Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1900-11-07

Tarrant & Co.'S wholesale drug house,
at the northwest corner of Warren and
Greenwich streets, New York, was the
scene of an awful disaster at 1915
o'clock Monday afternoon. The entire
building was wrecked by a mysterious
explosion, or series of explosions, which
shhook the whole lower part OF New York.
Many lives are known TO have been lost.
Hundreds were hurt and many VIII die
as a result of their injuries. The wreck
ed building caught fire and the flames
spread to both sides Of the street, and the
fire department had hard 6sht 10 keep
the FIRE from spreading over an area of
several blocks.
Four times did the ominous sounds
come from the building. AT each explo-
sion debris shot out into the street, flames
roared out of every window and the fly
inr bricks and debris shattered the struc-
tu1e Of the Sixth avenue elevated, which
passes the doomed building. There were
over 200 people in the Tarrant building
at the time of the explosion, and few are
said to have escaped. Ii was said by
spectators who saw the column OF smoke,
fame arr debris rise about 800 feet in
the air tv.r the wrecked wholesale drug
house that the explosion dashed out many
human lives. Human bodies we're seen
TO fly Upward and then turn and descend
into the furnaee-like hole in the roof.
All accounts agree that the force of the
detonations, especially of the first one,
which hurled the roof Of the drug house
high in the air, was terrific enough to
warrant the assumption that some pow
erful explosive must have caused the
damage. For blocks in the Immediate
vicinity of the wrecked building could be
seen the evidences Of the force of the
drug explosions. Windows were SKATER
ed and the sidewalks Were strewn with
bits OF glass, bricks. clothing, etc.
Wall street plainly felt the shock Of
the explosions. Heavy plate-glass win
dows in that thoreughfare were shatter-
ed, people were hurled against the walls
OF buildings and the street was strewn
with debris. In the Irving National
Bank, opposite. the Tarrant Building, the
shock Of the second explosion was great
enough to throw all of the clerks and
officials to the floor. Thinking that their
own building was about TO fall, they rush
ed out in a mass. several being hurt in
the crush. Before they left, howey er,
the employees of the bank seized the
banks cash and threw it into the vault,
which was then securely locked,
Blood was spattered on the sidewalk,
and walls In the vicinity Of the fire, show
ing that many of the flying bits Of glass
had cut pedestrians. Little by little the
police succeeded in ascertaining where
the blaze was first seer 1t is said that
Genes were FIRST discovered issuing from
the windows Of the third story.
Fed By the infiammable material in the
Tarrant establishment, the fire spread
rapidly and reached TO the Irving Bank
and to the two buildings Immediately
across the street In the rear OF the
wrecked structure were several smaller
buildings. These were soon in flames. So
dense was the smoke by this time that
the fremen seemed to be unable to direct
sn intelligent attack on the fire.
With wonderful rapidity the FIRE contin-
ned to spread until the two blocks from
Chambers to Warren and from Washing
ton to Greenwich streets were ablaze and
apparently doomed to destruction.
The wrecked drug building was fonr
stories high Over 125 girls were en-
ployed in the building