Fierce Fire At Chicago

Chicago, March 17. - The most appalling ftre sine'e the eold storage helocaust at the world's fair, broke out in the Conover Piano building. 215 to 221 Wabash avenue at 11 o'elock this forenoon. The death list will probably reach fifteen and thc number oL maugled and wounded will be twice that. Three hundred giris employee! on the lop floors of the building trampled over i one another in their frantic efforts to. escape the flanies. Within half an hour after the sheet of flre shot out from the top floor oL the six-story building, the entire structurc was wrapped in ilames. and the crash of the lutge walls as they tumbled down was heard for blocks around. The dead: MILES A. SMITH, salesman at 215 Wabash avenue, lived at 1236 Wrightwood avenue. SAMUEL A. CLARK, jumped from the fourth floor of 221 Wabash avenue, employed by the W. A. Olmstead Scientific company. UNIDENTIFIED MAN taken from 215 Wabash avenue, burned beyond reeognition. The injured: H. B. Cunningham. employed by the Northern Pacific Express company; face, head and body burned. Mary Lapere, burned while descending the fire escape from the sixth floor; taken home. Jake Kerchin, letter carrier; jumped from second story of building; back tiurt, but not seriously injured. Herman Overman, descended tho fire escape with Miss Lapere, but feil from the second floor; burned and re;eived internal injuries; taken home. Co's restaurant; leg broken by falling Colored waiter at H. H. Kohlsaat & wall. Offlcer Rogers of the central detail; overeóme by smoke; taken to the county hospital. It was not more than thirty minutes before all the floors of the building, crashed down and on! ythe walls re-, mained in the front and rear. The flremen made their hardest fight on the front of the building, and when it was evident that the walls would fall the marshals gave orders for the men to withdraw to a safe distance. For a second the big black wall, wrapped in flame, " gracefully curved at the top and then crashed into the street below. The danger to surrounding buildings was so great that streams had to be directed upon buildings for a block around to keep the flames from spreading. "When I reached the Wabash avenue front," said Acting Chief Musham, "the building was a sheet of flame. It look-, ed as if no human being could live anywhere near the elevated railroad structure. The firemen that I ordered to stand and fight the flames did their work in the face of almost certain death. The steel girders and beams were hurled all around them. "Wood alcohol used by the piano companies in finishing their goods probably exploded. That accounts for the lightning like rapidity of the spread of the fire. I can truthfully say that this was the worst fire in such a small area that I have ever seen in this city." With all possible haste the firemen first upon the scène spread the life sheets to catch the shrieking women and men clinging to the window Iedges above. According to an eye witness, who was among the first to see the flames shoot from the top floor, at least ten people jumped at once. Several missed the blankets and were crushed upon the stone pavement in the street below. Many were unable to get out at all and it is feared that all who did not escape from the building within fivè minutes after the cry of warning was heard, are lost. The Conover piano company oceupied three floors of the building, including the ground floor. Their valuable stock is completely ruined. The remaining tenants of the building were the National Music company, the Presbyterian Board of Publication and Sweet, Wallach & Co., photographic supplies. At 11 o'elock the first started on the floor occupied by the photographic ply company. The floor was stored , with chemicals and the dry, tinder-like materials employed in manufacturing photographic supplies. It was among this inflammable material that the fire started. The flames quickly spread to the floor beneath, where the National Music company had tons of song sheets packed away upon counters and shelves. Mrs. C. S. Saalfeld, president of the company, saved the lives of many of the girls employed on this floor by her presence oí mind. SlcuUis Indlcted :it .Toilet. Joliet, March 17.- The Will county grand jury adjourned this morning. No case was found against the four men sought to be indicted by the Chicago sanitary attorneys alleging bribing the jury in thy condemnation suit finished last week. Tlvree of the drainage board detectives, Joseph Murray, William O. Vail and Albert F. Weyer, who made affidavits against the four men. were indicted for conspiracy and perjury. Subscribe for The Democrat.