The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1904-01-29


Chicago, Jan. 24.-Fire broke ont.
Saturday afternoon in the Masonic
temple, a 2O-story skyscraper. ons
square east of the Iroquois theater.
Owing to the fact that upwards of q
600 people occupy the Offices and stores
in the giant structure. the fire caused
much excitement.
Summoned by Automatic Alarm.
Firemen were summoned ny IN
alarm automatically sent in from the
rooms in which the fire began. The
firemcn quickly made connections Win
the stationary standpipe lin the bui d.
ing. Immediately. tons OF water odd
ed the floors where the smoke and
blaze was thickest-
The danger of the flames was in
creased by the suspected presence OF Q
quantity of chemicals which occupants
declared were stored near the place
where the flames originated.
Occupants Of the building warned by
the suffocating clouds Of smoke that
rose through the many stored rotunda
and penetrated every corridor lost no
time in making efforts for safe exit.
Guards were stationed at each cicva-
Tor inrc.nS On cyc-cr Hcc- crt re
panic stricken people were hurried
from the building.
The origin Of the fire was In an
explosion of chemicals In a Doctors
Office ON the fifth f1oor. The explosion
was sufficient notice Of danger to the
occupants or the floors 'lnmediatAiy
above and below, but was unhSard by
hundreds Of other persons in the vast
structure who received their warning
when suddenly confronted with walls
OF dense smoke.
Flames followed the explosion and
quickly spread to the floors above.
Men and women rushed wildly for the
stairs and elevators. So rapidly did
the immense skyscraper fill with
smoke that the firemen found ! al
most impossible to work within the
walls
FIRE Ragged nm Three Floors.
In short time the fire was raging
on thee floors containing many Chem
ical establishments and doctors Of
fees. Further explosions we're mo-
mensarily feared AS al the Irouuols
catas.rophe, Fire Marshal Musham
was soon personally on hand, and he
quickly warned his men Of the Can
ger.
Kept Elevators Running.
In The height of the excitement he
crowds in the street saw man clad
In a heavy overcoat step out Of the fire
ESCAPE Of the fourteenth floor and be-
gin 10 descend. Within the building
the elevator men, by running their
machines without ceasing, sought TO
still The panic Of hundreds who We're
seeking 20 escape
& sFremthe .op. tinnr down the carriers
were ;ainmrd with passengers ana
number * women tainted In the cars.
The ,rsn for the most part retained
their sersea The elevator men stuck
to their work like heroes and cnntfn-
ned 10 run their lifts until 1t was said
that every person was out Of the bnild-
ing.
Wr~ck ~ x-Ras Apparatus.
Tho Games appeared first in the
suite Ok X rriedlander & Co., mrnu-
factursrs II X-ray apparatus. on the
nth fionr. The explosion which was
the cause II the IRE occurred In SlO.-
600 wor,h 1t vacuum tubes which were
stored in he suite. Smoke poured out
OF the ROOMS which occupied the en-
tire southwest corner of the skyscrapef
facing Randolph street. directly
across the street from Marshall Field
q Co.'S huge retail store
DodginE the Debris.
Armed With axes ard picks, the fire.
men broke doors and windows. Ia the
rotunda, at TIE bottom ut the elevator
well, persons leaving rke elevators
after descending in hasrbreadth time
from the upper stories. were Obliged
to dodge heavy beams and fragments
OF stone and plaster falling In the ro-
tunda from the fifth f1ocr AZ. lsrAat-
ing jagged holes in the coxuy mosaic
pavement.
Thousands Of people on he Streets
watching the fire were thrown into q
panic by an explosion which threw a
quantity OF acid through the windows.
sending smarting fluid raining on The
crowds below. In the rush for sefe.y
an old man was thrown down an
areaway, being picked up unconscious.
out within nm Hour.
The FIRE was out within an hour. A
number of persons were injured rs a
result OF the fire. Friedlandcr, In
whose suite the fire originated. wa
found unconscious on the floor. He
was overcome by smoke and chemical
fumes. Twsive girls in his employ
made their escape at the FIRST alarm.
The injured were as follows:
julius Ernest. stock clerk for Fried
lander; hands and face burned.
John Stack, stock boy for Fried
lander: slightly burned.
Henry Buehl. stock boy for Fried
IL uder. a1fohflv burned