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n 0 VOL. XVII., NO. . WILMINGTON N. C. SUNDAY! JANUARY 3, 1904. PRICE 5 CENTS EVERY THEATRE IS CLOSED $100,000 FIRE FIND GUILTY WAR SEEMS ALMOST CERTAIN! , v. f k 7 Mayor Harrison Will With all the SECRET OF THE The Theatre Managers Made a Vain Effort to Secure a Postponement of the Order Which Compelled Them to Closse Up Certain Provisions Tliat Kvery Play House Must Com ply With" Before They Can Open An Estimate is Made That Over $100,000 Worth of Diamonds, Jew elry and Other Personal Property Was Ixst in the Fire. Chicago, January 2. Tonight every theatre in the city of Chicago is dark and with doors locked. Not one of them will be opened to the public un til their managers have complied in the fujlest manner with every section of the ordinances regulating play houses. The order compelling the theatres to close was issued this afternoon by Mayor Harrison after a conference with Corporation Counsel Tolman, who assured the mayor that ample legal ground existed for his action. Seventeen theatres . and museums were closed last. night and the sweep ing order of the mayor today shut the doors of sixteen more. These last are the leading theatres in the busi ness section of the city and are the .Studebaker, Grand Opera House, Bush Temple. Calumet, Cleveland, Great Northern, Hay Market,, Hopkins Peo- pie's Institute, Trocadero and Colum- , bus. McVickers. LaSalle, Garrick, Illi- nois. Poyers. The last 2 are owned and ; controlled by Messrs. Powers B. Davis, j the managers of the ill-fated Iroquois. ! The Garrick closed today is not to be j confounded with the Garrick theatre j clcfsed yesterday, it being one of the largest playhouses in the city, while the one concerning which action was taken yesterday is a much smaller af fair in the northwestern portion of the city. The seventeen places of amusement which were shut last night were closed for the one reason that they were not provided with an asbestos curtain. The further action taken to day is in consequence of violations of other sections of the ordinance regu lating theatre?. There was a hasty rush of theatri- f cal managers to the office of Mayor i Harrison in the effort to secure the withdrawal." or at least, a postpone- j ment of the order, but their recep- i tion was of an exceedingly frosty j nature. They were informed by the mayor j that the inspectors had reported in the case of every one ot the violations of the law and he was determined j that it should not be said hereafter j the city had neglected anything which could prevent a repetition of the hor ror of last Wednesday afternoon. . The fact that the asbestos curtain in the Iroquois theatre was so badly wrecked by the fire that charred, por tions of it have been carried away by various investigating committees caused the mayor to decide that as bestos curtains could not be relied upon to afford the most complete protection. It was announced that every- theatre in the city must here after comply with the following pro visions before i they will be allowed to open: - Steel roll curtains, wide exits, no combustibles of any kind in the house furnishings, fire proofed scenery, no calcium or "spot" . lights to be used on the stage, skylights above the stage provided with automatic lids to per mit the esrress of smoke, fire and gas; separate stairways each exit having j its own stairs leading to the street. j After issuing his sweeping order, I Mayor Harrison said: j "I do not wish to assume respon- j sibility for these-theatres. My order i was issued to make it certain that no J precaution to insure the safety of.au- j diences had been neglected. It is i quite probable that the owners of the j theatres may sustain serious financial j loss, but in viev of the conditions of j the play houses we cannot take any j risk, and if the law had been fully complied with in the first place there ; would have been no question of clos- ; ing them now. The Auditorium, which ' is the only theatre left open in Chica- : go. has a steel roll curtain, and this seems to be the only curtain that affords absolute protection against i fire, in view of the fact that the Iro-j quois curtain was destroyed. I have j determined as far as possible to see ; that the other play houses are sim- ! ilarlv provided." J It is a noteworthy fact that Build- ; ing Commissioner Williams who is: now charged with manslaughter, in j connection with the greatest fire hor- ; ror the country has ever experienced, ; owes his appointment to a tragedy of ; similar nature, but of much less ex- j tent, which occurred two years ago. j Mr. Williams predecessor vacated his office after the burning -of the St. Luke's sanitarium at 20th street and Wabash avenue. This was the insti- ; tution in which a score of men suf fering from delirium tremens were Require Compliance Ordinances FIRE DISCOVERED r burned to death while strapped to their beds. Mr. Williams was selected with the idea, that he was the proper man to see that , no such catastrophe -could happen again. Fire Inspector Monroe Fulkerson tonight announced that he had finally discovered the secret of the fire. The asbestos curtain upon which the safety of the audience depended was, according to Mr. Fulkerson, blocked in its descent by 'a stgel reflector, carelessly left open by a stage hand. While one end of the curtain got within five feet of the stage, the other was suspended twenty leet above it, and beneath it swept the flood of flame that carried death to so many hundreds. The first step toward a definite con clusion as to the cause of the fire was made when William McCullen, operator of the "spot" light threw the blame upon another electric light nearby. The task was completed when Mr. Fulkerson followed up a Clue furnished by John A. Mazzoni, a stage hand, and discovered the deadly reflector still open in the ruins of the theatre. The wire used in the aeriel ballet, mentioned as a possible cause of the curtains failure to reach the stage, was proven to have been out of the way of. the curtain as it descended. On each side of the prosceneum arch at the theatre, was a metallic re flector, conclave in form, 20 feet long and studded throughout its entire length with incandescent lights. Nor mally these lights fitted into niches in the masonry, but when in use were swung out in order that the lights .. might be thrown upon the performers upon the stage. Their greatest width when opened, was fourteen inches. When both reflectors were in place, the lire curtain had no impediment in its course, but with either swung outward the descending curtain could not get below the reflectors top. Care lessness of some employe, whose iden tity it will be the effort of the police to ascertain tomorrow, resulted in the combination of the open reflector and falling curtain, which iost nearly 600 lives. Mozzoni who was employed as a scene shifter was one of the first of the stage hands to be placed under arrest. After his release this after noon on bond of $50,000, he disclosed the truth of the misplaced reflector to Fire Inspector Fulkerson. " "I stood near the switchboard from which the fire started, said Mozzoni, when I saw the flames shooting up from the drapery near the lamps. The wire curtain was coming down as I looked up and almost at the same time I saw that the second was lowei than the other. I looked close and I could see that it was caught. I ran up on the bridge on the north side to get the curtain free, but failed. When I looked again, a few seconds later a great sheet of flame was dart ing under the curtain and into the faces of the people." Inspector Fulkerson taking wit nesses with him, at once went to th theatre where he found that "although the flames had whipped the asbestos curtain into sheds, the reflector which had blocked its descent was still In the postion stand by Mozzoni. From the large number of com plaints received of the loss of person al effects from the bodies of the fire victims, coroner's office, clerk's esti mate that S100.000 worth of dia monds, watches, jewelry, furs and other property was lost in the tire. Many of the victims had money in their possession which could not be lcund when the bodies were examined at the morgues. Much of vthe prop erty of value was undoubtedly lost, tut a large amount may have been sto.en by ghouls. The largest amount pinned to the garments of a woman, of currency recovered was $403. ound Superintendent of Street Cleaning Solon and a force of men went to the Iroquois theatre today with instruc tions to dean it most thoroughly As the men set to work they examined every scrap for jewels, articles of clothing and trinkets. The order was issued after City Custodian DeWitt C. Creigier had found a diamond pin holding a stone as large as a pea, and valued at $11 00. Mr. Cregier added the gem to the collection of effects dis played for purposes of ident fieation. Mayor Harrison today received a letter from Coroner Traeger suggest ing that a public funeral be held in the near future of the unidentified dead. The mayor agreed heartily with the suggestion. It also proposed to build a monu ment by popular subscription in hon or of the unidentified dead. This sug gestion came from Coroner Traeger and was approved by Mayor Harri son. The number of dead is now definite ly known to be 5S7. Of those 575 have been identified. The remaining! twelve bodies were tonight upon order j of the coroner removed to the coun- ! ty morgue where they will be kept nereafter. Most of the State colleges and schools will reopen this week for the spring term, after the holidays. Wilmington's contingent of college boys and girs will begin leavlng today and by the end of the w.?ek all of them will hava returned to t24elr work. A Terrible. Conflagration Visited Wilson this Morning TOBACCO LOST About a Quarter of a Million Pounds Were Burned In nil About 12 Buildings Were Burned, all of Them Being Completely Destroyed The Fire Department Fought Valiantly. Bit it Was Several Hours Before the Flames Were Gotten Under Control The Loss is Partially In sured. A telephone message at t ocrock this morning from Wilson to The Mes senger brought the information that a terrible fire was raging in the heart of the business section of the city and was threatening to do extensive damage. The estimated loss at that time, when four large buildings had been burned was $60,000. After two o'clock another message was received stating that the flames were under control, but much more damage had resulted and the total loss will prob ably reach $100,000. Before the Rocky Mount fire company, which had been appealed to for aid, could respond, the fire was under control and the request was countermanded. The fire started in Cooper and Watson's warehouse at 11:45 p. m. and the building was totally destroy ed. About 30,000 pounds of tobacco was stored in the building. The flames spread from the ware house j to an adjoining three-story brick building belonging to the W. J. Batts estate. This building was also totally destroyed. The first floor of the building was occupied by Webb's saloon, but the second and third stories were unoccupied. The Batts' building being a tall structure caused the flames to leap across the street, setting fire to the Centre Warehouse, occupied by Co zart, Gogles and Carr. About 30,000 pounds of tobacco was also stored in this building, which was totally de stroyed, i Another warehouse belonging to Woodard and Jones was also totally destroyed. The building belonging to the Batts' estate and the Centre Warehouse were both brick buildings. The other warehouses were two story frame buildings. It was pouring down rain in Wil son last night, but still the fire com panies were unable to get the fire under control. The total amount of insurance car ried on the different buildings could not be learned last night. Cooper and Watson had $4500 on their ware house, but this; willnot cover the loss. LATER NEWS. It was learned at 2:15 a. m. that eight other buildings had been de stroyed, but at that time the fire was under control. The other buildings burned ware: A one story brick building owned by W. H. Morris, and occupied by Lewis and Cooper's bar room. , One story brick building owned by W. H. Morris and occupied by Hayes and Son, groceries. Two story brick livery stable, build ing owned by J. P. Wiggins and livery business by John G. Moore. Two story brick livery stable, on the opposite side of the street.. Build ing owned by J. P." Wiggins and livery business bv W. T. Cork. Two story frame building owmed by J. P. Wiggins and occupied by Young and Hargrove's blacksmith shop. One story frame building owned by F. A. Woodard and used as a restau rant. One story frame building owned by F. A. Woodard and occupied by Mr. T. Davis saloon. Ten pin alley owned by F. A. Woodard, run by John Rrogdon. Two story frame livery stable own ed and occupied by Edwards Broth ers. All of the above buildings were to tally destroyed. . A telegram was sent to Rocky Mount asking for assistance, but at 2 o'clock the Rocky Mount company had not started, so the request was countermanded. In less than two hours and a half more than one hundred thousand dol lars worth of property was destroyed. This is a very conservative estimate of the loss, many thinking that it will exceed this sum. About a quarter of a million pounds of tobacco was burned. Tw-o horses were burned at Cooper and Watson's warehouse. The firemen, assisted by hundreds of the citizens, fought the flames heroically. The fire would rage fiercely on one side of the street for awhile and then sweep across to the opposite side. The principal buildings destroyed were either warehouses or livery stables. The warehouses had many thousand pounds of tobacco stowed away in them and this caused the fire, when once started, to burn rapidly. After the fire had once gained good headway m the warehouses it would have been almost impossible to have saved any of them with the most modern fire fighting apparatus. Formal Proceedings to Fix Blame for the Iroquois Fire MANY ARRESTS Proceedings Against Managers Davis and Powers Were Brought on Com plaint of Mr. Hall, Whose Family i-crisiied in the Flames Twenty Men Arrested In Connection With the lire Were Also Arraigned All Uae Hearings Were Postponed for a 1 ev Days and Heavy Bonds Placed Over the Defendants. yWism shrdlu etaoin cmfwy vbgkqjm Chicago, Janualry 2. (Formally charg ed with manslaughter. Managers Will J. Davis and Harry J. powers, of the Irioquois theatre, with city Bui I dins Commissioner Willams were today held unaer oonas of $10,000 each. Arthur E. Hall, whose family perished in the threatre Are and who was the complain ant, was present, when the two thea tre managers and h& city officials un derwent the ordeal of facing the charges. The hearing of the case was set for January iz. The arraignment took olare- th home of justice Underwood, where the dL'uuseu, y resen tea tnemseiveft accom panied by Counsel. An officer read the warrants. The bonds, however, were quickly read and the defendants were released until the day set for arraign ment in Court. "This is not a vindictive proceeding," announced the complainant's attorney, "and we feel disposed to refrairifrom causing any one any unnecessary an noyance. In viiew of the investigation now being carried on by the authorities we feel that this proceeding can be properly dontinued." "The purpose of this proceeding is, first, to place these men under bonds and to hold them by means of legal process. Secondly, Mr. Hull desires to spur the authorities to a complete in vestigation of the catastrophe. Un the third place, if the 'official investigation is side tracked into small fry this pro ceeding will reach the persons who oc cupy the position of the Keystone ol the whole affair. It appeared to my client to be a mockery to arrest stage carpenters and men and women in a minor capicity, while others who occu pied much more prominent positions were allowed t'o(go free. He feels that the responsibility ought to be fixed upon who ever is guilty. "On behalf of Davis and Powers, 1 will say that they are going to meet the issue squarely," said the defendants attorney. "Both have a clear con science in this proceeding and intend to act their part as men should." This ended the proceedings for fch present. . Twenty men arrested in connection with the Iroquois theatre tragedy -were arraigned before Justice Caverly in th Harrison street police court today on a charge of manslaughter. Five of the defendants were members of the chorus of the "Mr. Blue Beard" Company and were defended by Attorney Thorn- as Hogan. No testimony was given in court and it was immediately agreed that a continuance be granted. Most of the time was devoted to an effort oy the attorney to have the bonds of his clients reduced from the $5,000 in which they had been held. In the md thp bonds in each case were reduced to $1,000 and the cases placed on the cal endar for hearing January 11th. Attorney Hogan told the magistrate that his clients had nothing to do with the management, construction or hani ling of the scenery. He said they con tinued singing even after the audience became panic stricken in a vain effort 'to allay the fear of the frightened au dience. The other defendants will have a hearing before Justice Caverly Mon day. Their bonds were placed at $5,00 each. H-H- Death of General Longs trcet. Atlanta, Ga., January 2. General James Longstreet, soldier, statesman and diplo mat, and the last lieutenant general of the Confederate army with the exception of General Gordon, died , in Gainesville, Ga.. this after noon at 6 o'clock from an at tack of acute pneumonia. He had been ill two days. General Longstreet was a sufferer from cancer of one eye. but his general health had been good until Wednes day, when he was seized with a sudden -cold, developing later into pneumonia of violent! nature. He was 84 years old. He is survived by his wife, four sons and a daughter. He will be buried in Gainesville, which has been his home since the civil- war. v !"I"I"!"!"H":"1''1"1"I--I--I--H-H"!--H-I"t--;-: In St. Petersburg the Situation is Re garded as Very Serious THE RUSSIAN REPLY NOT YET SENT ? MOKE IRREGULARITIES. Accounts of Inter -Stale Commerce Coommission to be Investigated. ' Washington, January 2. Treasury Department expert today " instituted an investigation of the accounts of the Inter-State CommerceCommission. The action is taken at the instance of Acting Chairman Clements of the com mission, as a result of persistent ru mors of irregularities in the drawing of vouchers, etc. When the expert ac countants, Nathaniel M. Ambrose and Richard H. Taylor, and James L. Chase, the latter of the office of the auditor for the State and other depart ments, reached the commission today, they sealed the safe and examined Sec retary Edward A. Moseley, H. S. M.l stead, the cashier, and other em ployees. Milstead has not been sus pended. Acting Chairman Clements stated to- day that he did not know that any- thin& was 'wrong, but that the rumors I "u lueuume s- perstsieia mat tney I could no longer be ignored, and the I Trasury department was .therefore asked to take charge of the accounts Mr. 'Moseley is. under $25,000 as dis bursing officer- It is understood that the rumors In clude allegations of payments made for service at one place, while the payee was engaged elsewhere and similar Ir regular methods. The Investigation will be thorough and every phase of the accounting work of the commission will be thoroughly overhauled. The commission handles about $275,000 an nually, the bulk of this being for sala ries, traveling expenses, supplies, etc. The payments are by warrants, drawn o nthe treasury. H. s. Miusteaa per forms the duties of cashier, but Ed ward A. Moseley, the Secretary of the comimission Is in charge of all the ac counting work. Acting Commiseioncr Clements, ,who is head of the commis sion in the absence of Chairman Knapp, in New York city, said that he did not regard the situation as start ling and that he did not believe any wrongful conduct should be found, but that it. was the unanimous opinion of the commission that the rumors should be inquired into by experts to ascer tain th exalct facts. A PLEASANT RECEPTION, Mrs. Hunter Smith Entertains in Honor of a New Orleans Lady Other Fayetteville News. (Special to The Messenger.) Fayetteville, January 2. Mr. J. A. King, the prominent Gillespie stree.t carriage and harness dealer, who Das been for some days in the, Marsh- Highsmith hospital with a badly frac tured ankle, is getting on well, and will be spared the amputation of hia foot. Yesterday afternoon, at her residence n Green street, Mrs. Hunter G. Smith friends, complimejitary to Mrs. Jhn C. Gorham, of New Orleans. Ihe cards were received at the door by Misses Alice Haigh Underwood and Mary Anna Drake, and the guests were greeted in the hall by Mrs. Hun ter G. Smith and Miss Lillian Slocomb In the drawing room received Mes- dames J. C. Gorham, H. M. Pemberton. W. E. Kyle. J. C. McDiarmid. B. C. Gorham L. C Wooten. H. McD. Rcb- inson, M. J. Pemberton, E. Williams. The guests were conducted to tnc, punch room by Mesdames W. Frauk Blount and S- H. Strange, where Miss Lina Pemberton served delicious fruit punch in a grotto of woodland ever greens, through the boughs of which filtered the ruddy glow of crimson lights. In the, dining room presided Misses Fannie Williams, Mary McNeill Rosie Dodd and Eloise McDiarmid. where in the centre chandejiers and fine branched candelabra formed a glittering canopy, from which depend ed in festoon garlands of narrow red ribbon, and. beneath flashed the dainty service of cut glass, china and silver. From the dining room the visitors wer? ushered into the .north parlor, where Mesdames J. D. Williams and John Underwood and Miss Hawley "spd the parting guests." The decorations were in red and white, with potte-I plants and ferns grouped through the parlors in profusion. A string orches tra in an alcove gave fine music. Postmaster McCaskeli is every day now' expecting the appointments from Washington of the1 free delivery mail carriers for this city, the system going into effect on the 1st of February. Mr. J. R. Boyd, manager of the Postal and Commercial Cable Com panv inj this city, has received an offer j. i of a like position in the same company .j. at Petersburg. Va.. in a very compll ju - mentary and gratifying letter, with a 4-1 large increase of salary. His Fayett- i ville friends are glad to know that he .i. will decline the offer. i ' "r - 4.I (Special to The Messenger.) s ' Raleigh. N. C. January 2. The state A fl-i ortora fhe "TViit-Ii n rr T .I rm twr- Pnm. pany with a capital stock of $25,000. Russia Has Decided Not to Accept Japan's Precise Proposals But Of ficials Are. Still Trying to Arrivo at an Amicable Adjustment Clyde Engineers Receive Cable Orders to Proceed to Japan at Once and it U Probable They Will bo Called to Active Service The War Party In Russia is in the Ascendant. PEKIN, JANUARY 3. INFORMAL j TION IN THE POSSESSION OF TUB BEST INFORMED DIPLOMATS PEKIN CONVINCES THEM THAT WAR IS INEVITABLE, POSSIRLX WITHIN A FEW DATS. ' St. Petersburg, January 2, it an pears to be true that' Russia has decid ed not to accept Japan's precise propo- sals. But the foreign day informed the Associated rr thnt Foreign Minister Lamsdorf and ' the Japanese Minister M. Kurine, are'still conferring with the view of arriving at an-amicable settlement. Unofficially the situation is regardej as being most serious. Tokio, Japan, January 2. rrhe report is current that the Japanese squadron of six armored cruisers under Admiral Kamimura, now at Saseho, Will seize the port of Masampho, Korea,' and that its departure has been fixed- for Janu ary 4th. In well informed circles, how ever, it is doubted that Japan wouldi seize Masampho or any Korean porW-hrf-,-except to forestall Russia, in the event "" of the latter showing evidences of any S intention to take a step or in the event j of the negotiation between the two ' countries finally ending in failure. Great activity prevails and the force of workmen has been increased at the Osalla arsenel. The holiday's of the arsenei operatives have been curtailed in order to hurry up the work in hand. Glasgow, January 2. a large number of Clyde marine engineers received, ca ble orders from the Japanese, govern ment today to proceed immediately to Japan. These engineers were engaged by the Japanese government six'" months ago, on the understanding that they ,would be called on if active serr vice was probable. Full instructions? were sent them in cipher. They will gd to the Far East by. way of Canada leaving January 5th. 1 London, January 2. No word has yet been received here telling to show when the Russian reply to Japan may be expected. Foreign Secretary La.n3 downe has informed Baron Hayashf. the Japanese minister that he feara the war party in Russia is In the as cendant and that he has faint hope of Japan receiving a favorable reply... Baron Hayashi says he has received no news of the intended dispatch of a Japanese squadron to Maaampho. The last news he heard was that a Rus sian cruiser was there. The minister pointed out that the dispatch of a squadron to Masampho would not ne cessarily be a war-like action, though it could scarcely, help being regarded in the line of other precautions which Japan has openly taken. PRESIDENT BURT RESIGNS. Wishes to Give Up! Position With tho Union Pacific and Secure a Rest. Omaha, Neb., January 2. Horace G. Burt, president of the Union Pa cific railroad, has handled his resig nation to the directors. . It is under stood that it will be acted upon at the next meeting of the board which will be held in the near future. At Mr. Burt's office it was stated that he will take an extensive trip with Mrs. Burt for the purpose of securing rest. His active railroad service has ex tended over 35 years, and it is stated he feels need of a complete resU Ihe trip will be of several months dura tion. . Mr. Burt's resignation, it was learn ed, has been in the" hands of the di rectors for some time, although the fact was not. made public until tomor row. It is not believed that the board will refuse to accept it as Mr. Burt has been very explicit in his expres sion of a desire to retire from the company's service. The matter of selecting a new pres ident for the Union Pacific has created considerable interest and speculation as to a successor for Mr. Burt has In cluded a wide range of names. At Union Pacific headquarters, however, no opinion was officially ventured m. to -who will In future control the af fairs of the company. I r Hi 1 A V 1 1 V I" v i .1...
The Wilmington Messenger (Wilmington, N.C.)
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Jan. 3, 1904, edition 1
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