River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1904-01-07
SEARCH FOR THE DEAD
Friends and Relatives of Victims
Haunt Morgues and Hospitals.
MANAGERS OF THE IR0QUOIS
THEATER PLACED UNDER ARREST
City Officials Also Taken I'm Charge
and Charged with MansIaughter
Many Other Theaters Are
Closed by the Mayor.

MANY Other TheaterS Are
Closed by the Mayor.
Chicago, Jan. 2.--The search of the
rows of charred dead at the morgues
by sorrowing friends and relatives cor
tinues. Over 400 of the $50 known dead
now have been identified Failing to
find scores of the missing in these
heaps Of bodies, the search has been
turned to the private hospitals and
homes for more dead and dying. Coro-
ner Traeger has asked all citizens to
aid him in this quest. Grief-crazed
friends and relatives of the missing
join in this appeal.
Funerals of Victims.
The saodest reminders of the Iro-
quois catastrophe Friday were the
numerous funerals which moved
through the streets in all portions of
the city. In the homes of hundreds
of victims friends gathered to console
the parents, brothers and sisters whose
relatives had been lost
Such a day of mourning Chicago has
never witnessed, and sad scenes were
enacted in the homes where funeral
services were conducted over the chill
dren,
In some homes funeral services
were held over the body of one mem
Der Of a family while another was ly-
ing in some morgue still unidentified
by tie distracted relatives. Such was
the Csc at the home of Herbert and
Agnes LANCE, 1852 Barry avenue. Both
children had attended the theater per-
Torrance, and after many hours Of
tireless searching the broken-hearted
father found the body of his daughter,
Agnes, in an undertaking establish
ment.
Then came longing on the part OF
mother and father to find the body Of
the boy, Herbert, and the search was
conducted the entire day. Mr.. Lange
met wfts no success, and finally in de-
spair he 1w~ent to tie Office of Chief OF
Police O'NeAll and begged Detectives
Woodbridge And Schubert to assist
him. He also pleaded with newspaper
men.
| He was only lone of hundreds who
spent the day searching for beloved
ones, but his appear For assistance was
so full of pathos that Intense sympa-
| thy was Immediately aroused and
every effort was made to find the miss
ing body. The absolute failure of Mr..
| LANCE to identify any OF the bodies
aroused hope in his heart that the lad
NAV still be alive and cared for in
some hospital.
| New Years day the black hearses
and the white began their slow way
through the city's streets. There are
not hearses enough to bury the dead;
TO carry the charred. distorted bodies
from the sorrow darkened homes to the
waiting graves in the cemeteries
Thirty-four teachers in the public
schools are known to have lost their
lives in the fire and the schools will be
closed Monday in their memory.
! Managers Arrested.
Will J. Davis and Harry J. Powers.
proprietors and managers OF the lro-
uuois theater, and George Williams,
city building inspector, were placed I'M
der arrest on the criminal charge or
manslaughter Warrants for the three
men. who have hitherto been unmolest-
| ed by police and coroner Investigations
of the catastrophe, were issued Friday
| night by Justice George w. Under
wood.
| other Arrests.
Eight stagemen and electricians Of the
Inflated theater have been held in bonds
Of SIS 900 each on charges of manslaugh-
fer due to criminal negligence, and -
others. actors and chorus girls of the
.Mr. Bluebeard, Jr." company are held
as witnesses for the coroner's inquest.
Thcaters Closed.
Seventeen Chicago theaters were
closed peremptorily by Mayor Har-
rison Friday night because they were
not equipped with asbestos drop cur
tains. This action following on the
heels of the Iroquois disaster, shuts one
half of the playhouses in Chicago, with
a total seating capacity of more than
20 600 persons. Violations of the build
ing ordinances received thus the only
drastic punishment ever known to come
from the city hall. The mayor was
moved to issue the order by his dispo-
sition not to take additional RESPONSE
bility for further calamities. Until they
have provided asbestos or iron curtains
for the protection of their patrons these
theaters will remain closed: Academy
of Music, Alhambra, Avenue, Bijou, Chi
cago Opera House, Clark Street muse
UNI, Columbus, Criterion, Feigenbaum's
Milwaukee Avenue Garrick, Click
mans, Howard, Sam T. Jacks, London
Musee, Marlowe, New American and
Olympic.
A Memorial Day.
Mayor Harrison in proclamation
names to-day as day of mourning
throughout Chicago for the dead in the
Iroquois theater fire. The proclama.
ton follows: "The mayor announces
that the city hall will be closed all day
Saturday on account of the calamity at
the Iroquois theater. He respectfully
requests all business houses to close
as mark of respect for the dead"
Messages of Sympathy.
Expressions of sympathy for the city
in it's sorrow reached Mayor Harrison
from all parts of the world. President
Roosevelt, Gov. Yates, Prince Henry
of Prussia, the lord mayor of London
and the mayors of several other Eu-
ropean capitals sent messages of con-
dolence; Mayor Seth Low, of New
York; Mayor Patrick Collins, of Bos-