The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1902-12-10
FOURTEEN PERSONS DIE BY SMOKE.
HOTEL DEATH TRAP.
Thirteen Victims In a Chicago Fire
Found suHocated In Beds After
Blaze Is Extingulshed.

Fourteen men met death by sulYo.
cation Thursday morning In fire
which occurred at 8 o'clock In the
Lincoln hotel. 176 Madison street,
Chicago. I'll. Thirteen we're stif,ed
while lying In their beds One was
taken from the building before life
was extinct, but died in the ambu-
lance on the way 70 the nearest hos.
pital. The dead are I. c. Yocum, fire
insurance agent Davenport, Ia; /;
Samuel Yocum. son of I. c. Yocum:
A. h. Coonh lawyer. Marengo. ILL.,; F.
l.. Ewing. mail clerk Marietta, o.;
B. +. Boswell. Chicago: 7. v. Slo.
cum machine dealer, Wauconda, H.. :
II. X. Woods. Lebanon. Ind; Edward
Toner, printer, Milwaukee,; F. w.
Corey. 29 years of age. railway postal
clerk, Bucyrus, o.; Ward Lowe, rail.
way postal clerk, Sochlersville. Wis. I:
NJ. NJ. Hardy. travelling salesman.
Janesvile. Wis; C. p. Cowan. collec.
tor on the Wabash railroad, st.
Louis; George II. Graves, printer.
Chicago; unidentified man, 6 feet
inches tall. weighing 165 pounds 40
years of age; thin brown hair and
mustache. The following we're In.
jured: j. s. Allison. Richland Cen
ter. Wis. cut about the hands; Ed.
ward Davenport, Chicago, injured In
ternally by jumping from fourth.
story to Roof of adjoining building,
w. G.. Thomas. Cedar Rapids. Ia,
badly cut and burned, william NJ.
Snyder, Loom City. Ia, bruised by
falling downstairs; Mrs. June Shep'
n, Alr e,sr al tag
and hands cut and bruised; Robert c.
Hamilton, Lebanon, Ind. hands cut;
Clff Ward, Battle Creek, Mich, cut
about head and hands lacerated; ;
Frederick g. Baker, Nashville, Mich.
feet burned; Irwin Westerland, Chi
cago. feet burned; Olof Oldorf. Chi
cago. hands lacerated Night Clerk
Weber discovered the smoke pouring
through the halls shortly before y
o'clock and did his best to alarm the
guests, but the smoke was so dense
and Increased In volume so rapidly
that he was able to arouse only a
small number and was then conf
PEELED to grope his way TO the street
to avoid suffocation. The guests
came pouring down the one stairway
In all stages OF undress and several
leaped from the windows of the sec-
ond-story to the sidewalk below. and
| esohped without serious INJURY. A
number OF men, turned back by the
smoke in Railways, which prevented
them from finding the stairs, swung
dcwn on the ropes placed In the front
of the building by the workmen erect
| ing the fire escape. The fremen
saved many lives by carrying people
down the ladders from the windows.
| The smoke on the inside of the build
| ing was so thick and so pungent that
the firemen were unable to do more
than take the people from the win
dows. Those who were not able to
reach the windows In lew minutes
after the fire broke out were sulfo'
Gated in torture. A portion OF the
third and second floors were burned
and the blaze was extingulshed with
| In 10 minutes after the first alarm.
All the dead had rooms ON the third
and fourth floors. +. A. Smith. pro-
prletor of the hotel, said Our 40
rooms we're all filled and should
Judge that we had about 125 to $50
guests. Chief Musham. Of the fire
department, said that In some ways
II was the worst fire that he had
ever attended The building was
one of the worst flretraps | have ever
seen. The coroner's jury. after view
ing the ruins, adjourned until De-
cember IL.