Year: 1877

Incidents Of the st. Louis Hotel Fire.


From the best information at hand it


seems that the fire which destroyed the


Southern Hotel in st. Louis, caught in


the store-room in the basement, and was


first seen coming through the ground


floor just north of the office, and in ten


minutes it had ascended the elevators


and rotunda and spread itself over the


sixth floor and the roof. This floor was


occupied entirely by employees of the


hotel, tho most of whom were women.


The fire spread rapidly, filling every


room and hall with flames md smoke,


and the scene was of the most terrible


description. Frantic men, women and


children ran through the halls shrieking


in the most heartrending manner in their


wild and desperate efforts to escape.


The smoke was so dense in some of the


halls that the gas jets were extinguished,


which rendered egress, even to those


most familiar with the building, n mat


ter of great difficulty. The fire depart


ment was on the spot promptly, and


hundreds congregated at the scene ready
and willing to render any MD necessary.


The density of the smoke in the halls
drove many guests and boarders back
into their rooms, and they rushed to the
windows as n means of escape. Ladders
were raised rs soon as possible, and
women and children, with nothing but
their night clothes on, were thus taken
from the burning building. Some faint
ed from fright, and others sank exhaust
cd to the ground from nervous prostra-
tion. The ladders generally were too
short to reach to the fifth and sixth
stories, but by hoisting some of them on
the one-story balcony on the east side
and the two-story balcony on the north
side of the building these floors were
reached, and all those at the windows
rescued. The fire escape was also
brought promptly into service, and was
the means of saving many lives.


While this work was going on some
frightful scenes occurred. One man,
who had been occupying window on
the Walnut street front of the hotel, be-
came desperate at the seeming delay in
effecting his escape. With nervous
hands he tore the sheets from his bed
into strips, tied them together, fastened
this improvised rope to the window sill,
and disregarding the fact that it did not
reach more than twenty feet, he let him
self down hand over hand. Men below
who saw his position turned away their
faces to avoid seeing the sickening
event that was inevitable. When he
reached the end of the rope, he for the
first time seemed to realize his position.
He stopped and threw his head back, re-
vealing shastly face, then swung slow.
ly to and fro, swayed by the breeze
which the roaring flames above created.
His limbs swung around convulsively as
though to catch upon something, then he
let 60 and groans went up from hun
dreds as he whirled round and round and
finally struck on the stone tagging with
a sickening thud. He was carried to
saloon across the street and died in few
moments. Two other men jumped from
the fourth story windows, one Of whom
seemed not to be dangerously hurt,
while the other expired almost immedi-
ately.


A woman in the fifth story on the
Fifth street front became panic stricken,
and jumped out. She alighted on her
feet, and was carried to the st. James
Hotel, still alive. Her husband, who
had been standing by her side, then tore
up the bedding and let the strips SO
made out of the window To this the
firemen attached a rope, which the man
hauled up, making it fast to the window
sill, and safely descended by it. A man
named J. d. Wilson jumped from a
fourth story window and was killed
Andrew Ensman and Mrs. Scott met
their death in the same way. DIR. Ger
lact, German consul, jumped from
window and broke leg. His wife is
unhurt Charles Teenan lost his life in
to save others. Philip Ger
aid, a boarder at the hotel, was brought
out alive, but entirely bereft Of reason.


Mr.. Felix Munster, an ex-member of
the British House of Commons, who was
married few months ago, who was re-
siding at the hotel with his wife, became
from her during the fire, and
under the impression that she was kill
ed, he became intensely excited and
evidently lost his mental balance.
About six o'clock in the morn
ing he went to the room of friend on
the corner of Fourth and Olive streets,
and shot himself. The coroner held an
inquest, but could not decide whether
his death was caused by suicide or acci-
dent. There are numerous reports re-
garding the matter, one to the effect that
he knew his wife was saved and that he
killed himself while laboring under men
tai arrangement.