The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-06-02
The Tragedy at
The Colonial

It'was O'Clock in the afternoon of
a facilitating spring day. The crowds
that thronged the street, surging al
ways to the shady side, moved with a
lack of energy peculiar to the time of
year. Listless, perspirins, yellow of
skin, uneasy in clothes that were too
heavy by some pounds, they seemed
more like an army of invahdS out for
a prescribed constitutional, than rep
resentative men and women of one of
the foremost cities of the world. which
they were bent upon their accustomed
round of business or of pleasure. Even
the hackmen on their stands, those
eternally alert and invineible types of
the genus ''wide eye" were nOdding on
their boxes, careless of fares, appar-
emily, wishing nothing but to be let
alone in their shade by the curb.
But i'm one instant all this was
changed. 4 hOarse cry rang out on the
air Three of the seeming sleepers
tumbled from their boxes to the ground
as one man, and at the top of their
speed dashed down the street. The
crowd on the sidewalk awoke as from
a shock of electricity, paused, stared
in surprise at the bounding shapes, and
then set off after them. In front of the
Colonial hotel the lines of people, run
ming from all directions, met as the
spokes of a wheel meet in the hub,
with the hackmen in the center. bend
ing over something on the ground.
what is it2" excitedly cried hun
dred breathless runners.
"A woman fainted" answered one.
"A pickpocket!" painted another.
- NO. it's only a drunk" contributed
somebody else.
MeanwhiIa the hack drivers were ex-
amining the body of a man. which.
smashed to pulp. was huddled in a
CHASTITY heap on the flags.
Tenth story said one to the others
i'm a hushed voice; Il seen him when
he started. end over end like one o
them ere windmills.'
Hes gone" said another. Cod
Amt il awful He turned away, sick
from the horrid spectacle.
Get a doctorY' shouted somebody in
the crowd.
The hackmen Strengthened up and
looked irresolutely around. They had
10 notion what to do. Suddenly one OF
them raised his hand, standing on tip
toe. and beckoned. He had seen a pO-
liceman pushing into the jam and he
called out: This way-hi. Over here'
Now. then, clear the road cried
the strong voice of the law and. though
the road was not cleared, because il
could not be on account of the density
: of the human pressure behind, the Of
fjcer fought in to the central group
taking care not TO be too gentle about
ii. The hackmen began to explain. al
together, each relating little differ
emf story from the other, but all agree
ing i'm the essential that the man had
fallen to his death from an open win
dow on the tenth floor of the hotel, and
that they had all of them seen hin
do il.
Anybody here know him?" asked
the officer, consulting the nearest by.
ISLANDERS with his eyes. But as the
body lay face to the ground. unrecogni
Fable, nobody ventured TO claim il &C
quaintance.
well. move back, move back! Their,
is nothing to see here" the officer ex
claimed with impatience, and was be
ginning to enforce his command with {
strong arm when his eyes. raised owe
the heads of the crowd. fell on a mar
making extraordinary gestures, appar
emily to him, from window of TIT
great apartment house opposite. III
was on the tenth floor, directly acros
the street, acting like an insane per
son. working his shoulders, pushing witt
his arms against nothing, and then ex
tending both forefingers in the direc
ton of the Colonial entrance. Some il
the crowd. following the direction o
the policeman's surprised gaze, begal
TO cry out: There's another oner
nm therer' Hes crazy" And then
youth, in a burst of inspiration, hit tn
truth. Hes trying to tell US that thi