The Washington herald., 1911-08-28
DEEDS OF INHUMANITY
SHOWN AT CANONSBURG
Man Whose Cry of Fire" Caused Panic Not Yet
FOund-Bodes Piled on Stairs Block Egress.

into flames. the audience of 1000 persons
rushed like a herd of cattle before a
prairie fire for the stair leading to the
first floor.
One little girl screamed and tugged al
one of the doors leading to the fire
escapes. II would not yield. She took
her chance with the panicky throngs In
the stairway and lost her life.
The appalling loss of life was due ir
no small part to the clumsincss of ar
unidentified foreign man. who. in his
eagerness to get down the stairs
tripped and fell. His arms and legs
whirled like fails. upset the balance OF
a dozen or more panic-stricken fugi-
tives. who overturned others. In a Sec
ond the route had become mere mass
Of tangled humanity. falling down the
stairs and piling into a heap at the
bottom.
Prostrate Trampled Upon.
The innocent were trampled like rub
bish under the feet OF maddened, fight
ing. desperate men, who in their excite
ment forgot all sense Of manhood.
One hour before the tragedy Sydney
Rittinger had laughingly slipped an en-
gagement ring on the finger of Miss
Lillian Fisher. To celebrate the event,
Rittinger took his fiancee and three of
her little brothers to the film show.
When the panic came he gathered the
little children about him, fighting only
to save them and the young woman.
Survivors say that they clearly remem-
Der seeing a man leap in the air and
come down on the stopped head of Rit-
finger. Hours later firemen pulled him
out Of the mass of bodies. His neck
was broken. By his side lay the body OF
Miss Fisher. They were to have been
married Wednesday.
Eyewitnesses declare that the fatal
stairway was so choked with bodies that
many died under the mass while scores
stood by unable to extricate the victims
who were yet alive. Arms. legs, and
even fingers were so entwined In hope
lessly tangled mass that removal Of any
one body was an impossibility for nearly
an hour
Every dying victim, it seems. had a
death grapple on some other body. Cloth
ing was ripped to shreds and the faces
Of some victims were so terribly
scratched that at first they were un-
recognizable to dear ones who crowded
into Undertaken McNary's morgue.
Plan Early Inquest.
Deputy Coroner McNary declared to-
night that there will be an early in
quest and that It will not merely be
a matter Of fixing the blame" as Is
usual in such cases. Every effort will
be put forth to find the man who started
the terrible rush for the stairways that
soon became choked with dead bodies.
In statement issued to-day, Manager
Ferguson, of the film show, said:
There was no fire Of any kind. The
panic started in the rear OF the house
No fuse burned out and what damage
was done to the film was quickly re-
paired. The film broke, and the light
showing through the wire-screened cur
tain gave the appearance of fire.
All those who lost their lives were
caught in the crush near the foot OF
the stairs. Had they remained in the
seats and gone out in the usual man
ner all could have gotten out through
the regular exits. including the rear
stairway and fire exits.
The building was approved by in
spectors and had every requirement de-
manded by the law. 1 will do my ut
most to aid the coroner and others in
the official investigation. I have offered
a reward Of $500 for the arrest and con-
viction OF the man who first called fire
and is responsible for the horrible dis
aster.'