The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-02-26

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burning building fell and his rescue half
dead from the top of the building was
a thrilling and almost miraculous, one.
Jones presence Of mind which led him to
throw his cuff into the street below and
thus make his Whereabouts known saved
n his life. After a hard rehearsal Jones
went to the Pike building about midnight
to get his valise which he had left in a
studio of an artist friend on the fourth
floor After entering he was SO tired out
he fell asleep in a chair. When he awoke
suddenly he was almost blinded and saw
outside the glare of the flames. He
crawled to the door. Outside in the great
air shaft the flames were shooting up.
Flow he made his way he does not know,
but 5instinctively found the stairway lead
ing to the top. lie went up to the roof
and in some manner got through a sky
light He fell over something and was
stunned When he recovered the flames
were shooting through the roof.
He crawled to the edge but the fire.
men in the street did not notice him. He
shouted himself hoarse He took his cuff
and wrote on it: II am on roof Nearly
dead from gas (Signed) Jones'
FIe threw it to the ground and reporter
picked it up and located the figure OF a
man standing outlined in the sparks.
Jones crept along the edge of the rear
Of the building and there waited for the
hrSmen VINO paCeu lduuSl stClOSS LIS
alley from the telephone exchange build
ing. Jones was carried down and taken
to the hospital. ... ~
Telephone Girls Brave.
The girls in the telephone exchange
building across an alley from the burn
ing Pike building. were badly frightened,
as the dark clouds of smoke rolled about
the building. The exchange rooms are
on the top floor of the six-story building,
and the night force consists of eight ex-
change girls and the night manager,
George Cappes The girls pluckilN stuck
to their posts from 1880 to $3.50 a.. M.
when the flames were blazing in their
windows. so they were ordered out Later
they returned to their calls and when
the large day force of girls came on duty
they fearlessly went to the sixth floor for
duty although the fire ragged all around
them
Pike Theater's Loss
The Pike theater building was totally
destroyed by fire in 1856 and it narrowly
escaped destruction on March SOth, 1902,
when there a Sunday matinee in
progress but no lives were lost in any of
the fires.
After the fire of last year the interior OF
the PIke was remodeled and the theater
redecorated and refurnished at an expense
of several thousand dollars. The scenery
and costumes used by the Pike stock com
Saturday night. valued at about $4,000
were stored in the opera house. Included
in this was a good portion of the expen-
sve costumes used in the presentation
of "Cinderela' during Christmas week.
The loss of the Henrietta Crossman
company which has been at the Pike this
week is over double that of the Pike
Stock company. Henrietta Crossman was
called up with other guests at the Burnet
House and witnessed the burning OF her
companys effects She went into the
crowd on the street in the night and
offered her assistance.
The Pike building belongs to the Pike
estate and Powell Crossey is the general
lessee, sub-letting it to over 200 tenants.
The building adjoining the Pike on the
west a fine siX-story structure was sup
posed TO be ireproof. but the enormous
heat from the Pike fire and falling walls
damaged it very much It is owned by
Louis Seasongood and is occupied by the
Baltimore &, Ohio Southwestern Railroad
on the first floor and by numerous tenants
In the basement and by Richter & Phil
lips, wholesale jewelers. on the second
story and others on the upper floors. The
loss Of Richter & Phillips is very large al
though there was considerable salvage as
the Seasongood building withstood the
flames for some time.
Among the losers are artists John Ward
Dunsrnore, Rena de Camp. Elizabeth c.
Eckstein and G.. A. Meurer, whose studios
were destroyed with many valuable pic-s
lures "a
Story OF the Losses. Z
e The American Book company will lose
e quarter of a million on their publishing
house and stock and machinery. The
plates of the Eclectic system of school
books are all stored in this building which
was well equipped with presses and cleo
trical appliances in publication work.
Robert Clarke & Co. place their loss at
S350,oo including $175,00O in plates of
law, books. and other works. Among the
other losses are the following:
PIKE building s475, COG: Insurance s1so,o0o;
ins $4,000; FosdicI Building 6fsC p Sal
Bros. jewelers.. $4,000; Wachter & Phillips,
Jewelers. $4,000: Miss Brothers, miiliners,,
sale cigar store. $4,000; Adams Express com
panx, $1,000; Empson's candy store, ss,ooo;
$1,000; Scenery Pike theater stock company,
s1o,ooo; a. A. l. Rich : Co.. bankers and brok.
eo Office Pike theater p eom
pany. $1,000; scenery and costumes Henretre
Of school
tricians, 5000; Charles W. Baker, attorney,
ss.ooe Wolf s Son. iron works. $4,000; Wood
row Stationery and Printing company, $4,000:
Howard saxby lost everything evrhi s'e and has
stock is $4,000; saxbys Magazine for
aiarch had just been run off and must be
seprinted Among the other losers are
Linseed Oh Co.: B. & o. S. W. Ry company;
the Cincinnati and Suburban Telephone company:
Hyatt Roller Bearing company; American Art
Publishers; Globe Supply company; Magnolia
Boiler Compound company; Charles B. Miller.
boiler dealers: the Ben Franklin company book
binders: J. 7. Booth & Co., brokers: A. d.
Clarkson. whisky brokers; Guarantee Manufac-
turing company. carriage and buggy dealers;
liam s. Merrill Chemical pany: NJ D. Burke
circular. addressing: Hosbrook & Ferris. circular
addressing; Cincinnati Adjusting Insurance and
Collecting company; Credit Mems Law and Ad-