Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1906-01-17
West House Visited
by Flames and
Tragedy
Captain Of Fighters
Falls With Woman
and Is Killed
Guests Leap to Death
or Are Smothered
in Dense Smoke

dead from SUHOcdtlOl OF from IGdpIuS
from a "tireproof building, a score OF
people more or less injured by having
their hands cut and gashed from
smashing in windows, a magnificent
properly subjected to the ravages OF
fire, smoke and water is as epitome OF
the disaster which befell the west hotel
yesterday.
The dead.
Following is a list of the dead:
Captain John Berwin, truck No. J.
fell from the fourth floor to the Fifth
street sidewalk, while attempting to
save Mrs. Barlow's life.
". G. Nicolls, Minneapolis.
Thomas Summerville, Springfield
Mass.
J E. Wolf, northwestern agent of the
Sperry and Alexander company OF New
York.
Clinton B. Lamme, travelling man OF
New York.
J. 3. Peisniger, travelling man OF
New York, jumped from a seventh
story window.
Mrs. NJ E. Hodges Of Minneapolis,
jumped from a seventh story window
William Black of New York.
The injured.
Those who sustained the most ser
ious injuries are as follows:
Nj and Mrs. Samuel Spiesberger OF
Chicago.
Mary Rowan, maid at the hotel.
n S. Amsden, Minneapolis.
Gerdan G. Sapp, Chicago.
Ben W. Swistay. Chicago, still IN
conscious.
Mrs. D. B. Barlow, Los Angeles in
ilued by fall while being rescued by
Captain Berwin, condition critical.
T. X. Creighton, travelling man Of
New York.
John Fillmore, travelling man of New
York.
NJ. F, King, travelling man Of Detroit
Ernest Reckitt of Chicago.
Judson L. Field, Chicago, fought
through fire to the fire escape.
Alice Larson, maid in the hotel
jumped from fifth floor to adjoining
roof
TlTC iboClI llSlSiIlttSdHA'
The fire itself was insignificant, be-
ing confined to the elevator shaft and
the top floor in a corner of the build
ing, but the wild excitement which fol-
lowed the alarm hurried people into
the halls and upon window ledges in
frantic attempts to save themselves.
There was really no help for several
who lost their lives. The wood in the
elevator shaft burned like finder and a
sheet of flame 20 feet wide mounting
to the seventh story frightened the
guests out of their senses and induced
a panic which struck terror to the
stOutest hearts.
1t was the huge volume of smoke
that stampeded the guests, as the mo-
ment a door was opened the room was
filled with smoke and the panic-strick-
en- guests were compelled to beat oTt
windows to prevent instant suffocation
Many used their hands against win
dows, others their feet, in almost
every instance ugly wounds resulted.
Windows Filled With Guests.
Following the first alarm, the de-
partment was quickly on the scene AMI
the work of rescue began. Although
the hour was early, hundreds of people
thronged the streets and gazed UP at
the great hotel whose windows were
alive with guests franucally watching
the fremen Glow and yelling to them
TO hurry.
Here and there men were crouched
on the ledge)of windows, ready to leap
to the ground but were deferred by the
frantic warnings of the crowd below
Several men declared aftel wards that
they certainly would have made the
leap if the crowd had not encouraged
them to hold on.
There were innUmerable escapes by
guests in almost every part of the
building. who were partially overcome
by the smoke or who lost their way in
the confusion incident to getting out OF
the building filled with smoke.
Extent of Tragedy Not Apparent.
The full extent of the tragedy enact
ed throughout the house was not
known at first. II was thought hat
the casualties were confined to those
which the crowd witnessed from the
street.-the death of Captain Berwin
and the unfortunate man and woman
who leaped to death in the alley toward
sixth street. At the moment the de-
partment got the blaze under way and
tine smoke cleared, a search from cellar
to garnet showed a score of victims
more or less overcome by smoke.
Caught like rats in a trap. seyera
Of those now dead laid down in their
rooms to be slowly smothered and
burned to death. Others more heroic
attempted to escape down the fire es,
capeg. Two leaped from the seventh
floor Of the building to death on the
payements, and a third, Captain Ber-
win. the hero of the day, lost his life
while attempting TO save Mrs. B. D.
Barlow d. Los Angeles. California. He
was on the ladder carrying her to safe
r. from a sixth sJoI. window when he