Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1910-03-25
SCORE OF PEOPLE
BURNED TO DEATH
PeriShed in the Fire That Con-
sumed the Fish Furniture
Building, Chicago.
MANY BODIES RECOVERED.
Fircmcn said to Have Been slow in
Responding TO the Alarm
This CHIEF Denies.

Chicago March 2J.-It is said there
were p employees on the dfth and sixth
floors OF the Fish Furniture building
which was destroyed by fire today
While some Of these may have cs-
capped. Il is believed all are dead II
will be hours before the exact number
can be ascertained
Ladders were raised 10 the sixth floor.
the topmost one, In an effort 10 rescue
anyone who might be- alive
The hre is said TO have started from
an explosion Of bonzine ia the repair
rooms ON the fourth noor
John Schmidt and William Peterson.
cabinet makers, who were at work Ina
the repair room, were among those vino
escaped, slightly burned.
When great sheet of flames shot
across the floor they were knocked
down. but managed 10 crawl TO the
front stairway, whence they made their
way t. the street The IRE, they said,
was preceded by AN explosion which
shook the building.
one Of the victims is said 10 have
been man who persisted ln an en-
deavot 70 rush up the stalrWays TO the
ala OF those imprisoned above.
ESCAPE CUT OFF.
Ten women and girls. it is said. were
at work on the SIXTH floor when the
explosion occurred. The spread Of the
flames Throughout the upper floors was
was almost instantaneous ana when
the girls rushed to the stairWays they
found their escape cut on. They next
turned TO the front OF the building
smashing the windows Then suddenly
one of the girls stepped out on the
window ledge and screamed FOR help.
Then she lcapod. She fell on the avn
ing over The front entrance 20 the store
where she lay unconscious until man.
crawling out on the canopy lifted her
up.
She was taken 70 st. Luke.s hospital
only a few blocks away but died soon
afterWard.
According O. Mr Fish the FIRE start
ed when an employe went into the fin
ishing department on the fourth floor
20 get some alcohol for a cigar lighter.
The electric spark OF the lighter. ac-
cordiag TO Mr. Fish, started the fire
which quickly reached cans Of benzine
ANA explosions followed. Mr. Fish ex-
the fourth floor escaped but eould see
no hope for the p or more above.
The financial loss Is placed al 5000 600
equally divided between building and
stock.
The Fish Furniture company occu-
pied two buildings separated by an
alley, one building fronting on Wabash
avenue. where the fire occurred. and
the other on State street. which Is "a
block west Of Wabash avenue. Those
in the state street store looking across
the alley could see girls on the NTH
and sixth stories OF the burning struc-
ture rushing back and forth 10 the
windows screaming for assistance. At
times they chung 10 each other. Then
some of them disappeared with their
hair and clothing blazing
Fire Marshal Moran stated that an
Investigation as 10 the preparedness
OF the building for fire would be made
The building had but one IRE escape.
ne said, whereas IL should have had
two.
Simon Fish. another member
Of the firm, while the blaze
was at its height. made charges
OF neglect against the hremeu
IL bitter language he declared that
the firemcn were slow in responding
to the alarm and tardy In raising lad
ders He protested that firemen in
terfered with employees who were at
tempting to make rescues and declared
he would prefer charges against the
fire department.
BLAMES FIREMEN
81 believe there would have been no
loss Of life II the hremen would have
responded promptly declared Mr.
Fish
Marshal Moran declared that his
men responded without the loss Of a
second and expressed the opinion that
Mr. Fish would withdraw his charges
after he had Gained down.
Firemen poured water on the build
ing for two hours and a half before
the flames were sufficiently subdued
to make a search FOR bodies
The heat made the work Of removing
the wreckage difficult but half an
hours search resulted In the recovery
OF three bodies
Detectives were sent I'm search Of
Leo SteoCkel 20 wears old. whose
cigar lighter is said to have caused the
explosion OF the benzine. Steockel Is
said Co have watched the fire for some
time but left the scene when APP
preached by q reporter
Despite tho number Of people who
rushed to telephones. police and fire.
men agree that the alarm was slow IN
reaching the hremen After the fire
had broken out a girl ran two blocks
20 am engine house She fell among
the astonlshed FIRE fighters and could
scarcely murmur the word ere" She
could only point I'm the direction OF
the blaze 10 was their first intImation
Of the tragedy being enacted only two
blocks away
At 1880 seven bodies had been re-
covered from the wreckage with the
addition Of the name of Emma
Tichtenstein. who died in a hospital.
the number az 1880 was eight
At 1880 pm. a bodies had hoen roe
covered