The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-12-05
All Save One Stihed While
Lying in Bed,
THE HOTEL A FIRE TRAP
Rooms Sm5 and Means of Exit
lnad qlate.
sUFF0cATED BY THE SMOKE
floors So Open That Smoke Poured
into the Cramped Rooms-One
Of the Most Horr bic Catase
trophies in ,h= History
OF the mincy
City.
SUFF0CATED BY THE SMOKE
floors So Open That Smoke Poured
Dy Associated Press.)


CHICAGO, !A1~. DecenlDer -Four
tee:! men met death by sunocat:on this
morning in . ire which occurred al {
o'clock in the Lincoln Hotel. No lie
Madison Street. Thirteen Of those who
lost their lives were stihed While Iying
building before life ~as extinct, but
died III the ambulance on the way &c
the nearest hospital.
Coroner Tlaege.'. after Inspecting the
building. united with Ere CAief Mus
ham in declaring the building a verita-
be uap. ana that it should never have
been used for hoie! purposes. Cncf
Mush2la declared that thete was such
vice cracks in Tie floors tnat the snao:4e
poured through the Hptding in clouds.
rendering escape extremely c:tcu!l for
those on the upper floors
There was 10 tiIe-escape on shs front
OF me odId.Eg, although one vas in
process OF construction. The sca1o,di,g 8
was UP, ana from it DANCED several
r1pes. down waica number Of peop.e
SID TO the pavement. atter ali escape
by the stairway had been cut off.
I. c. 1ocuaI. fire Insurance. ag2nt,
pron.ii.- n n D-Ne--p~4l, Ia.
o.--4,4 L. loclAl. son OF !. c. Soc~n1,
JavcaporL, Ia. -
\. 3. coon. lawyer. Ma engo. Ii.
r L. E,.I->G, mail c.erA. N-a.ie,ta,
=. BOSWELL. Chi ago.
I. V, sAO-LA 111acn-ne eea!er, Wau-
coma, II.
Ii. k. WOODS, Lebanon, Ina
LDn.AhD loAEr, p.i--te.. A4ilwa -kae
~ r ". COREY. % years Cd. hallway
pos;a! clerk. BucyrLs. O.
MARD l-o,. Z. railway postal clerk,
Seictes vile, Wis.
N. NJ. E.R0E. travelling sa, sian.
GAINESVILLE. Wis.
G. P cowAN. co lector on the
Wabash Ra.-roaJ, ST Lo1is.
GEORGE E. GRAVES. compositor.
Chicago.
1Gs 4.punds, As vars old, thin b OIL
ha.r and nous a he.
The no e. as .oer stories in heiEt t
ard contained an unusua ~ Ia ge number
OF loor2s tol' q ba! ing OF its sic.
The fire, Chief Muska.n. Of the f. e
de. artrnent, declared shat they we.e
the smallest rooms he nad ever sc n Il
:. building Had there been fewer lar j.
tions. he sad. TIE chances for lie or
th,se sleeping on t. e upper tioo S Of tie
hotel wou have bsen greatly mctea ed.
F a. Smith, proprietor Of the hotel.
declared that the.e z wete e. as nearly as he
cou judge. without his books, aaoLt
Us people in the hotel. 1t was filed to
its utmost capacity.
ia . ze Discovered.
Night Clerk Z. C. Weber discovered
the smoke O lring through he hall Short
~ before clock, and did his best to
alarm the guests but The smoke was 20
dense and increased in volume so zap
;d.y that he was able to arouse only
ANAL number aid was then ccm, elled 10
grope his way 10 the street to avoid
sufoca ion. Tie fire IN itse.f anouI ed
TO very lite A portion OF the IL rd
and second floors were burned and the
blaze was extine3ished within fo' ~
minutes after the first alarm. AS soon
rs the smoke permitted the ii enen %
live inside the bGldinS. a careful search
was made Of all the rooms With the re-
suit thar thirteen men were found TO
have been stifled before the had been
able to leave their beds All OF the dead
had rooms on the third and fourth floors.
FIRED by Cigar Stump,
The fire started on the second floor
presumably from a lighted cigar dropped
on the carpet Guests occupying upper
toorns in the front part Of The hosiery.
aroused by the screams of q woman
were able 10 escape from the stairway,
and about thirty people reached safety
by means OF the fire escape. To ads
20 the horror. however. this gave way
while others Were attempting TO es-
cape. and three men were dashed to
death on The pavement OF the alley be-
fnW.
No Means OF Escape.
For the people SIN in The rear rooms
there was now no escape save bv ipron-
ing. The stairway was IN tIa,nes ano
the are escape gone,
l5orror-stlicLe.. faces appeared at ,he
-cindows and cried tranacally for helm
Firer,en cried back 10 them 10 wait un-
III nets or mattresses could be brough,
end those who did IN mos, cases es.
caped with slight Injuries. But some
c-azec with fright. jumped to The pave
rlent and were either killed or baa,v
nurt.
with grea; difficulty the fire, although
ccmparativeiy small one was sub6ued
but i, was some time before rescue-s
couid penetrate the dense bank Of smoke
which fr!iec the place. II was an awful
scene which met their gaze. Ths dead
o. unconscious were lying stretched on
the aoors or 81 some cases on their beds
Come had attempted to slip on gar
snent before making for the street. but
rA "a GA \ i