Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1904-01-08

l knew, but as he saw me looking a
him, he said: wont you please
please help me; please. do?'
81 stopped to raise him if I could
but the crowd was too thick and th
rush too strong. / seized him unde
the arms and then l was knocked
over him on to my knees in the aisle
1 struggled to my feet, but tn,
weight of the crowd was such that
could not turn back and l was car
RED out through the door. Th,
little boy was unquestionably tram.
pied to death, and the memory O,
those eyes of his will haunt me while
! live"
! Miss Viola Mcdonald, of CHICAGO.
claims to be the last person to leave
the theatre alive. She was a mem.
Der OF the chorus and rushed to the
dressing room beneath, the stage to
dress. but after seizing some of her
clothing, found 1t impossible to make
her way up the stairs, which were
blocked by fame and smoke. Turn
ing around, she ran back into the
basement again and made her way to
a coal hole underneath the, front
sidewalk. Crawling on her hands
aud knees TO the hole, she managed
to thrust out her arm to attract at
tention and was drawn out by a
fireman.
HORRORS OF AFTERMATH.
One of the most thrilling escapes
at the fire was that of Miss Millie
Overlook, stepdsughter of Dr. Kel-
lam, of Saluda, Va, Young girl
who was visiting friends in Chicago.
Miss Overlock's companion, Reming-
lon Thomas, made heroic effort to
escape with her, but, sfler carrying
her to the door of the 1qoois, where
| he put her on her feef. the two
became separated, aud Thomas is
among the missing.
Ouly the roof of the building and
the inhawmable mate. isl around the
stage were destroyed. 10 both bal
COMES there were huudreds of grue-
some relics of the catastrophe scat
tered between the seats, where they
had been dropped by the terrified
victims There were score or more
OF rubber shoes, mnffs, handker-
chiefs, gloves. childreu's woolen
hoods aud miiieas. A gold trimmed
comb was found, with the inscriptiop
"From Jack to I.o;tie; Christmas.
1908" Under Que seat was found a
tiny doll, which bad evidently been
taken Ito tue theatre by little girl.
Ten bpshel-baskets Of trinkets were
gathered up.
All day long aud far into the night
haif-dazed crowds surged about the
morgues in silence, broken ouly by
the cries Of policemen shouting
"Form in lue!' "Move ou!' or the
smotbered sob of some p,litul woman
who had just found her dead among
the CHASTITY human wrecks. Chief
OK Police O'Nelil was forced to issue
orders that none should be admitted
into the morgues but those with
written permits. This caused many
hesrtaches aud heart .euding scenes.
twas hard for the police man at the
door to turn back pale, fearful
woman demanding admittauce with
out u permit.
500 to the City Hall and get a
permit" was the answer of the blue
coat. "But read her name in the
paper and it said she WAS here-my
poor girl must get her," aud the
agoniEed eyes would look with an
eagerness of dreadful gaef.
"Go to the Chief" said the police.
men, not once, but hundred times
in response to heartbreaking demands
like this.
The long lines of people stretched
more than block in each direction
waiting to be admitted in squads of
half a dozen. Here were hsggard
men who had been searching all
night long, boys hysterically self
controlled looking for their mothers,
women in black whose pale faces and
dark-circled eyes told of sleepless-
ness and suffering, and the tired
searcher carrying samples of cloth
and photographs to assist in iden tify-
ing the dead. These stood in silence,
moving slowly, step or two at q
time, as each little company was
passed into the dimly lighted cham
bers of death.
III the street scenes were calculated
to arouse sympathy the tragedies
being enacted among the bodies of
the fire victims made the outdoor
spectacle cheerful by contrast. Two
large. dimly illuminated rooms in
Ralston's basement and an empty
store next door to the undertaking
shop provided shelter for the bodies
OF nearly 200 lcharred, bruised.
maimed and almost unacceptable
human beings, who had been pulsing
with life and gayety, then terror and
desperation, few short hours before.
Side by side on the floor the
mangled remains of old and young
lay rigid, some with arlifted hands
still clntching pieces of garments
torn in the last mad struggle; some
with calm faces. peaceful as in
prayer; many fixed with horror and
black with cruel burns, and most
with right hands outstretched, as if
to ward off peril
Among the most terribly charred
bodies former Chief of Police Bade-
noch found two children of his
wife's sister, who, with another
child, were lost in the fire. He ten
derly laid the little twisted bodies in
a corner and continued his pitiful
search.
One richly dressed woman in black
stood trembling in front of . pile of
children's forms almost destitute of
clothing and awfuily burned while
her escort fingered charred bits of