The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-01-24

AL duJOlHluS Dullulug dlSO
was hurt.
The dead:
Leslie Bush.
Rosa weich.
Miss Katie Milligan.
Miss Bessie Wade
Russell Hight, years old.
N. r. Presley, clerk.
Miss Mary Stiff, clerk.
Miss Eva Searcy clerk.
The last two died after being removed
from the wrecked building.
Seriously injured:
Miss Annie Curtis.
Mrs. Mort Shirley.
Mrs. Jennie Barnett.
John Thomas.
vernie Graves.
Mrs. Hugh Kister
Anna Graves Kistier.
Mrs. Belle McWillams, clerk
Miss Lydia Moreland
Miss Lula Searcy, clerk.
Miss Cassie Seay.
Mrs. Wick Graves.
The building adjoining the Cheeves
8rothers establishment was occupied
oy farm implement concern. The col
lapse OF a wall in the implement house
threw its weight against the corner
building, and with a noise that Jared
the town to its foundations both sank
into ruins.
sale of white goods was on in the
great three-story department stores,
and men, women and children thronged
its counters.
Collapse Came Suddenly
At the harsh cracking of timbers.
clerks and customers alike broke for
the streets. Pressed outward by the
weight of the heavy stock, the wall
of the implement store swayed, sagged
and burst through into the department
store and in an instant hundreds of
tons of merchandise and wrecked and
shattered building material reared into
heap of debris into the heart of the
department store, piling S5 feet in the
air. Jagged timbers stuck from the
mass.
After a moment of stunned inactiv-
tty, hundreds of rcsCuers pitched into
the ruins. Scarcely had they mounted
the heap when tongues of flames burst
through it. From all over the city
came workers and were formed into re-
lays by Mayor Finch. AS one shift be-
came exhausted another took It's place.
From the steaming ruins bricks We're
hurled aside, timbers torn out and cast
into the streets and crushed human
forms lifted from the twisted wreckage
and hurried to hospitals.
The fire was extinguished in one hour
but sometimes, the flames beat the voun-
teer fire fighters TO the victims who
prayed for their rescuers to hurry. n. r.
Presley, a clerk, was one of these In
interrupted gasps he told the firemen
that he was waiting on Leslie Bush, an
Allen, Tex, capitalist when the crash
came.
Begged to be Killed
Then Presley begged xiii me- or give
me a gun so can kill myself I'm burn
ing My right foot is burning off,"
A few minutes later when the rescuers
reached him, Presley was dead. His right
foot was burned to crisp.
As darkness fell electric lights were
strung across the ruins.
Assistance came quickly from near bv
towns and from all parts of the state
came offers of aid. In spite of the i'm
! mense crowds. the scene was almost 81
n lent. Men talked in whispers. At the
temporary morgues. only those looking
for bodies were admitted.
The whole town appeared crushed Men
who had narrow escapes from death
spoke of them briefly. There is nothing
IT, tell.v they said.
yernie Graves. the first to escape, said
he heard the wall crack. looked and saw
Il falling. moment later he remcrn-
bered he plunged into the street, filled
with clouds of dust
Mrs Mary Stiff, a clerk, who cried
piteously to be taken out, died soon after
her rescue.
vernfe Graves who escaped, leaped
TO window when he felt the building
swaying escaped with slight injuries. Ac-
cording to Graves the store, which was