The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-03-04

what piles of charred little bodies
were still visible in the doorways. In
the rear door bodies burned beyond
recognition lay piled five feet high. A
man who had reached the school chill
dren shortly after the fire broke out,
declared that the back door was lock-
ed. He attempted to break down the
door but failed to do SO. He then
smashed in the windows with the aid
of some other men and rescued a num-
Der of children by dragging them out.
The flames shot up through the central
halls with terrible rapidly.
1t is stated the children were terri
fed beyond all control and the teach
ers. although they struggled bravely to
marshal their charges out of the
building, in something like order, were
utterly helpless.
Those who were familiar with the
building and were early on the scene
believe that most of the loss of life
was due to the fact that all of the
rooms were dismissed at once. Pu-
pills pouring down the stairs made for
the doorways already full of chill
dren escaping from the lower floors.
The exits were soon choked. The
desperate ones behind pushed and
struggles for their lives, driving the
human wedges the tighter in places.
Neighbors living across the street
were the first to reach the burning
buildings and the lower halls were
already filled with flames when they
arrived. They helped out such chill
dren as they. could reach, but they
were forced to see many beyond their
aid. The doors and windows were
packed with terrified little ones,
whose panic left them helpless to es-
cape.
Down Fire Escapes.
Many children descended the fire
| escapes but feared to jump on reach
ing the bottom. They were pulled
down to make room for others. Fear
full scenes were enacted around the
burning school house. Fathers and
| mothers raved. cursed or prayed
Many tried to break through the
| crowd and some got as far as to dash
toward the flaming doorway. One big
man in overalls and jumper was re-
strained by force. Explaining in
| broken English that his kinder
were in the building, he struggled des-
| perately with the three men who held
him. Finally they threw him to the
| ground and sat on him, forcing his
| great form down in the ankle deep
| mud.
| The building was completely de-
| stroyed, only the outer brick walls re-
main standing. The floors and roof
fell into the interior early in the fire,
| making the rescue of intact bodies
absolutely hopeless. AS soon as fire
| men and volunteers could get close
enought attempts were made to pluck
| bodies from the death heaps at the
doors 1t was found that the flames
| had practically incinerated the bodies
| F'iremen with rakes forks and shoyels
turned UP blackened bones. little
blackened skulls, masses of charred
flesh, but bodies recognizable as such
were no longer to be found. A fearful
stencil added to the horror of the
| scene.
Miss Anna Moran, principal of the
school, who escaped, says that the
| door as soon as the alarm of fire was
| sounded, but We're driven back by
the choking smoke. Later the flames
! prevented the escape of many from the
burning building.
Il Up to 1 o'clock this afternoon sixtv
bodies. had been recovered from tn e
ruins. Of these 80 had been identified
The bodies of II boys and II girls
are at the morgue burned beyond
recognition.
At 1:45 o'clock this afternoon II
bodies had been removed from the
burned building, including that of Miss
Fiske, one of the teachers At the
above hour the list of missing MN
bered 10S.
Many Fatally Injured.
At 1870 25 bodies had been recover.
ed from the ruins and were taken tr
the shops of the Lake Shore & Micbi-
gan Southern Railway company. wberf
the company's physicians attended tb<
injured. Practically every ambuIanct
in the eastern part of Cleveland. was
called as we'll as every available pFysi.
clan. Many children rescued are he
lieved to be fatally injured. either by