The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1906-12-07
FIRE At CORNELL.
Chapter House Of the Chi Psi
Fraternity Burns.
Four Students and Three Fire.
men Are Dead.
THE LOSS is HEAVY.
1t Was the Most Elaborate
Chapter House IN U. s.
Blaze Started in Kitchen From
Unknown Cause.
THE LOSS is HEAVY.


Ithaca, n. r. Dec. 7.-Earlv. this
morning the beautiful Chi Psi fraternt-
ty house at Cornell university caught
fire and soon was all afiame. Before
the fire department could arrive O. L.
schmuck of Hanover, Pa, had jumped
from third story window and was so
severely injured that II is feared he
will die.
Three OF Ithaca's s volunteer hremen
were killed while fighting the flames.
Four students lie in the fnfrmary at
the point Of death. 1t Is not known
how many are In the ruins.
The chapter house was a mansion
built by Mrs. Jennie McGraw Fiske on
the campus overlooking Cayuga lake.
! but never. occupied by her because of
1 her premature death 1t was a beauti-
full structure of sandstone, handsomely
decorated and finished within with
marble and mahogany. The walls
which were Of rubble masonry. col
lapsed under the flames and high wind
leaving only a heap Of ruins.
The firemen Killed were
A. S. ROBINSON. a lawyer and
graduate of Cornell.
ESTY IANDON.
JOHN RUMSEY.
They We're manipulating a hose on
the north side Of the building when the
wall collapsed on them and pinned
/
der the burning debris
When the fire department arrived,
the screams of two men appearing in
the windows Of the southwest tower.
over the main entrance, were heard.
For some reason the men hesitated to
jump and before they could be reached.
the tower collapsed and the men were
buried beneath the ruins
The chapter house burned rapidly
and the walls cracked apart in all di-
rectiDns. The fire was so hot that the
ffremen We're driven from the south
east side Of the building
President SchurInan of Cornell and
his staff are preparing a list OF wound
ed and missing.
Among those taken from the ruins
were T. M. McCEtcheon OF Pittsburg
the football fulf5sck Sub. Those taken
out were in pitfspIe conditions They
were bleeding f4on evtss caused by
falling bricks and, timbers and black
ened by snl oke. Several Of them were
badly burned
G. j. Pope, a freshman member of
the fraternity, is missing and is sup
posed to be under the ruins.
AT present it is impossible to learn
from what town or city he halls. Many
students at first supposed to be miss
ing are being cared for at other fra
ternity houses.
schmuck afterward died in the in
firmary, making the list of probable
dead six including the three volunteer
firemen-
W. W. Goetz is not dead; only in
+. w. Grelle Of Orange, N. J.,
freshman, is supposed to be among the
dead.
The FIRE started at $3.50 O'Clock in the
kitchen in the basement OF the chapter
house. The flames had gained con-
siderable headway before the student
occupants were awakened. AS soon as
the flames burned into the basement
hall and stairway the halls throughout
Iax.c
smoke. In the rooms and upper floor
were 27 students. It was not possible
for them to escap pc from the halls and
they went to the windows AS the fire
the students were forced to jump and
several were seriously injured in this
way.
No alarm was turned in until half an
hour after the fire had been discovered
and 1t was half an hour later before
the volunteer fire department could get
to work. 1t was long climb from the
lower part OF the city to the college
arrived the interior of the building was
almost burned out. They could do
nothing but prevent adjoining buildings
from taking fire.
ithaca volunteer fremen, had managed
to train hose on the north side of the
house when the wall tottered. There
was a cry Of alarm and several men
SIanQ1n& near IUdItdSGQ IL SSN Jul OA
the way but the three named were
caught under the mass of debris and
killed
President Schurman of Cornell uni
versity. in a statement given out this
afternoon, said:
Most of the members of Chi Psi
fraternity slept in the third story of
the burned buildings and all except
two managed to ges out of the build
ing alive The two who are missing
and who 1t is assumed perished in the
flames are w. II. Nichols of Chicago. t
and f. w Greel of South Orange, N
y. Although Mr.. @. L. Schmuck Of
Hanover, Pa, got out of the building
he went back for his room mate, Mr-
Nichols, and in this attempt to rescue
his comrade he was so seriously in
jured that he died later in the In
hrmary.
two other students were seriously
injured. namely, ]. NJ. McCutcheon of
Pfttsburg and C. J.. Pope of East
Orange N j. Three other students
were slightly injured; they are r. r. !
Powers Of Atlanta. Ga; w. w. Goetz
of Milwaukee. and H M. Curry, jr., of
Pittsburg.
BESIDES the death and injury OF
the above mentioned three students OF |
the fire department of the city of |
South ithaca, namely, A. S. Robert |
son. John Rumsey and E. J. Landon, |
were instantly Killed by the falling OF /
the north wall Of the burning build |
ing The origin of the fire is un- |
known
To Fyavesffrafe Walsh Failure.