Arizona republican., 1904-01-06
Chicago Has Set Its Face
 Hard Against Them
FEWER PLAYHOUSFS
Other Arrests of Persons Who May
 Have Been Responsible for the
 Great Disaster-Life Insurance Hen Demand Expression From Coroner.

Chicago, Jan. 1.-The several com mittees. composed of members of the city council appointed last night to investigate the conditions of tn elo- cal theaters and to report upon what alterations are necessary to make them conform to the building ordinances. and have submitted reparts.
 According to the statement of AIGer- man Friestent. one of the members of the committee. il is doubtful if thirty five percent of the theaters will reopen their doors. Strict adherence to the building laws would require that ev- eryone of the playhouses in the city be of fireproof construction and this would require the demolition and re- building of a majority of the thea ters.
 Alderman Jones, chairman of the committee, said tonight :"We will first revise tfa building ordinances. Alder men will visit the theateTs and decide as to the alterations that will be ne cessary to make the construction of the houses conform to the law. Or course the owners of the theaters will do nothing until they know just exact ly what the city aldermen will demand of them, but they will be obliged to re- construct their theaters to conform with the ordinances"
 Alderman Friestant declared: Some of the leading theaters in Chicago can not conform to the ordinances unless they are entirely rebuilt, and they may find it too expensive to make changes. I do not believe that over thiTty-five per cent of them will ever open again anyhow
 Late this afternoon the attorneys of the fire department caused the arrest of four employees Of the Fuller Con struction company. David Jones, a ma sorry foreman. and Angus Mckay. Ot- to Rausch and John Kingston. iron workers. The attorneys for the Fuller company took Jones, who had bean sought by the police for several days, to the fire department. It had been charged that he and h.s men broke the skylight on the theatre after the fire in order to destroy possible evidence. It developed today. after the arrest O, Jones and his men, that the sNylights were blocked by scantlings and tied with wire in order to prevent their opening, and that neither of them had been opened since the theater was built
 Mir. Jones in making his statement to the fire department said:
 "I took three iron workers with me up through the adjoining building and out upon the theater roof over the stage I first removed the wooden scantlings. which blocked the sky lights Then I found the lights tie6 with a wire inside, and broke two panes of glass to get at the wires f, unite them. I finally got the wires of and opened the lights"
 EIr. Tones was asked why he went to the roof Of the theater and he re- piled that he had been told that the north wall had cracked in the fire and he went to see if it was true. He de clared that he had loosened the sky lights because he feared they might fall through and iniure somebody or the stage.
 "Why did you take three iron work CTS with you to inspect a brick wall?' asked Attorney Fulkerson. of the fire department.
 Jones was confused. but finally an swered that the men went with hin through curiosity.
 Numerous witnesses who were 1T adjoining buildings overlooking tho theater testified that the skylight: were not open during the fire.
 Coronor Traeger said tonight that, he was almost ready for the inquest which will commence Thursday morn ing.
 "I wish it understood" he said, ''tha this is not a trial. but simply an in quiry to determine the facts of tn fire as far as we can. The coronOrt jury will not attempt to fix the blame of the fire upon anybody, nor will i recommend the punishment of any body. I will simply report on the fact as the jury has been able to gathe them and the rest of the work will bt left for the states attorney, if 1t