Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1906-12-07
SEVEN PERSONS WERE KILLED
Three Of Them Were Firemen
And Four Students in the
University.
Origin of the Fire Unknown---Chaptc
House Was Finest of It's Kind in
The Country.

Ithaca, y. y. Dee 7.-seyen persons
met tragic death this morning in The
worst disaster that ever befell Cornell
university Three Of the victims were
volunteer city hremen and four we're
students.
The flremon were all prominent in This
city. They were A. 5. Robinson attor-
ney, John Rumsey, hardware mer-
chant, and Esty Landou. a salesman.
The students were o. l.. Schmuck OF
Hanover, Pa; r. w. Grelle OF South
Orange, y. D.; W. II. Nichols OF Chl-
cngo and j. NJ McCutcheon OF Pitts
burg.
The cause of The fire Is unknown.
The money lose Is nearly 100000. The
burned building was built by Jennie
McGraw Fiskc. the benefactor OF Cor
nell whose VIII was contested by her
husband Prof. Willard Flske.
Mrs, Fiske died abroad before her
beautiful mansion was completed.
Early this morning the beauti-
ful Chi Psi fraternity house
at Cornell university caught fire
and soon was al allnme. Be-
morning the beautiful Chi Psi frater-
nifty house az Cornell university caught
fire ane soon was all afiame. Be-
fore the fire department could arrive,
o l.. Schmuck Of Hanover, Pa, had
jumped from third story window and
was so severely injured that he died
soon after being taken to the infirmary.
Three OF lthacas volunteer fremeu
We're Killed while lighting the ilames.
Three students lie in the infirmary az
the point OF death. II is not known
how many are In the ruins,
The chapter house was a mapsion
built by Mrs Jennie McGraw Fiske, Oh
the campus overlooking Cayuga lake,
but never occupied by her because OF
her premature death Ii was beau
tIful structure OF sandstone. handsome
~ decorated aud finished within With
marble and mahogany The walls,
which were Of rubble masonry. coi-
lapsed under the flames and high wind,
leaving only q heap OF ruins.
The lremen Killed were:
a, $ Robinson a lawyer and gradu-
ate OF Cornell.
Esty Landon.
John Rumsey,
They were manipulating hose on
the north side OF the building When the
wall collapsed on them and pinned them
to the ground. to slowly roast under
the burning debris.
When the fire department arrived the
screams of two lnen 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 he reachd the
tower collapsed an dthe men were bu-
ried beneath the ruins.
They are supposed to be W. W. Goetz
OF Milwaukee and II. NJ. Nichols OF
Chicago.
The chapter house burned rapidly
and the walls cracked apart In all d.
rections. The IRE was so hot that the
firemen we're driven from the southeast
side of the building.
President Schurman Of Cornell and
his STAFF are preparing a list OF wound
ed and missing.
Among those taken from the ruins
were J. NJ. McCutcheon OF Piusburg.
the football fullback substitute. Those
taken out were In pitiabe condition.
They were bleeding from cuts caused
by falling bricks and timbers and
blackened by smoke. Several OF them
were badly burned.
c. j. Pope, freshman member OF
the fraternity, is missing. and is sup
posed 10 be under the ruins.
At present st 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.
w w. Goetz Is not dead; only m.
jured.
f. w. Greile OF Orange. y. j., "a fresh
man. Is supposed 10 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 consId-
cradle Roadway before the student oc-
cupants were awakened.
As soon as the flames burned into the
basement hall and stairway the halls
throughout the house became filled
with dense smoke. In the rooms on
the upper floor were - students. IL WAS
not possible for them to escape by way
or the halls, and all went to the Win
doWs. AZ the fire approached the rear
Of the building the students were forced
to jump and several were seriously I'M
Jured in this way. No alarm was
turned In until half an hour after the
Ere had been discovered aud 1t was
half an hour later before the volunteer
IRE department could get 10 work. 1t
was a long climb from the lower part
OF the city To tho college grounds, and
By the gimc the hremCn arrived the in
terror ~ the building was almost
burned out. They coud do nothing but
prevent adjoining buildings from taxi
ms fire.
Ruinsey. I.andon and Robertson. the
Ithaca volunteer fircmeu. had man
aged 70 train hose on the north side
Of the house when the wall tottered.
There was a cry " alarm and several
men standing near managed to get out
OF the way but the three named were
caught under the mass OF debris and
killed
President Sciurman OF Cornell uni
versity. IN a statement given out this
afternoon. said.
Most OF the members OF the Chi Psi
fraternity slept in the third story OF
the burned building and all except two
managed 10 get out OF the building
alive. The two who are missing and
who 1t IL assumed have persisted IN
the flames. are W. IL. Nichols Of Chi
cago, and f. w Grelle OF South Orange
n. J. Although Mr. l.. H. Schuck. Of
Hanover. Pa. got out OF the building.
he went back for his roommate, Mr..
Nichols. and in this attempt to rescue
his cOmrade he was so seriously In
jured that he died later IN the innrm-
AIRY.
Two other students were seriously