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Show HUNDRED PERISH IN THEATRE FIRE Victims Were Attending Benefit for Sunday School When Flames Caused Wild Panic. In Addition to the Heavy Lets of Life, Three Ssere Were Injured, Many of the Unfsrtunste Ones De Ing Member ef Leading Families ef the Town Iloyertown Pa Nearly one bun dreil person In thl liorouxh were killed In a theater fire and panic Mon day night and nearly three score In Jured, many of them fatally A ma Jorlly of the hilled were members of the leading families ot the town While the Scottish Reformation" wbji being reproduced In llhoades opera house by Mr Monroe of Washington, Wash-ington, n tsnk used In a moving picture pic-ture ccne exploded and Immediately there waa a wild rush for the eilta ot the building Men of mature years rndeavore I to still the panic but their voice could not be heard ntxive the shriek and screams ot the terrlllftd women and children, who composed the greater part of the audlvnce It seemed as though nearly tho entire en-tire audience madu a mad rush for the exit the moment the explosion occurred In their attempt to quiet the great crowd those person who were un tho stage accidentally upeet the coal-oil lamp need nt tho fnotllght Iho burning nil scnlteied In nil direction, nnd the lump which were oted to light the oxira bouao xploded, throw lug the biasing oil over the terror strloken peopli, Mho were fighting frantically to gain tho exit In the mad rush n section of the door gavo way proclpltallng score ot persons to the basement It was senrrily five minute from the time of tho explosion of the tank until the intlre heart of Iho strurture seemed i roaring furnace There was a mad scramblo to thu stairway and core of women and children were knocked down nnd trampled upon, many of them doublli being crushed to death Al least llfty persons, real lilng that exit by the stairway meant nlmiMt pertain iIaaIIi rlakeil their lives by Jumping from tho windows I Imbs wero broken and ikull wiro crushed by this during method ot escape. |
