The Indianapolis journal., 1900-10-30

uePaf ttnent Deputy Commissioners bren-
nan. OF the charities department, in which
the cfty's hospitals are included. and Super
intendent Dooner. OF the buildings depart
ment. were soon on the scene
PRIESTS ON THE SCENE.
Half an hour after the explosion the
streets for blocks around the nre was
crowded with fire apparatus. with scores
of ambulances. while hundreds of police
were being rushed from all the lower pre-
cincts of the city to form lines. and many
priests from nearby parishes were going
here and there in the smoke-obscured
thorcughfares, seeking for injured, who
might need their aid. From the burning
districts a column of smoke was rising
high in the air. mingled with flames that
could not be controlled by hundreds of
streams thrown upon them.
The second explosion carried destruction
in every direction: That it did not cause
q wholesale loss of life was due to the fact
tnat almost ten minutes warning came
after the first cry Of fire. cry that was
real warning to people who knew the char
acter or the chemicals in the burning build
ing, and fully five minutes elapsed be-
tween the first and minor explosion, which
warned every one within hearing, and the
just after the outbreak of fire from the
windows Of the building a downtown
bound train stopped at Warren-street sta
ton of the Ninth-avenue elevated road.
1t passed on in time to escape the explo-
sion, and the few people who were left
on the platform of the station are thought
to have all escaped before the great ex-
plosion came The stationmaster fed
across the structure carrying with him the
receipts OF the day and his unused tickets.
while two women, who had stopped on the
platform to watch the fire, frightened by
the first explosion. fled down the tracks,
assisted by the station porter, who took
them to the Barclay-street station in
safety.
The big explosion completely carried
away the station, and the mass of masonry
that fell with it broke through the floor
ing and almost demolished the structure
just below the building. Immense masses
or masonry. pieces of cornice, great beams.
window casings and an indescribablc
mass of wreckage of every description
tumbled suddenly into the street in front
of the building all at once. The force OF
the explosion below had thrown the fire.
| men back across the street, so that they
were not caught, but their escape from
the rain Of debris across the street was
marvellous.
CONFUSION IN A BANK
The wreckage was thrown across through
| the windows of the building in which the
Irving National Bank is on the Northeast
corner of the street. The offices of the Irv-
| ing National Bank and the Mecklem Bros.
bankers and brokers, were nearly wrecked.
President Fancher. of the Irving National
Bank. was away on business and John w.
Castree. cashier. James A. Dennison. and
Assistant Cashier Benjamin F. Werner,
| Paying Teller William Dunlay and Adjuster
Van Zeidt, were present.
| At the first explosion an attempt was
made to gather all the money and paper
| that was lying on the counters together
and to throw them into the safes, and 1T
was supposed that this had been done when
and plastering from the skylight ceilings
down about the heads of everybody and
caused them to escape in a hurry. Captain
McCluskey of the detective bureau. who
| hurried every available man of his STAFF
to the fire, was appealed to protect the
| funds OF the bank, he being told that they
were in the vault the door of which was
| supposed to be unlocked. When the captain
and his men went in, however, they found
about $4,000 scattered in confusion over
counters and floors. This was hastily
President Fancher, of the bank, arrived
within a few minutes of the start of the
/ fire and was nearly hysterical when he
| found what had happened. BY half past 2.
| however, the directors OF the bank had met
| and posted sign in the window stating
| that the bank would do business tomorrow.
Down in Mecklem Bros Offices in the
| basement there were HI. H. Mecklem, and
| his brother William, with Frank Becken-
i berry, boy, Thomas Hackett, clerk, an
/ other man named Bruce and some girls
among them Ellen Vandeen and May Dun
klernann. When the fire broke out $4,000
| In money lay upon the counter. Hecken-
1
was gathered together for putting in the
vault. The first explosion filled the place
with suphurous smoke, that nearly as
phyxiated everybody. The second explosion
| blew in the windows and cut the two Neck
lens seriously. The boy, Heckenberry.
| found the two girls lying in a heap tainted
away. He carried them out to place of
| safety. The others. when they came to
their senses, gathered the money from the
| floors, put 1T in cigar boxes and carried it
| TO Waddell &c Co.'S.
/ A orl,a tn fIa 1,,,;1I
| demolished, the BARRIERS and two customers
| that were being shaven being driven to the
| street. The other tenants of the building,
| a number of lawyers and brokers' all escaped
| injury, as did the janitor, James Rubini
| who lived on the top floor with his wife
and two children.
| STREETS COVERED WITH GLASS.
The explosion completely demolished win
| dows along Greenwich street, on both sides
| for three blocks in both directions. The
| streets were covered with fine bits Of glass.
| The force of the explosion was exerted
horizontally across the street, skylights be-
ing carried away as If by storm. and the
| castings Of doors broken away with the
| glass. The explosion did not spare the in
| teriors of stores, everything being heaped
1 up in confusion.
The explosion tore down the buildings to
| the west, the walls of those the Wash
| ington-street side being hurled outward to
| the streets as If an explosion had taken
1 place locally instead of away at the Green
4 wich-street end of the block. 1t was
| thought, indeed, that explosions had fol-
| lowed in these buildings but cause for
/ them could be found. The immense build
| ings of ]. H. Mohlmann & Co., fronting on
| Washington street, simply collapsed,
/ deluge of barrels and boxes, filled with
| fruit, rolling out, and forming a pile that
/ stretched half way across the street. At
| the time of the explosion blazing barrels
| were hurled clear across Washington street
4 and set fire to the buildings to the west,
| threatening an extensive fire in that direc-
| ton, but the fremen deluged these build
| ings and saved them.
| The first reports of the fire that went out
/ were that the Tarrant building in its fall,
/ bao crashed down upon two crowded
j restaurants and buried a hundred more
| in EACH Subsequent examination showed
| that if any persons We're caught in these
places 1T was the kitchen help and very few
| outsiders. If anybody. The patrons Of the
| Homemade" restaurant kept by a man
named Buckley, were I'm most danger, but
| witnesses say all escaped. and after the
| flames subsided a clear view could be had
into the dining room and no bodies could
| be seen, the place being untouched by fire,
| though much damaged by the collapse of
the restaurant building A man who
/ watched the fire from across the street said
| that the crowd in the restaurant was evil
IDENTIFY warned, and swarmed out after the
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