Durango semi-weekly herald., 1904-01-07

the theater 297 persons perished. They
We're either burned, suffocated or tram
pied to death. The actor Murdoch
was one of the victims.
The destruction of the Ring theater
AT Vienna Dec. s, 1881, remains the
greatest horror OF the kind in the his
tory OF civilization. II was preceded
on March % OF the same year by the
burning OF the Municipal thcater In
Nice, Italy caused by an explosion OF
gas. and In which between $50 and 200
people perisbed miserably. bn the mag.
nitude OF the Vienna holocaust made
the world forget Nice for the time.
The feast of the Immaculate Concep-
tion was being celebrated by the Wen
ncse, and Ofienbachs Les Contes
d d'Hofrman," an opera boufre, was the
play. The audience numbered $500.
Fire was suddenly observed in the
scenery. and Wild panic started An
iron curtain designed for just such
emergencies was forgotten. and the
flames. which might thus nave been
confined to the stage, spread furiously
through the entire building. The
scene was changed from light-hearted
revelry. with gladstone music, to one
of lurid horror. The great majority
of the spectators were burned beyond
recognition by their nearest relatives,
One hundred and fifty were so charred
that they were buried in common
grave, and the city's mourning was
shared by all the world
The next lire of this nature to Mt.
tract the worlds attention and sym
pathy was the destruction of the Cir
Gus Ferroni at Borditschem, Russian
Poland. Four hundred and thirty peo-
pie We're killed and eighty mortally
injured. Many children were crushed
and suffocaied in the Jam. and horses
and other trained animals perished by
the score. This was on Jan. 10. 1888,
and the origin OF the conflagratIon
was traced to a stableman. who smok.
ed a cigarette while lying on a heap
of straw.
The burning of the Opera Comique
in Paris, May 25. 1887, was u spec
tacular horror Here again an iron
curtain that would have protected the
audience was not lowered. The first
act of "Mignon" was on, when the
scenery was observed to be ablaze
into infernos, in which men knocked
other men and women down and
trampled them In their eagerness to
save themselves. while the flames
reached out and enveloped them all
The theater at Exeter. England,
burned Sept 6, 1887. was ignited from
gas lights. and so much smoke filled
the edifice in short time that near
200 were suffocated In their seats.
They were found sitting there after
ward. just as though they were siill
watching the play. This was j.. the
eleventh, and the Oporto fire the
twelfth Vi the big coil.iagratiUns +ol
the country One hundred and seven
ty dead were taken from the ruins OF
the Portuguese playhouse after the
flames which destroyed it on the even.
Ing Of March 81. 1883, had been sub.
dued. Many sailors and marine sol.
diers in the galleries used knives to
Kill persons standing in their way, and
scores of the victims were found with
their throats cut.
Ten years after the Opera Comlque
hre occurred the greatest of all Par
isian horrors, the destruction by flames
OF the charity bazaar. Members of the
nobility. and even royalty, were among
the victims. All of fashionable Paris
was under the roof OF Temporary
wooden ediice known to visitors to
the exposition OF 1889 as "Old Paris"
The annual bazaar In the interest OF
charity had always been one OF the
most imposing of the spring features
The wealthy and distinguished titled
ana modish were there in larger mum
bers than on any previous occasion.
The hre broke out with a sudden
ness that 30 dazed everyone that the
small chance OF escape from the lin
sy structure was made even less
Duchesses, marquises, countesses,
baronesses and grande DANES Joined
In the mad rush for the exits. The
men present are said to have acted
in particularly cowardly manner.
knocking down and trampling upon
women and children. The death list
of more than 100 included the Ouch
esses d'Alencon and De st. Didier, the
Marquise de Maison, and three bar
ons, three baronesses, one count. eley-
en- countesses. one vicount, two Wis.
countesses. one general. Ave sisters Of
charity and one mother superior.
The Gayety theater In Milwaukee
on Nov. 8, 1869. iurnisher more than
thirty victims to the fire fend, but
only two OF these were burned to
death. The Central theater in Phlla-
delphia was destroyed April 2S, 1892.
and six persons perished. A panic
occurred at the Front Street play
house in Baltimore Dec. q. 1895,
among an audience composed entirely
Of Polish Jews. There was no Are.
but Il woman who had seen bright
light on the stage thought there was.
and her cries caused stampede that
resulted in twenty-four deaths.
Statisticians show that theaters as
rule do not attain an old age, but
that their average life in all coun-
tries Is but twenty-five and three
fourths years In the United States
the average Is but eleven 10 thirteen