The Tucumcari news and Tucumcari times. [volume] (Tucumcari, N.M.) 1907-1921, 1913-12-31

were piled around the large illumi.
mated tree.
The children we're instructed to
march up the aisles to the tree 30
that the presents could be handed to
them. The aisles were filled with
boys and girls when a large-bodied
man thrust his head into the door
OF the main hallway and shouted
"Fire!"
Mlsehlef.Mak Escapes.
a woman who was neal the door
realized the import OF the act and
seized the man by the shoulders and
tried to counterfeit the alarm, but her
efforts were futile. The man wrested
himself from her grasp and ran away
and the cry of Fire" was repeated
throughout the room.
The word was shouted in several
languages as parents rose and rushed
forward to get their children. The
lives were crushed out In almost "a
twinkling. Then the physical impos.
slbility OF further movement brought
the panicky persons TO their senses
II was realized too late that there was
no fire, but most OF those In the hall
could not get out OF the jam they had
caused.
Policemen and lremen hurried to
the building to find the hall congest.
ed. Several officers climbed the fire
escapes and entered by the windows.
In n short time the u~ninjured and the
faint had been pulled from the tangle
OF human beings and placed in the
front OF the hall.
other men began to pull the bodies
Of the dead and helpless from the
stairway and lay them In n row be.
side the building. The disposition OF
the crumpled bodies was found mad.
yisable because pf the hysteria It
caused among the spectators and the
bodies were carried back into the hall
as soon as II was emptied OF brighten.
ed spectators. All the chairs we're
lined with bodies and corpses had to
be placed In the kitchen OF the hall
and beneath the stage.
Within an hour almost every per
son In Calumet was at the scene.
Police formed n Gordon about the
place and kept back the crowd. After
much effort a lane was opened
through the chowd and the bodies NJ
the children were carried through the
ranks OF mourning men and women
to Red Jacket village hall, which was
turned into a morgue. II was many
hours before all the bodies had been
identified.
For hours frantic women ran the
streets calling for their little ones
Efforts were made to calm the women
and many were taken into homes that
had not been bereaved so that they
might have proper attention.
Crowd Mostly Children.
or the 200 persons In the hall more
than three.fourths were children,
many Of them having gone without
their parents. These fathers and
mothers soon rushed to the scene and
added to the confusion. They did not
understand what had taken place and
hindered the by asking for
information as to what was the mat
ter.
There was a fire escape at the rear
OF the building, but only those who
were very near II could make any
use OF II until after the fatal rush wal
over. Probably not more than a hun.
dred persons escaped the first rush
by way OF this fire escape. About n
score more jumped from the windows
neal which they sat. AS II was not
many feet from the ground the jump
did not cause injury.
The Italian hall was built about five
years G and was well provided for
e%ergencies, II was thought. The en-.
trance was n hallway about ten feet
deep. A stairway about eight feet
wide let up from this vestibule to a
sp all landing about eight by ten feet.
The main door OF the hall opened on
this landing. There Is q small cloak
room about ten feet square to one
side OF the main door. The los OF
life was heavy at the small door OF
this room. The rush apparently
turned many against the door OF this
room and crushed them to death with.
In the doorway.