dono-
hue. with two inspectors from his depart
ment, was at the scene or the IRE to-nlsnt.
IL had been feared that the sewers would
become clogged with debris and cause the
water to form stagnant ponds around the
ruins. The inspectors examined the sew
ers and said that they were remarkably
clear from debris. and that with the ex-
ception OF few elbows which were
clogged. were all right.
One hundred and eighty patrolmen, I'M
der Captain Westervelt and inspector
Brooks. were stationed at the ruins az
6 o'clock, relieving the day force Botn
Inspector Brooks and Captain Westervet
were skeptical over the reported large loss
Of life. They both said that they ala not
expect that more than four or five bodies
would be found in the ruins Playing on
the still burning ruins with four engines
still continues.
PORTIONS OF A BODY.
At 1920 a portion of a human trunk.
probably the abdomen. was dug out ana
little later a brown canvas coat. There
was nothing in the pocket but four tooth
picks. Still later the firemen found another
portion OF skull and portion of hu-
man back. DR.. Cromer. OF the health de-
department. who examined the remains.
said they were probably all from the same
person. as were the foot and portions OF
a skull found earlier The remains were
all found in the Tarrant building.
Just before midnight workman found
black cheviot coat in the exact spot
where the human remains had been found.
In the pockets were cents and an apph-
cation for membership in the West End
Republican Club. Shortly afterward In the
same place an entirely unacceptable mass
of human flesh was found. A half of a coat
was also found at this place. The laborers
stopped work at midnight and a new gang
was started.
Chief Croker. of the fire department.
says that the work of digging out the
dead has hardly begun. He believes that
the greater number of dead will be found
on the streets where the falling walls
buried them and the fire charred their
bodies. He believed, too, that the build
ings contain more bodies than most per-
sons will admit. 1t was those In Warren
and Greenwich streets who were killed
by the falling walls, according to Chief
Cookers theory. When the crash came
and the walls fell in heap they had no
time to get to safety. when we get 70
that point in digging for the dead safd
Chief Croker. pointing to the smoking
ruins under the tottering walls of the At
lantic Cafe I'VE will find many an un-
known crushed and burned to death"
sible. Not only were the ruins smoking
to suffocation and hot, but the towering
walls of "Opens, Smith < Weimann, seven
stories high, threatening to collapse at
each breath of wind Only two of those
walls are left standing. The front and
rear walls were blown down by the ex-
passed these walls trembled. Great cracks
appeared in them that grew in width as
the day advanced 1t will be no easy mat
ter to remove these walls. Dynamite must
be employed. and the man who places the
dynamite under them must take his life
in his hands. Dynamite must also be used
in throwing down the walls of the Home
Made Hotel, in Greenwich street, next to
the Tarrant building. With long poles and
ropes workmen tried to overthrow these
walls to-day. They would push and pull,
but the walls would rock. CULVER and
tremble. only to wave back In plumb.
IN THE HOTEL RUINS.
There are bodies in the smoking ruins
of the hotel. Charles Francis Buckley, son
of the proprietor, told a story to-day that
convinces the police that the walls fell on
more than one victim. When the explosion
occurred twelve men and women. known
as the might shift were asleep on the
top floor of the hotel. There were also
many men and women who live out of the
city who were registered at the hotel. No
one in New York knows whether these
patrons escaped or not, because few, If
any, of them have relatives or friends
nf
the women were mostly Irish and German
girls who have recently come to this coun-
try. They have no frineds, no home out
side Of the hotel and there is no one to In
quire for them if they are missing. "Unless
they escaped from the hotel before the sec
ond explosion occurred they are all Dead"
said Police Captain Hogan to-day.
Far into the night, while the work of
digging continued, hundreds of men and
women and children, with anxious faces.
with cheeks tearyStained, pushed against
the police lines and begged admittance
The bureau of information established at
the Leonard-street station was nothing TO
these anxious folk. The promise made
when there was news, either good or bad
did not satisfy their grief. All through
the day and into the wet night these
anxious men, women and children stood
growing more anxious as time passed
They seemed to forget everything save
the smoking piles of bricks and mortar
which they could scarcely see, SO Tar
away was the police lines from the falling
buildings.
Just opposite the Irving National Bank
building, at Warren and Greenwich streets.
stood the dead wagon from the morgue
ready for the charred bodies. In a barber
shop were six collins, a gruesome reminder
of the work being prosecuted.
1t was the conviction to-day OF not only
Fire Chief Croker and Chief Murphy but
also of Thomas T. Main, president. and w.
G. Allen, treasurer of Tarrant & Co., that
the tremendous explosion was caused by
gases generated from chemicals by the heat
of the fire. There was one important point
of difference, however. The officers of Tar
rant e. Co. declared they did not have stock
in sufficient quantities or chemicals of any
explosive character to cause the great dam
age. Their contention Is that the fire
caused all of these varied stock of drugs to
vaporize and that the resultant gas did the
stupendous work of destruction. The fire
department officials do not believe that the
ordinary stock of drugs and chemicals of
wholesale druggist could under any condi-
ton develop explosive force capable of
hurting steel and stone seven-story build
ing into the air and crumbling up five other
big buildings.
MR.. MAINS STATEMENT.
Tarrant & Co. and NJ. ]. Brietenbach &
Co. have opened new quarters at No. So
Murray street. President Main. of Tarrant
& Co. said to-day: I'm our stock we had
no ether, or. at most. not more than few
pounds; we had no benzoine or collodion.
When we needed any Of these articles to