The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1911-05-27
Damage Estimated at Three
Millions, Many of the At
fractions at the Park Com
pletely Destroyed.
WILD ANIMALS WERE
CRAZED WITH FEAR
Many of Brutes in Bostock
Arena Had to Be Shot by
Keepers-Old Lion Caused
Great Alarm.
(National News Association


New York, May 27.-After doing an
estimated damage of $3,000,000 a fire
which started at three o'clock this
morning at Coney Island Amusement
Resort was brounght under control
at six o'clock. The Dreamland park
Trip to the Clouds, the ioop-the-loop,
incubator baby show, Bostocks animal
shom. Thompson's scenic railway and
many smaller amusements were de.
stroyed. All the incubator babies
were rescued. Six thousand persons
were thrown out of employment by
the blaze. The season opened last
Saturday. Several animals from Bos-
tock's escaped, including the giant
lion Sultan" who created panic
among the late visitors before he was
finally cornered and shot to death.
I Starting at 2:2O o'clock in the
Dreamland Park, the fire spread
quickly. famed by a wind which swept
In from the ocean. At $3.50 the fire
had burned through the west wall OF
the park and spread to adjoining
buildings. In quick succession the
flames ate into the Trip to the Clouds.
loop-the-loop, the Incubator Baby
Show, Bostock's Animal Show, Thomp-
sons Scenic Railway and many small
amusement places. small restaurants
and saloons.
Spectacular Work.
The fight against the fire in Dream.
land provided many opportunities for
spectacular work. Time and time
again. while the animals were still
held in their cages in the Bostock
aren't firemen dragged In lines of hose
to pour water on the building. They
had no idea of saving 1t. That was
manifestly impossible, but they felt
that this might give the bowling ter
ror.stricken beasts inside a chance for
their lives.
In this way most of the smaller and
less dangerous animals were driven
into small travelling cages or roped
bar rooms. hotels and even private
houses back of the imperilled dis
trict. With the lions and tigers. how.
ever. the task was more difficult.
Captain Jack v. Bonavita, a one
armed trainer, tried to save young
lion which was his particular pet.
Armed with staff he went into this
lions cage and drove it out toward a
smaller cage. When the lion also
caught fire 1t became enraged. Bona
vita remained with it until his own
life was endangered and then consent
ed to its being shot.
Work With Animals.
Half dozen policemen and as
many trainers had in the interval been
killing two big tigers and six other
lions. These beasts died in their cages
without great struggles. The eighth,
champion beast called Sultan" es-
capped. When Bonavita opened the
door of the cage to get ont himself.
the lion leaped into the center of the
arena and then dashed out into the
street into the center of the vast
crowd. When the lion, panic stricken
as he was from fright. crossed the
sidewalk on run, the crowds were
thrown into panic.
sultan galloped on, roaring for al
most two blocks and jumped up an in
cline at the Rocky Road to Dublin"
almost two blocks from where he
started, and then crawled into the
tower. Three policemen of the Coney
Island station with revoivers splitting
lead followed him. They crawled as
near as they could in safety and then
began pouring volleys of bullets into
the beast. Sultan" made no move
to attack them and was badly wound
ed when the policemen had emptied
their guns. Then one of them got a
Are axe and drove the sharp edge in
to Sultan's brain.