The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1902-12-09
SOME INJURED bf JUMPING
Building Was a Fire Trap and the
Victims Were Cut Off by
the Flames.

strees met death shortly before 6
o'clock this morning in a fire which
will pass into local history as one Of
the most horrible Chicago ever had.
Death came suddenly to a few, but
with IN awful slowness to others,
who were penned in the death trap
and suffocated or burned to death.
Some died in their rooms, some chanc-
ed all in jumping and lost, while 9th
ers were found in the Railways where
they. had expired with their fingers
dug into the cracks of the floor. ,
All of the bodies were recovered as
the hotel was not destroyed. The
dead:
II. M. Wood, Lebanon, Ind.
Samuel l.. Yocum, Davenport, t.
j. c. Yocum, Davenport, la.
F. L. Ewing, Marietta, Ohio.
A. B. Coon, Marriage, ILL.,,
T. V. Slocum, Waconda, Ill.
Ward Lowe, Minneapolis.
e. W. Carey, Bucyrus, Ohio.
Ed. Toner, Milwaukee. .
B. F. Boswen, who lived at hotel.
Three of the victims still remain
unidentified.
The victims were taken to Ralston's
morgue and all day the place was
filed with anxious people interested
in the dead or seeking to assure them
selves of the safety of friends or rela-
tives.
The building was a fire-trap Of the
worst kind, according to experts.
There were but two exits, a narrow
stairway, leading down the four
floors Of the building and an uncom-
pleted fire escape in the rear.
The fire started on the second floor,
presumably from a lighted cigar drop
ped on the carpet. Guests occupying
upper rooms in the front part of the
hostelry, aroused by the scream of a
woman, were able to escape down the
stairway, and about 80 people reached
safety by means of the fire escape
To add to the horror, however, this
gave way while others were attempt
ing to escape and three men were
dashed to death on the pavement of
the alley below.
Jumped to Their Death.
For sthe people in the rear there
was now no escape save by jumping
The stairway was in flames and the
fire escape gone. Horror stricken
faces appeared at the windows and
cried frantically for help. Firemen
cried back at them to wait until nets
or mattresses could be brought and
those who did in most cases escaped
with slight injuries. But some, Graz
ed with fright, jumped to the pave
ment and were either killed Or badly
hurt.
With great difficulty the fire, al
though comparatively a small one
was subdued, but it was some time
before the rescuers could penetrate
the dense bank of smoke which filled
the place. IL Was all awful sCeHe
which met their gaze.
Overcome by Smoke.
The dead or unconscious lay stretch
ed on the floors and in some cases or
their beds. Some had attempted tt
slip on a garment before making fol
the street, but had been, overcome
but most of them were in their night
clothes.
Every store and other hotels in the
vicinity were filled with men and
women who had escaped with onl,
their night gowns.
An investigation will be made. 4
fire wall around the freight elevator
and other precautionary alteration
had been ordered some time ago, bu
the matter had been neglected.
Little damage was done to the hotel
but the smoke was so dense that thu
persons who met their death e
overcome and died before assistance
could reach them. Many jumped from
the fourth story windows, or tried tt
save themselves, only to lose thei
grasp on the cold iron bars and fal
to the street. The persons sleeping
in the real of the building or the tol
floors had no chance for their lives
A narrow stairway leading to al
floors of the structure was afire an;
the escape of the dodgers in the rea
of the building was cut off. Fsfemel
and policemen condemned the build
ing as a 'ire-trap." Ambulances an
ratrol wagons from ell parts Of tn
city were called to the place and tn
dead and injured were quickly attend
ed to. All but IA of the guests at tn
hotoJ uoro ont of town DerSOnS, Mos