BODIES RECOVERD

Fred Hubbard or Hauser, Lisbon, Iowa

Robert C. Greiner

Mrs. R. C. Greiner

Peter Gumry

E. F. McCloskey, Cripple Creek

George Burt, Colorado Springs

William Richards, elevator pilot

Mrs. G. R. Wolfe, Broken Bow, Neb.

Baby Wolfe, Broken Bow, Neb.

B. I. Lorah, Central City

F. French, Central City

INJURED

M. E. Letson, wrist injured

N. C. Burgess, badly burned

J. Munal, Cairo, Ill., slight bruises

B. Hopkins, ------, hip wounded

Silas Johnson, fireman, hose 5

Louis A. Mengini, fireman hose 3

J. E. Troy, hose e, inflamed eyes

Frank Johnston, hose 5, arm cut

MISSING

J. L. Kirke, Omaha

J.? Brown, Omaha

Lezzie Langer

Louise Reinhuber

Bert Cook, Fairplay

Emma Multerhalter

Myron E. Hawley

James Murphy

W. J. Blake

E. W. Edwards

W. J. Corson

Elmer Loescher, engineer

     Eleven dead bodies were yesterday taken from the ruins of the Gumry Hotel, where the boiler explosion of Sunday midnight wrought such terrible loss of life and terrific and complete destruction of property.  In its magnitude and in the horror of its details, the story is only beginning to unfold.  The twisted wreck and ruin of the top floor of the five story hotel has not yet been all cleared away, leaving four other floors to give up their dead.  The list of those still known to be missing foots up fourteen.  It may run much higher.  There is an uncertainty about how many were in the house aside from those who registered Saturday and Sunday.  It is not known but that some of the guest may have had friends visiting them, or that congenial parties were together in some of the rooms when the floors gave way as if of pasteboard and the walls collapsed like a card house.  The list of injured numbers eight.  Whatever the ruins may reveal, this will remain unchanged.  The rest will be found dead.  After a dense cloud of suffocating smoke permeated and enveloped the wreck soon after daylight yesterday, there was no shadow of hope for any life that bricks and timbers had spared.

Judge Glynn Safe.

     Judge Glynn, who had been reported as among the missing and was believed to be buried in the ruins, was not a guest of the hotel Sunday night.  A special to The News from Holyoke last night says: "Judge Glynn left here this evening on the west-bound passenger."

Faulty Contruction.

     Criminal carelessness caused this greatest fatality that Denver has ever known.  A drunken engineer, badly overworked, is accepted as the cause awaiting an official investigation which would probably reveal little not already known.  The boiler, located in the rear of the basement, exploded with tremendous violence.  Even then the loss of life might not have reached awful proportions but for faulty construction in the east wall of the building.  Through it, from basement to chimney above the roof, ran a flue.  Only a single thickness of brick was left on either side.  When the mighty concussion came the wall gave way, at this point from top to bottom and the whole rear half of the structure collapsed like an egg shell.  The force of the explosion, as revealed yesterday morning tore its way through the heavy basement wall of the building and then through the brick wall of a storehouse across the alley.  Windows were shattered and blown wholly out on both Lawrence and Larimer Streets between Seventeenth and Eighteenth.  The front of the hotel itself was not badly injured.  But the rear half was wholly demolished and packed into a massive heap.

     The rescue work yesterday revealed that death had come swiftly to the occupants of the rear rooms.  They went down in their beds, husband trying to ward off danger from wife, child held tightly clasped in its mother's arms.  Each stiffened corpse told its own story of sudden awakening to fatal danger.  None showed a prolonged and terrible death struggle.  It was the only merciful feature revealed. 

Firemen Were Sluggish.

     It was largely citizens who took the initiative in the work of rescue.  They did so at risk of their lives, for until last night the work went on under the shadow of a wall known to be dangerous, and almost under the cables and heavy appliances of a hydraulic elevator which seemed hanging by a single strand and well weighted with debris.  Firemen were slow to discover that the entire rear of the hotel had been completely wrecked.  Then they were afraid to enter the alley for fear of broken wires and trembling walls.  Chief Pearse seemed dazed and timid.  Not until the arrival of Captain Marty and ex-Chief Roberts was effective work done.  These men are enemies and have not spoken for years, but they worked shoulder to shoulder Sunday night and yesterday over the heap of tumbled ruins.  Citizens turned in and did what firemen did not dare attempt.  The members of the police board and Mayor McMurray were at the scene of the horror most of the day.  Men and teams were ordered out, and by nightfall there was some show of system in the work.

###

INCINERATED REMAINS

Water Seemed to Have No Effect on Concealed Fires.

     It proved a tremendous task, that of finding the dead, so deeply were they buried, so firmly held.  A sealed vault could scarce have offered more resistance.  Timbers, bricks, mortar, all of the interior of more that half the five-story hotel seemed not only to have fallen, but to have been pressed down by resistless force into a compact mass upon which only pick, or ax yielded by brawny arms could make impression.  Far down fires smoldered, clouds of smoke sifting upward here and there where the debris was less tightly packed.  Floods of water pouring on the ruins all day long failed to reach the slow eating flames, and there still hangs over them a veil of smoke as if to soften the jagged outlines of the scene of death.

     All day, from daylight until dark, sixty paid laborers aided by many willing hands of citizens and firemen, dug and pulled and worked upon the great heap of ruins to uncover the dead.  Eight dead bodies were taken out.  Then excavating was stopped awhile that dangerous walls might be razed, and taken up again under the glare of bare electric lights and pushed all last night.  It was a pitiful task, one that fascinated men and women onlookers and touched the heart of the rudest laborer with a thrill of pity.  There was no speculation about the corpses of men and women and children being buried under the water-soaked mass.  The only questions were, how many did death claim, and where will they be found?  It was one long intense strain, heartbreaking for those with friends known to be lost, and it may not be ended for another day, or even longer, so tightly was the work of death sealed.

Overhanging Death. 

     The overhanging ruins of the hotel spoke even more plainly of the awful work of the explosion than the funeral pile beneath.  The front showed havoc, the rear utter destruction.  In the front the windows of the office floor were blown out, a number on the second and third were broken, but not one on the fourth, or fifth floors were so much as cracked.  Only broken windows across the way and a street littered with tiny bits of broken glass for nearly a block told of the terrific force of the explosion.

Rescued After Eight Hours.

     A late issue of The News yesterday morning told exclusively the story of the horrible experience of M. E. Letson, who was rescued from the basement of the hotel just ten hours after the building tumbled with a roar.  Letson was pinned beneath the timbers and the firemen worked four hours to get him out.  He had a marvelous escape and his injuries are very slight.  His left wrist is bruised and somewhat lacerated as it was jammed between two heavy timber.  No bones are broken, however, and Letson, without doubt had an escape from death that is without parallel in the history of the city.

     About 6 o'clock Assistant Chief William Roberts crawled through the smoke into a mass of debris in the basement.  At a point about forty feet from the sidewalk, near the center of the building, he heard a voice, clear but low, calling for help.

     "For God's sake get me out of here," he pleaded.  He had given up hope and repeated the words mechanically, as though he had kept up the cry for hours.  Although half smothered with smoke Roberts gave a hearty cheer.  It was probably the sweetest voice Letson ever heard.

     Returning to the sidewalk Roberts secured a force of firemen and the rescue was at once started.  It was found that Letson was covered with tons of debris.  Huge planks lay above him, and he was wedged tightly in behind a refrigerator.  Part of the mass was cleared away, care being taken that Letson was not crushed by an avalanche of timbers.

     The firemen bravely opened a way to the imprisoned man and at the danger of losing their own lives pulled out the suffering prisoner.  It was thought that the task was hopeless, as Letson's arm was held tightly in the trap formed by the rafters.  Finally the boards were cut with small saws in such a manner that the arm was released.

     With a shout Letson was carried to the sidewalk and placed in the ambulance.  At a late hour last night Letson was resting easily in the county hospital.  The physicians in attendance say that he was not injured in the slightest by the heat or smoke.  Owing to an order issued by Dr. Boyce, Letson was not permitted to make a statement last night.  Letson is interested in the London dairy.

     In the rear it was totally different.  Fully one-half of the deep building lay piled upon the ground in a disordered, unrecognizable mass.  Timbers and bricks blocked the alley many feet deep and where the hotel stood was a giant pile of smoking ruins.  The flames had eaten into them with ferocious fury, and when the smoke and heart finally forced its way upward to meet the morning air it came with a gush against which no man could stand.  Division Chief Roberts was standing on the east side of the ruins talking, or trying to talk, to two women imprisoned far below.  One had told him that she was not much hurt, only her arm, but was held fast.  He shouted encouraging words, not stopping to ask their names, for it looked as if they could be saved.  But the woman--only one was speaking now--evidently felt the onward rush of heat and smoke and knew that she was face to face with the inevitable.

Last Appeal to Man.

     "For God's sake, boys, get me out!" was her scream that came to the firemen only as a stifled call.

     It was the last voice ever to be heard from anyone buried in the ruins of the Gumry Hotel.  The next instant there rolled out over everything a suffocating volume of hot smoke that drove every cager rescuer away and put the seal of death upon every one imprisoned.  Had it delayed three minutes, only five minutes at most, one other life might have been saved.  Hubbard lay some ten or fifteen feet from the alley.  Apparently he was not badly hurt.  The brick and timbers had been removed from his body except his left leg, which was held fast by a heavy beam. the work of prying this had begun when the smoke belched forth as if it were bent on seeing that not a single life escaped.  The workers were forced back blinded.  They soon returned, but Hubbard's soul had been released.  It was not until 8 o'clock that his dead body was taken out.  Before this, as told yesterday, Joseph Munai of Cairo, Ill., had been taken out alive and sent away in the ambulance.

     The part of the hotel left standing had been explored in every room and place where suffering or suffocated humanity might be found, and all attention was turned to the rear.  Here, it was known, would be found the dead.  To save their bodies from the flames streams of water were turned on and while the smoke was lessened the smoldering fires could not all be reached.  Despite the dangers of the suspended elevator of cracked and bulging walls, of overhanging sections of roof, dozens of citizens threw off their coats and began throwing aside the debris.  The alley was choked and impassable, and to clear this for the score of wagons waiting on Eighteenth Street to haul away the ruins was the first work.  But it was noon before it was accomplished.  At 9 o'clock the ruins were cleared of rescuers, and Officer Wilmot, at considerable risk, attached a rope to a big section of overhanging roof from the Lillyblade building and it was pulled down.

Misdirected Efforts.

     Then the work went on again.  It was not systematic, not well directed, but the digging and shoveling and hauling went on first in places from where it was thought voices had been heard, then steadily in one place some twenty feet from the alley where the ruins seemed heaped highest and most twisted and interlaced.  Remnants of roof were torn away, then bits recognized as ceiling and walls.  It was the ruins of the upper floor into which, in this one little spot, the workmen delved.  Soon was uncovered the corner of a set of bed springs.  Interest heightened, anxiety increased, feverish interest possessed the workers.  Warnings were given to strike picks too deep, to be careful with the sharp edges of the shovel.  Then, presently, was uncovered the foot of a man.

     They springs of the bed lay inclined at a straight angle from the alley side, and the head was lower than the foot.  A long, tedious spell of careful digging and then was disclosed under the packed and twisted mass of bed clothing the body of a man, one arm half about the neck of the dead body of the woman by his side.  Instantly, the bodies were recognized as those of Robert C. Greiner and his wife, the former the assistant superintendent of the construction of the state capitol, the latter the day clerk of the hotel where such terrible catastrophe had been wrought.  It was not far from fact that they had died in each other's arms.  Both of Mr. Greiner's hands were raised as if to ward off impending death.  Upon one she may have flung her head, and the other he threw partly over her face as if to protect it.  Save for the dust and grime of the ruins the bodies looked, uninjured as they were lifted on stretchers and borne away.  They had been known to scores of workers and onlookers, and spirits sank like lead as the covered corpses were carried silently away from the smoking ruins.  It was only 11:30, and four dead bodies were in the morgue, while scarcely an impression had been made upon the upper tier of the ruins marking the top story of the ill-fated hotel.

     Another hour went by without the finding of a corpse, then another and another.  But there were occasional lifting of saturated clothing of bits of dresses, of letters and books and odds and ends telling only too unerringly of what might be expected a little deeper down.  A coat and vest, water soaked, the pockets empty, ere pulled out and flung across a projecting beam, dripping water upon the workmen below. Then came a fine white shirt, in the bosom of it a splendid diamond.

     "George Burt's diamond.  I'd know it anywhere," said a friend of the missing conductor. 

Uncovering An Arm.

     Next a bunch of water soaked letters and then, once more, the corner of a bed spring projecting from a sodden mass of sand and plaster.  All knew what this might mean.  A little digging and there was uncovered a right arm thrown upward as had been Mr. Greiner's.  The fingers were tightly clinched.  The mass of crushing ruins had packed close about the body.  A plank had wedged itself in and lay across the legs, pinioning the feet all if in a vise.  This was cut away, the twisted bed clothing thrown aside, and there was revealed the corpse of a youth of 18 or 19, unknown to any present, but identified later as that of Roberts' the elevator pilot.  The head rested quite naturally upon the left arm, and only the raised right arm and the clenched hand told of how terrible had been the youth's awakening.

     It was only fifteen minutes later, and nearly 4 o'clock, when a pick brought up the vest of Conductor Burt, its gold chain and gilt buttons untarnished by the dust and grime.  It had scarcely been taken away when there was disclosed an arm, a left arm, extended straight out from the body, and upon one finger a handsome monogram ring bearing the letter "B" in gold against the black enamel.

     "That is Burt's," said his friends, with hushed voices.

     The body was held with cruel tightness in the wreck.  The head, it was seen, lay upon the extended left arm, the body on its side, quite natural and life-like.  A stream of water was turned upon the corpse to loosen it, and the black and dust was swept away revealing the white iciness of death.  The white counterpane which had been spread upon the bed was straightened out and the body was covered and lifted away.  In the brief glimpse which waiting friends of the dead man had there was no sign of death by violence save that a thin stream of blood had trickled down the left cheek.

     Next, out of the death abyss, came relics from which men felt that they must turn away.  The dress of a child of 3 or 5, plain gingham of the blue and which check in such common use, was picked up from where the hose had just been playing and had washed it quite clean.  It was carelessly hung by the workman upon a projecting timber, and in an instant every man and woman choking the alley entrances and looking on from roofs and windows and every point of vantage, recognized it and felt an added thrill of horror at what would be disclosed.  They had not long to wait. 

     Work was centered at two points in the ruins, one dangerously near the overhanging elevator, the other some thirty feet from the alley.  At the first point it was thought the women were buried with whom Fire Chief Roberts had the last word.  At the other point the finding of the child's dress, then a piece of woman's embroidered underwear, a package of memorandum, books, a letter addressed "G. R. Wolf, Esq.," the tray of a trunk packed with the knick-knacks of a woman--all pointed to the room known to have been occupied by Mrs. Wolf and her little child.

Clinging to Her Child.

     Then a ghastly sight was revealed.  As the rubbish was dug away a woman's left hand was disclosed, apparently blackened and burned, until the flesh threatened to drop away.  The fingers were half closed.  Upon them shone three rings, clearest and brightest of all a broad wedding ring.  A long time this disfigured hand remained protruding before the body of Mrs. Wolf could be uncovered.  More carefully, more tenderly than ever did the slow work go on of uncovering the body, for it was known that in the same room had been a girl of 3.

     They found her with her mother's right arm clasped close about her, so that force had to be used in disengaging the tiny form.  The little body was distorted as if in a paroxysm of terror which no mother's arms or words had time to quiet.  Both arms were lifted high above the curly head, and the left leg was drawn far up.  In the blanket from the bed the body of the child was wrapped and laid gently down upon the broken brick until the body of the mother was released.  Then both were borne away together.  Mrs. Wolf had been pinned down by many heavy planks and it was some time before they could be chopped and torn away.

     Work where the two women are supposed to be buried was stopped as the fire broke out afresh in that section of the ruins soon after 5 o'clock and the work had reached a point where it was dangerous to continue.  The loosening of a timber might bring down the wreck of the elevator.  The west wall was also considered dangerous, and the ruins were cleared and streams of water turned on the threatening wall to bring it down.

     Standing in the alley it was seen what fantastic tricks the explosion had wrought.  To the left the outside wall was gone to the edge of the skylight, marking rotunda and center of the hotel.  The wall was cut straight down as if with some mighty cleaver.  The opposite wall had fallen for a space of perhaps only thirty feet from the alley, but in the adjoining building, which was a part of the hotel itself, a space fully fifty feet square had crushed down from roof to basement.  The first, second and third floors of the hotel has been torn away to the further side of the central court, the fourth floor half way across, the top floor only to its edge.  It left a great jagged, irregular seamed and distorted space inside the walls left standing, while outside not one brick was left upon another.

     To the left, just inside the cleanly cut wall and projecting beyond it, over the ruins, hung the ropes and cable of the elevator.  The box holding the main gearing, which had been built upon the roof, had been torn loose, lifted and partially turned over until it hung by one edge only.  Under it the lathed ceiling of a room, stripped bare of every trace of plaster, hung down apparently held by a single light joist, which had caught in the cable of the elevator.  Still further down; tangled in the ropes, was another ceiling from another room of which no other trace was left.  Thirty feet above the ground a door had caught by the knob in the twisted cable and was held suspended.  Walls, ceiling, floor, everything else of the room in which this door had been a part had been carried away and broken and crushed and scattered in the ruins below.

     On the fourth floor the ladies' bathroom had been sliced off just at the edge of the tub.  The doorway itself had been swept away, but the door had swung back against the tub and remained attached to its hinges.

     The opposite wall left standing was swept clean, almost.  Every joist, every bit of timber, every sign of floor or ceiling was gone.  It was a stretch of bare plaster save for a single row of hooks nailed against the wall at where had been a room for guests.  From one of the hooks hung a pair of men's blue overalls, which swayed idly in the wind all day until the wall was razed  as a precautionary measure.  Looking straight into the wrecked interior showed broken windows, disordered curtains, but little apparent damage beyond where the rotunda had been.  This square space extending from office floor to roof, seemed to have broken the force of the explosion.  On the two upper floors the railing about this court was intact, except on the alley side.  On the floors below only the railing on the Lawrence Street side was left.  Nowhere were left projecting timbers and ragged edges of ruin.  Floors gave way with the single exception of the ladies' bathroom.  The cause of one of the outside walls breaking so cleanly and in such a straight line was apparent.  At this point there ran through it, from basement to roof, a flue, black with soot.  It left only a single thickness of brick on either side.  It was the weak spot in the wall and gave way in an instant.  Builders who looked at it yesterday said that had the wall not been weakened by the flue it probably would have withstood the shock, sending the entire force of the explosion to front and rear, saved the toppling of thousands of brick and prevented such a fearful lose of life.

Found At Midnight.

     The body of Bela I. Lorah of Central City was found about midnight.

     A grief stricken father stood upon the embankment and looked down into the pit where the workmen were making, it seemed, slow progress.  A vest was thrown up, and in it was found a good watch presented to the boy's mother.  On her death it was left to the son.  "It's my boy's," said the elderly man, as the tears came to his eyes.  Then a coat was uncovered and in the pocket was a memorandum book in which was written the name, "Bela I. Lorah."  The identification was complete.

     Close wedged between the heavy timbers was a form which could not be identified as that of any human being.  The features were black and shriveled.  The legs were drawn close to the body.  Every one sought to hold the father back from gazing upon the terrible sight.  He pushed forward, however, and insisted upon looking into the face.  "It must be my boy, but I can't tell from the features. It's about his height."

     Accompanied by friends he hurried away, and sought the morgue.  Afterwards seen by a News reporter, the father stated that it was the body of his son.  He was positive of that.

     Close by the remains of Lorah were those of another,  From the position of the body and the fact that Ferdinand French occupied the same room, it was concluded that the body was that of French.  He too, had evidently made a supreme struggle for life.  Crushed between cruel rafters both had made the death fight together.  The body was devoid of clothing, except a thin undershirt, burned almost entirely away.  There were no particular means of identification, but the proximity of the bodies determined that it was all that was mortal of County Treasurer French of Gilpin County.  Before the body of French could be taken out another body partially in the way had to be removed, and this proved to be that of the proprietor of the house.

     "It's Mr. Gumry," exlaimed the bellboy at the house, as a short, shrivelled form was uncovered. 

   The lad proved to be right, to the satisfaction of the officers who gathered around.

     There was the stature, and the thick gray beard had not been entirely eaten away by the flames.  There was not the contortion of the limbs noticeable in the other cases. The beard had been curled by the fire, but it bore the customary shape.  The body was more seriously changed by the elements, and was burned about the chest very badly.  Besides the boy almost every one present had seen the man in life and there was no question about who it was.  The man with such a strange history died in his own building quite as strangely as he made his first appearance to the astonished occupants of a boat upon the sea. 

(Continued next column)

 IDENTIFYING THE DEAD

Curious Spectators Were Kept Away from the Bodies.

     A large crowd of anxious looking people hovered around the morgue all yesterday.  Many were there purely out of curiosity, but were not permitted to view the bodies.  Women came rushing in wringing their hands and with tearful eyes, asked if they might see one of the victims thinking, perhaps a friend or relative was among the unfortunates.  The bodies, as they were brought in, were ranged in two lines down the room, revealing their ghastly visages which plainly showed the terrible agony endured before life was extinct.

     The ambulance was kept busy conveying its loads from the scene of the accident to the embalmers.  A curious crowd of people followed it on each trip eager for a glimpse of its burden, and it was with difficulty that the officers could effect a passageway.

     The man identified as Fred Houser was brought in at 8:30 in the morning.  His body is not badly mutilated, but severely burned.  His chin had been evidently struck with a beam, that portion of the man's face being badly bruised.  His left arm is broken, and his feet are burned.  The body will be sent back to Lisbon, Iowa, to his relatives. 

     The lifeless bodies of Mr. and Mrs. Greiner, show the terrible torture undergone by them.  The former's face is burned almost beyond recognition.  His limbs are completely raw, while the trunk shows the imprint of the massive beams and timbers, which evidently crushed out life.  The fingers were black as also the feet.  The unfortunate man must have endured frightful pain, during the short time he lived after the explosion.  His wife was evidently a handsome woman.  Her face is badly burned, and the lips terribly swollen.  Across the neck is a bright red mark over five inches in breadth, where a timber had probably fallen.  Her body is covered with burns and bruises.  On her left side is a large discolored spot caused by a burning beam being thrust against her body.  The couple were brought in about two hours after the body of Houser was received.  They were found in exactly the same spot, and life must have departed from both bodies simultaneously.

Roasted to the Bone.

     The unknown man is supposed to be F. J. McClosky, of Longmont, although various rumors say that he was a stranger having lately arrived from Central City.  The victim is a handsome man aged 40 years, and weighs in the neighborhood of 200 pounds.  His head is quite bald, and he wore a short dark brown beard, with a small moustache.  His eyes are light blue, and he has a remarkable high forehead.  His height is about six feet.  His body is badly burned and scalded, and a heavy beam has crushed his left hip to a pulp.  His arms are blackened and the skin on his hands is roasted to the bone.  His side shows severe bruises and his left foot is bent double at the ankle.  His corpse was brought in at 11 o'clock yesterday morning.

     George Burt, the unfortunate railroad conductor, suffered intense agony by the appearance of his mutilated body, which was recovered at 3:40 o'clock yesterday afternoon and immediately brought over to the morgue, where it was recognized.  Identification would probably have been difficult had it not been for the shirt which was found on the trunk by the rescuers.  The initials "G. B." were embroidered at the bottom of the garment, which gave the instant clue to his recognition.  The conductor's face was perfectly black, the skin being literally cooked.  The hair on the body was partially singed off and the flesh on the feet had been roasted to the bone.  The while trunk is horribly burned and bruised, and the few moments of life after the accident must have been full of torture. 

     The elevator boy, Richards, a young fellow about 21, was taken to the undertakers at 4 o'clock.  This body, exclusive of the face, is the least injured of any of the victims.  When the boy was found one arm was crooked apparently in an effort to protect the head.  The head, however, is completely shattered, the whole left side of his face being torn away, presumably by the descent of a heavy beam.  He had a mother living some where in the city, but she has not visited the remains.

     At a little after 5 o'clock the bodies of a woman and her 3-year-old daughter were brought in.  The former presented an awful appearance when laid on the embalming table.  The face was perfectly black, the flesh being cooked.  The lips were swollen to four times their normal size, and the body was covered with wounds.  A dark red scar extending across her chest and down the limbs, showed the imprint of a heavy beam which doubtless pinned her down with terrible force.  The right hand was missing and the feet were badly scalded.  Altogether the body presents as terrible a sight as one could imagine, while the remains of the baby daughter were mashed beyond recognition.  The puny little limbs were scalded and roasted to the bone, as also the hands.  The hair readily left the head when the body was picked up.  The remains were supposed to be those of Mrs. Wolfe, but no positive identification could be had. 

     Further investigation disclosed that what was thought to be the third body was but a bundle of clothes, belonging to a woman.  In them was found a pocket book and a large roll of currency.  The whole bundle was so water soaked that nothing could be ascertained as to whom the clothes had belonged or how much money there was in the roll.  The police have been unable to ascertain the identity of the bodies, but think they are two of the three men already named. 

REMOVING THE WRECK.

Entire Street Force Delve Both Night and Day.

     Mayor McMurray arrived at the scene of the wreck shortly after 5 o'clock yesterday morning, and at once assumed charge of the work of rescue, taking his position upon the roof of an out building in the rear of 1741 Lawrence Street, nearly adjoining the Gumry, and from where he could look down into the wrecked building and observe the work of excavation.  Commissioner Wilson, of the street department, was on hand by 7 o'clock with the whole city street force, and they were set to work handling the hot debris in the alley.  There were 120 men and forty teams on the work at first, but it was soon seen that it was going to be a long job, so the force was divided, half of the men and teams being sent home with orders to report at 7 o'clock in the evening, and the rest were kept hard at it with shovel, pick and ax, trying to work a way into the awful tangle of splintered wood, plumbing and masonry.

     The long string of teams was kept going constantly, hauling the debris from the alley in the rear of the wreck, to the vacant lot in the rear of the Windsor Hotel on Market Street, it being the most convenient place to dump.

     Chief Pearse remained on duty until after 3 o'clock in the afternoon, watching the smoldering ruins, which never ceased to burn, though, several streams of water were kept constantly running.  The smoke was dense and occasioned much inconvenience to the workers until a wind came up from the north in the afternoon, and drove the smoke toward the front of the building, when the men were able to get in some good work recovering bodies.

     Anticipating the necessity for night work Mayor McMurray ordered the city electrician to have a number of arc lights hung during the afternoon so as to furnish light for the workers.  In a short time the alley received an addition to the swarm of workers in the shape of line men, who swarmed all around the neighborhood and hung lamps in every possible place to throw light upon the ruins.

     Chief Pearse remained on duty nearly all day only retiring for a little rest when Assistants Roberts and Frewen came on about 3 o'clock after having had a little rest.  Assistant Terry Owens led the work of rescue in the ruins, dressed only in overalls and undershirt, and the perspiration running down his face.  He declined to leave when Chief Roberts came on, but remained at work trying to find some of the bodies he knew were there.  Steamers 1, 4, and 6 kept on duty all day with hose company 3 and details from all the other companies.  Hook and ladder companies 1 and 2 were both on duty also.

     It was not until afternoon that all hope of rescuing any of the victims alive was abandoned.  Then Mayor McMurray ordered food to be brought, and Mrs. Miller of the Woman's exchange shortly appeared with a number of lady assistants loaded with cans of coffee and baskets of sandwiches.  There was no pause in the work of excavation, however, the men knocking off in squads for a few minutes to drink a can of coffee and eat a sandwich or two and then back to work.

     During the afternoon the hook and ladder companies busied themselves emptying the rooms in the front of the house of the personal effects of the people who escaped.  A moving truck was secured and property, trunks, valises and wearing apparel was taken out through the windows, invoiced according to room and taken to the city hall where it will be held until claimed by the owners.  All the property of most of those who escaped was saved, and can be had by the owners by applying at the hall and proving property.  From Mrs. Schmittel's rooms on the fourth floor all of the property was taken out but a piano, which will have to be removed with a derrick. 

     All of the rooms showed signs of the terrific force of the explosion, the floors being wrenched away from the walls and with the whole interior being so shaky that after emptying the front rooms, Chief Roberts ordered the men out, fearing that the rest of the building might collapse.

     The Police Department adopted all kinds of measures to keep back the crowds of morbidly curious people, who forced their way in through the ropes and buildings in spite of every effort.  Ropes were stretched across Lawrence Street at Seventeenth and Eighteenth, and the Lawrence Street cars were compelled to run via Curtis.  A large number of special policemen were put to work to keep back the crowds, but without avail, for whenever there was a rumor that a body was found in an instant almost, the ruins in the rear of the hotel were black with people, and it was only with the greatest difficulty that the police could get them out again.

     All attempts to entirely extinguish the fire that raged in the ruins was without avail during the day.  As fast as the fire would be subdued in one section, it would gain in another.  Men were stationed at intervals over the ruins where the men were at work, pouring water into the ruins from the open mouth of the hose, without the use of a nozzle.  In the furniture store men were kept at work all day, but the stubborn fire continued to send out volumes of black smoke from under the debris, where the tangled mass of iron pipe and splintered wood supporting tons of brick, and flooring, seemed to hold the water off from the blaze.  The only way to put the fire out was to drown it out by flooding it.  This will take hours.

     Chief Pearse estimated that it would take at least three days to clear out the basement and determine fully just how many lives were lost. But a beginning had been made upon the work yesterday and until the fire is extinguished it will be necessarily slow.

INQUIRIES BY WIRE.

Chief Goulding Hears from Solicitous Relatives.

     Chief of Police Goulding received a number of telegrams concerning the victims or supposed victims of the explosion.

     One of the first of the telegrams delivered at headquarters was from B. W. Mc Closky of Cripple Creek, who asked the authorities to ascertain positively whether or not E. F. McClosky was among the lost.  After a little investigation the police answered that E. F. McClosky was not in the hotel at the time of the explosion.  Later in the day another telegram was sent from headquarters bearing the distressing news that McClosky's remains were probably at the morgue as it was thought that the unidentified body was his remains. 

     J. S. Oakes of Buffalo, N. Y., inquired by telegraph the address of Burgess, who was injured.  As Burgess is a resident of Denver it is probable that he is not the man inquired about.

     From Asa Corson of Evanston, Ill., came a telegram asking if the report that William Corson was killed was true.  The answer was to the effect that W. J. Corson was supposed to be one of the victims.

     L. M. Hopkins, father of Bud Hopkins, the young man who fell into the basement of the building but who was saved without much difficulty, inquired whether or not his son's condition was serious.  Hopkins was notified that his boy was safe.

     R. M. Reid of St. Louis, Mo., sent the following; "See if Mrs. R. M. Reid stopped at Gumry," Chief Goulding answered that Mrs. Reid's name did not appear upon the Gumry register, but that he was unable to locate her.

     F. W. Hill, Chief of Police of Chattanooga, Tenn., wired if P. Poss and daughter of that place were killed. "The name of Poss is not upon the register," was the answer sent, notwithstanding the fact that P. Poss and daughter of Chattanooga, Tenn., and E. E. Clark of Black Hawk, this state, are at the Markham Hotel, having made a hasty exit from the Gumry.  The three persons occupied front rooms at the Gumry and came away without injury.

     From William Meyers of North Indianapolis, Ind., and inquiry came asking if Charles D. Meyers or William Sayce were hurt or killed.  In reply to this Chief Goulding wrote that C. D. Meyers registered at the Gumry on Friday last and that the room he occupied Friday night was vacant Sunday night.

     Mrs. J. A. Brown or J. H. Brown in company with J. L. Kirk, both of Omaha, were killed.  Chief Goulding answered that in all probability both Kirk and Brown were dead.

     Last night Charles Netz of Winona, Minn., wired asking regarding Richard Netz, whose name was supposed to have been upon the list of injured.  Netz registered at the Gumry on the 13th instant and occupied room 5.  It is not known whether or not he was in the hotel Sunday night.

     The following telegram addressed "Mrs. John Schmittell, Gumry Hotel, Denver, Colo.," was handed over to the police last night.

     "FAIRMOUNT, Neb., Aug 19.--Robert Wolf and myself are on train.  Will arrive 7:30 a. m. H.WOLTEMADE."

     Mrs. Schmittell and her two sons, Chas. and Leo, escaped from the building and are now registered at the Windsor Hotel.  The police last night were not aware of the fact and reported that they knew nothing about Mrs. Schmittell's fate.

CLAIMING REMAINS

Families of Gumry Victims Beginning to Arrive.

     A grief stricken party consisting of W. R. Morton, train master of the Rock Island at Colorado Springs; Mrs. George F. Burt, wife of the dead conductor of the Rock Island; J. Lacy and Mrs. J. Fuller arrived from Colorado Springs yesterday and later in the day viewed the remains of the dead conductor at the morgue.  The first reports proved all too true and there was no doubt of the identity of the body that lay cold in death.  Arrangements were made last evening for funeral service, which will be held at the undertaking parlors of Farmer & Hale at 4 p. m. today.  Members of the local lodge of railway conductors will take charge and the remains will be taken to Chicago for burial.  Mr. and Mrs. J. S. Fuller and J. W. Lacy will accompany the widow to Chicago, and a sister of the deceased, Mrs. N. B. Miller, now residing at Omaha, will join the party at that city.  Mrs. Bust is almost brokenhearted, as she was devotedly attached to her husband.  There were no children to the union.

     Conductor Burt was 42 years of age and was one of the most popular conductors on the Rock Island in the state.  He was born at Sacketts Harbor, N. Y., and was educated in the public schools of Chicago.  After a course in a business college he began railroading as fireman and afterwards became baggage man and conductor, coming West on account of his wife's health six years ago.  He was connected with the Rock Island from the time of his arrival in the state and was regularly placed upon the run between Limon and Colorado Springs.  He was changed to Denver only for a few days and would have been back at his old run this week had it not been for the dread summons to another world.

     Yesterday morning when the train of Conductor Burt was backed into the Union Depot, he failed to make his appearance.  The minutes passed and still he delayed.  An hour passed before it dawned upon the officials that the faithful employee was in the cruel ruins at the Gumry.

     Financially, Conductor Burt was happily situated.  He leaves about $25,00 to his wife, $12,000 being in the form of life insurance in various railway conductors' societies.  He leaves an aged father in Cleveland, Ohio.

     Mr. Morton is especially desirous of expressing his gratitude, in behalf of the widow and the Rock Island Company, to the officers of the Police and Fire Department of this city for many courtesies shown yesterday.

     Samuel L. Lorah arrived from Central City last evening in search of his son, who went down in the wreck in company with Ferdinand French, County Treasurer of Gilpin County.  The name of the young man was Bela L. Lorah.  He was a metallurgist and leaves a wife and child who are visiting in the East.  A telegram was sent to Mrs. Lorah last evening, summoning her to Colorado.  Lorah and French occupied room 14 on the second floor in the rear of the ill-fated building.  The father of Lorah was almost distracted last night as he spoke of the loss of his son.

     Mr. French came to Denver to attend a Masonic funeral and owing to the crowded conditions of the train leaving for Central City after the Elks' carnival, he remained in the city, intending to start for home yesterday.  French was prominent in Masonic circles and was master of the Masonic lodge in Central City.  He was a resident of Gilpin County for more than twenty years, and for eight years was agent of the Union Pacific road at the town.  The loss of Mr. French will be severely felt by a wide circle of friends. 

SAVED BY THE ELKS.

To Avoid Them Hermna Lueders Went to Colorado Springs.

     Rumors were current yesterday that Herman Lueders, secretary of the Board of Capitol Managers was in the ruins at the Gumry Hotel.  Many friends of Mr. Lueders seriously called at the capitol to inquire and when they found the office of the capitol building tightly locked and nobody to give an assurance of Mr. Lueders' safety, they left the building feeling that the secretary had met an awful fate in the dread event of Sunday night.

     At 3:30 p. m. Mr. Lueders walked into the capitol.  He appeared almost overcome from the sad intelligence of the death of Superintendent Gumry and Assistant Superintendent Greiner, both of whom were warm friends of Mr. Lueders.  In addition to this the narrow escape from death he himself had made was indelibly impressed on his mind.

     Mr. Lueders is a member of the order of Elks and was urged by brethren in the order to be present at the celebration of Sunday in Arlington Park.  Mr. Lueders did not like the idea of holding such a gay festival on the Sabbath Day and he decided Saturday evening to go home to Colorado Springs and spend the Sunday instead of remaining in Denver.  He did so and the first intimation he had of the accident was through the morning papers at Colorado Springs. 

     Mr. Lueders roomed at the Gumry Hotel and had he remained to visit Arlington Park Sunday he feels that he would have gone down in the awful abyss that yawned beneath the third floor of the hotel.  His room was on the same floor with Mr. Gumry and the Greiner, on the opposite side of the hall.  Not a single living person has been succored from that fatal locality.  "When I engaged a room at the hotel," said Mr. Lueder, "I requested that I might be given a room near friends and was accordingly located directly across the hall on the third floor.  I feel that my escape from death was almost in interposition of Providence."

     Mr. Lueders wept like a child as he spoke of the death of his friends with whom he had been associated for years.  He arrived in the city from Colorado Springs in the forenoon and remained for hours in the vicinity of the ruins, looking in vain for the recovery of the body of his old friend Gumry.

(Continued next column)

THREE STATE EMPLOYEES.

Majority of the Capitol Managers' Office Force Sacrificed.

     The sad accident carried from mortal life three persons connected with the office under control of the Board of Capitol Managers.  The list embraces the names of Peter Gumry, superintendent of the capitol; Robert C. Greiner; assistant superintendent, and Burt Cook, engineer in charge of the work in progress on the capital grounds.  All work was suspended at the capitol yesterday and men stood in groups sorrowfully commenting on the unfortunate explosion and referring in broken tones to the many kindnesses that had been extended by Superintendent Gumry and his younger assistant.  The feeling of grief was too deep to be hidden and strong men who had served under Mr. Gumry for years sat in his office in the capitol and wept.  Ex-Governor Routt visited the building in the forenoon, but the old friend of the superintendent could not bear the sight of the empty chair and he withdrew to his home to meditate upon the uncertainty of human affairs.

     If Peter Gumry had any faults none of his friends and fellow-workers at the capitol though of them yesterday.  He was a man of marked peculiarities, but his genuinely honest nature, his never faltering industry and his absorbing interest in a structure to which he devoted nearly ten years of his life, made him an object of interest even to those with whom he was not intimately associated.  He was probably 65 years of age when the destroyer came.  Nobody will ever know many details concerning his history.  He sometimes described himself as a waif picked up at sea when an infant a year and a half old and brought to America.  He said he knew not his nationally, his parentage or his age.  He learned architecture and lived for years in Chicago, being associated with F. E. Edbrooke, now of Denver, in that city.  Thirty years or more ago he came West and prospected at different times through the mountains.  He last vacation was spent along the Grand Canon of the Colorado on a prospecting trip.

     Secretary Lueders, who met Mr. Gumry daily for years is of the opinion that he leaves a large estate which has but few encumbrances.  He leaves houses and lots in Denver, mines in different parts of Colorado and valuable investments in different parts of the West. An old fashioned wooden trunk in the vault at the Capitol will give interesting information concerning the dead superintendent.  Mr. Gumry built the county court house, the Chamber of Commerce building and the Broadway Hotel.  His interest in the capitol was so great that he never failed to visit the building after supper in the evening and spent the Sunday looking over plans and arranging for a new week's operations.  He was in the building twice on the day of his death.  Members of the capitol board frequently remarked; "Mr. Gumry, your monument is the capitol building and here you should be buried."

     He was a man of the most abstemious habits and neither drank intoxicating liquors nor used tobacco.  It is claimed he was never in the barroom of his own hotel.  It is not known whether he has a relative living and his friends do not believe he took time to make a will.  He received a salary of $300 a month, as superintendent of the capitol and was connected with the building since 1883, when the first excavation was made.

     Robert C. Greiner was a man of rare personal attractiveness and in his estimable wife he found a helpmeet fully worthy of the entire affection of a good man.  Mr. Greiner was native of Michigan and leaves in that state a father, step-mother and step-sister, residing near Grand Rapids.  The report that the elder Greiner perished in the wreck was a mistake, as he is known to be on the family farm in Michigan.  A wealthy uncle is also living near the lakes.  Mr. Greiner was about 42 years of age and came to Colorado in 1878.  He was a surveyor, and architect and an electrician of acknowledged ability.  His marriage to Mrs. Greiner occurred fifteen years ago and friends saw in the couple a perfect exemplification of happiness in the married state.  Mrs. Greiner was ten or twelve years younger than her husband and was a woman of strikingly handsome and intelligent appearance.  The couple accepted the management of the hotel at the request of Mr. Gumry and made a success of it.  Mr. Greiner was a genial, handsome man.  He superintended several structures under the county commissioners and of recent years devoted his main study to electricity.  He had a fine collection of minerals and curiosities at the hotel which was constantly increased by additions from friends.  He received a salary of $6 a day for his services at the capitol.

     A few weeks ago the mother of Mrs. Greiner died in the room at the Gumry which was the last breathing place of the assistant superintendent and his wife.  The remains were taken to Michigan for burial.

     Mr. Greiner was a member of Blue Lodge No. 7, A. F. and A. M. , in this city.

     Burt Cook, engineer of the capitol grounds, came from Fairplay a few weeks ago and was little known outside of the superintendent's office in the capitol.  He was a young man of good habits and of ability in his chosen field. 

FIREFIGHTING NOT POLITICS

Ward Workers Display the White Feather and Downright Laziness.

     The work of the fire department at the scene of the explosion yesterday morning was commented upon to a considerable extent by the people who visited the ruins.  The alarm was turned in while the floors of the Gumry were crashing to the ground.  The apparatus of the central division of the department arrived quickly, but some time elapsed before the real horror of the catastrophe was appreciated by those in charge of the companies that were on hand.

     Ten minutes elapsed before the big ladder upon the Hayes truck was raised in front of the building, and owing to this loss of time nearly all of the persons upon the upper floors of the standing portion of the building were compelled to descend the stairs, which were twisted out of shape by the shock.  Detective John Leyden and Special Policeman Peter Dailey were among the first to ascend the stairs, and they did brave work in rescuing the inmates of the rooms who were so terrified by the crash that they were unable to help themselves.  From the third and fourth, and top floors Leyden and Dailey led a number of people from the rooms to the stairs.  As the smoke began to rise and fill the half of the house that remained intact the situation was critical, as there was danger that the inmates would be suffocated.

     Leyden and Dailey were followed by a large force of rescuers who, by making the most desperate efforts, managed to save persons who otherwise would have been stifled to death.

    The smoke was rolling from the windows when the first ladder was placed against the facade.  To the witnesses the time that was lost seemed an age.  The situation in the alley where crews of a couple of wagons were attempting to work was worse than that at the front end of the building.  The firemen in entering the alley found that electric wires were hanging from the poles.  There was some doubt whether or not the wires hung in such a manner as to endanger the lives of the fireman.

     Work upon the ruins was not begun until these wires were safely put aside.  Strange to say, the smoke that afterwards caused the firemen so much trouble did not break out in the debris to any great extent for nearly ten minutes.  Brave work was done by the firemen and all that individual effort could do was performed by them.  There seemed, however, to be as much excitement among the firemen as in the crowd of citizens that rushed into the alley, never heeding warning to keep out of the way of the wires. The inability of the rescuers to save those beneath the timbers and brick was due probably to the fact that an united effort was not made at any on particular point in the ruins.

     The work of the department, as described by onlookers, indicated that there was great need for some men who had not secured this kind of employment by political pull.

     During the day several firemen working on the ruins of the building narrowly escaped death.  The first accident of the day occurred about 6 o'clock yesterday morning when Frank Johnston, a fireman, was assisting his companions in moving boards through a window of Lillyblade's furniture house.  A jagged section of a pane of glass fell upon Johnston's left forearm, cutting a gash three inches long.  The wound was sewed and Johnston went to work again.

     At 1:30 o'clock in the afternoon the first fireman who was overcome by the smoke was carried from the ruins to the alley.  A.  Mengini of hose No. 5 was working in the ruins when a great volume of black smoke rolled forth.  He succeeded in crawling out, but after his experience he was so weak that he could scarcely stand.  He was taken to the city hall, where Surgeon Jarecki attended him.  Mangini's eyes were badly injured, but it is though that his sight will not be impaired.

    At 4 p. m., Silas Johnson, fireman hose No. 3, was prostrated by the smoke.  His eyes were damaged by the dust as well as the smoke.  It will be some time before he will recover entirely.

     At 7 p. m. J. E. Troy, fireman hose No 3, living at 1201 Evans Street, was taken to the police surgeon's office.  He suffered severely on account of his eyes which were badly inflamed.  He was attended to and sent to his home.

LOSS AND INSURANCE

Claim That There Is No Liability Under the Policies for Fire Damages

    The insurance upon the Gumry amounted to $24,500, divided between companies represented by Brannen & Kellog and Paul B. Gaylord.  It was divided as follows:

Germania of Freeport, Ill.............................$1,000

New York Underwirters' Agency..............$3,000

Lancashire, England...................................$3,000

Scottish Union of Scotland.......................$5,000

London and Lancashire.............................$1,000

Springfield....................................................$1,000

On Furniture:

Liverpool, London and Globe...................$5,000

Willisburgh City of Brooklyn....................$2,500

     The insurance on the McMann building is $28,000, carried in companies represented by Brennan & Kellogg, the list of which could not be gotten at yesterday.

     On the furniture stock carried by August Lillyblade in the McMann building, there was $9,000. insurance, carried by Thompson & Benedict, and divided as follows:

Home of New York.......................................$3,000

Phoenix of Hartford......................................$1,500

National of Hartford.....................................$1,000

Imperial of London.......................................$1,500

Hanover of New York..................................$2,000

     It was reported at first that the boilers in the Gumry were insured, which would have covered the loss by explosion, but inquiry among the boiler insurance companies developed the fact that the boilers were not insured.  Mr. W. A. McGrew, agent for the Hartford Boiler Insurane Company, reports that he has made several attempts to have the boilers insured, but the proprietors had steadily refused, and the last time he pressed the proprietors to allow him to insure the boiler, they grew somewhat indignant and refused to even allow him to see the boilers.

     The insurance men claim that the fire will be light, and take the position that their policies do not cover the loss by explosion, but only the damage by fire.

     The value of the Gumry building was estimated at $35,000 and the furniture at $10,000, nearly a total loss.  The value of the McMann building is estimated to be $30,000, with $15,000 worth of furniture in stock.  The damage to the building is about $2,000, and the loss to the furniture about $5,000.

SECOND EXPLOSION

Tailor Shop Torn to Pieces Yesterday Morning.

     As told in an extra edition of The News yesterday morning, a store numbered 1720-31 Welton Street, was demolished by the exploding of a can of gasoline.  The store was occupied by W. T. Crean, a plumber and L. Rosenthal, a tailor.

     The explosion occurred at 5:30 o'clock.  Rosenthal, proprietor of the tailoring establishment was cast out into the alley by the force of the deadly gasoline.  He was picked up and taken to headquarters and was later removed to the county hospital.  He was badly burned, but has good chances of recovery.  The building was a one-story brick.

     A report that George Meyers was the victim of the accident was unfounded.

Additions of Nov 7, 2003

 MURPHY'S BODY

     At 2:45 this morning the body of James Murphy was discovered.  The remains were laying head downward, as if the bed had gone down first, throwing deceased against the headboard.  A trunk was across the bed.  Indications of a woman's body were evident abut the same time and it was expect that another corpse would be exposed within a few minutes. 

PLATE GLASS LOSSES

    Lawrence Street, from Seventeenth to Eighteenth, is covered with broken plate glass.  Scarcely a building on the south side of the street escaped loss of windows.  The Santa Fe office, on the corner lost one large pane.  The Davis Photo Stock house, 1720 Lawrence, lost one pane.  The Mayer Hardware company, next door to Davis', lost two panes.  A. L. Deane & Co., the bicycle house, lost every bit of glass in front.  Ward-Sampson, auctioneers and commission, lost all their front glass, and the front windows of Parrott's second hand store at 1740, were wrecked.  About every other window of the second story on Lawrence Street, fronting the Gumry, was broken, though the smaller panes seemed to stand the shock better than the larger plate glass.

     Around on Larimer Street, the front windows of Ford's Delicatessen, at 1746 were blown out.  Windows were also broken at 1728, a vacant storeroom, the Princeton cafe, at 1718 and Gyra's beer hall, 1717 across the street.

CLOTHING OF THE DEAD

     At about 2 o'clock this morning the party working in the ruins came upon a lot of clothing, the garments of a man, which had been thrown off when re retired for the night.  In the pockets of the vest were found cards on which were printed: "Fred Hubbold, Lisbon, Iowa.  Manager Opera House." A fine gold watch and some money were also in the pockets, besides letters, papers, etc.

     The woman's clothing found earlier was identified as belonging to Mrs. Greiner.  The roll of money was found to contain $85, and with it were a number of photographs of Mrs. Greiner.  The latter led to the identification of the clothing.

WANTED A FRONT ROOM

     Bud Burns of the Crane Elevator company, was one of those who narrowly escaped death.  "I called for a room," said he, "and the clerk said he would give me a back room.  'No,' I replied, 'I guess I'll take the same room I had before.'  He accordingly assigned me to room number 3, near the elevator.  Had I taken a back room I would have been down there with the rest of them."

     Burns says when the crash came a beam of wood fell across his legs and the plastering left the ceiling.  He lifted the wooden beam, pulled open the door, drawing the transom down with it and reached the pavement in a half dazed condition.

ONE SECOND FROM ETERNITY.

     T. S. Rowan of Lake City was in a room on the fifth floor, about the middle of the building.  He lives today to tell of a hairbreadth escape from the jaws of death.  He was not injured by the first shock and had the good luck to leave the room before it crumbled in a splintered mass to the cellar.  A woman's voice called for help but it was sure death to attempt to rescue and Mr. Rowan says he crossed the line just in time to remain on this side of eternity.

PUEBLO INTERESTED.

     Citizens of that City Supposed to Have Been in the Holocaust on Sunday Night.

Special to The News.

PUEBLO, Colo., Aug 19--W. J. Corson, whose name is in the list of the killed at the Gumry disaster, was a coal dealer, 32 years old, and had lived in Pueblo five or six years.  He leaves a wife, who is completely prostrated, and two children, 3 and 9 years old.

     A. L. Blake was the oldest son of the late Charles H. Blake, a Colorado pioneer, for whom Blake Street, Denver, was named.  He was 28 or 30 years old, and was raised on a ranch near this city.  Of late he has made his home at Florence, where his wife and two children now are.  He was in Denver endeavoring to get marble from his quarry used in the state capitol.

     S. A. Abey, who is reported to be missing, was a citizen of Pueblo and served as Chief of Police for two years previous to last April. He was 40 years of age and single.  In years past Mr. Abey served as postmaster of Pueblo and under sheriff of Pueblo County.  He is said to have occupied room 14 at the time of the disaster.  George F. West and other friends of Mr. Abey have gone to Denver to investigate as to whether the latter was in the ill-fated hotel.

SERIES OF FATALITIES

E. F. McClosky of Cripple Creek Belonged to a Family that Met with Violent Deaths.

Special to The News.

CRIPPLE CREEK, COLO., Aug. 19--E. F. McClosky, one of the victims of the Gumry Hotel horror, was a prominent merchant of this city.  He served the town faithfully and honestly as alderman for the past two years.  The history of his family is a chapter of violent deaths and accidents.  Eight years ago his daughter Hattie, 14 years of age, was thrown from a buggy and instantly killed at Peabody, Kan.  A few months later, Fred, the oldest son, accidentally shot himself, but survived the injury.  After moving to Colorado Springs Ben, another son, while working as night clerk in the Alta-Vista hotel, accidentally put a ball through his left arm.  Last April Clarence, a bright boy of 15 years, was drowned. Two months later Mrs. McClosky was burned to death at Colorado Springs and her daughter, Viola was badly injured in trying to save her mother.  In the summer of 1896 the family residence in this city was reduced to ashes with its entire contents.

Next: Continuing on Day Two:

Central City Mourns

Union Pacific Man

Fire Fragments

Narrow Escapes for Travelers