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Show FAMOUS COPELAND HOTEL TO THE GROUND I. E. Lambert, One of the Most Prominent Men of Kansas, Is Missing ( Several of the 150 Guests, AH of Whom Escaped, Were Seriously Injured Many Thrilling Rescues Loss $100,000 I these places, hot rolls and coffee were rerved this morning. So many persons applied for shelter at the charities bureau in East 26th street that It was found necessary to convert the steam- j er Thomas P. Brennnn of the depart-mtnt. depart-mtnt. into a temporary floating place r.f refuge. One hundred and llfty men fouml a place to sleep on this vessel. After attending to scores who were injured by falls during the. night, tho hospitals began today receiving additional ad-ditional victims of various street accidents ac-cidents caused by slippery pavements. Topeka. Kan , Jan. 11 The Cope-land Cope-land hotel, the famous stopping place for legislators and politicians, situated situat-ed at Ninth and Kansas avenue, one biock from the state capltol, was destroyed de-stroyed by fire that started shortly after 4 o'clock this morning. Every room was occupied, the guests numbering num-bering about one hundred, anions them many persons of prominence throufihout the state. The Haines tpread with such remarkable rapidity that most of the occupants wero forced forc-ed to make their escape by way or tho fire escapes. Many Jumped to save their lives and received more or less j serious injuries I A dozen persons were injured, suffering suf-fering broken limbs and brulsc-s and one person is missing. The missing: I. E. Lambert of Emporia, a prominent prom-inent politician. The injured include: - Mrs. W. Y. Morgan, wife of the editor edi-tor of the Hutchinson News, and formerly for-merly state printer, ankle broken. W. C. Murray. Kansas City, Kan.; life insurance agent, broken ankle and bruises. Den T. Murdock, Eldorado. Kan.; well known editor; slight. A. W. Smith. McPherson. Kan.; former for-mer Republican candidate lor the governorship, gov-ernorship, ankle broken. H. A. Rowland McPherson, three rib;-: broken. Mrs. B. L. Thompson. Ilerrington, tack injured. Representatives S. C. Wescoti, Cherokee Che-rokee county, back and ankle wrenched. wrench-ed. If. G. Bonp, state board of control, Topeka, back sprained G. W. Goodlander, Fort Scott, leg hurt. Paul Rich. Coolidge, back, Bide and "arm" mjureT." I AV. A. Elstun, Mollne, sprains and j bruises, H. C. Bowman, Newton, ankle and j back sprained. i Ex-Senator G. H. Lamb, Yates Cen-1 fre, internal injuries, severely bruis-, td. Fire Chief Wilmarth. Topeka, head cut. J. W. Davis. Greensburg, overcome by smoke. The Copeland hotel was of brick construction, four stories in height. It was one of the oldest hostelries in the state. It had a roomy lobby and wide hallways hall-ways and was plentifully supplied with fire escapes. The main stairway, however, how-ever, was built around the elevator and the flames shooting up the shatt toon shut off this means of escape. J-.very room was occupied, the guests being made up principally of members Army of the Republic lor Kansas and onco a candidate for governor on tho Republican ticket, and H. W. Rowland, also of McPherson, were sleeping in a. room on the fourth floor. The two made a ladder of their bod clothing and suspended It from the window. , Each in turn descended as Tar as possible pos-sible on the rope ladder and dropped I to the ground. Smith crashed into an arcaway. striking on a railing. He sustained sus-tained a broken ankle and internal ir. juries. Rowland followed Smith down the ladder and also fell. Ho was picked up unconscious and both wero taken to the hospital. There it was found that Smith's condition was serious. Rowland suffered three ribs broken. Webb McNalU of Smith county, former for-mer state superintendent of Insurance, Insur-ance, likewise made a sensational escape. es-cape. McNali was sleeping in a room on the third floor ia the Tront part ot the building. In tho room with him was a suit case containing $35-000 ot Kansas municipal bonds, the property of a fraternal organization, and Just purchased for it by a committee ot which McNali was a member. McNali Mc-Nali waited patiently in the front window win-dow of his room while the fireman ana spectators below were mailing frantic efforts to get a ladder up to the window. win-dow. The first ladder was too short, A fireman had in the meantime reached reach-ed a fire escape ten feet from the window win-dow ledgo. There he waited until another an-other ladder was sent up to h1ra. I Holding this across the gap. the fireman fire-man supported McNali while the latter lat-ter climbed to the first ladder, and to safety. McNali first had thrown his treasured suitcase to the ground. Thomas Benton Murdock. the veteran vet-eran editor of the Eldorado Republican, Republi-can, occupied, a .rooha . on. the street side of the fourth floor. Awakened by the cries of fire, he found escape cut off by the hallway and climbed ' out of the window and hung suspended from the ledge. Soon his room-mate ! handed out a blanket, and down this j I Improvised ladder Editor Murdock ; slid, finally dropping to the ioor of : an adjoining building. He was only ' clightly hurt. Ex Governor G. "W. ' Glick was carried down a ladder from I the third floor and escaped without i iujury. ! W. Y. Morgan, a member of the leg-! leg-! Islature and editor of the Hutchinson ! News, and his wife were among the i guests. Both escaped with their lives. but Mrs. Morgan sustained a broken I le6- . , 1. E. Lambert, of Emporia, who Is ! btiieved to have been burned to I death, was one of the best known men in the state. For eight years he was -postmaster at Emporia and for four ' - T - Ht.l Ofn.- ,Hctrlot ui nits it-gibiaiiii k, tutu lajjiiucs um c-ther prominent persons in the state ' here to attend the opening of the Bix- teenlh biennial session. The fire j started in the lower part of the build-ii.g. build-ii.g. a few minutes after 4 o'clock from Fome cause as yet unknown. Tne jears no was uimcu -i-a.i-- o v..-"-. - attorney for the eastern district of j Kansas" having been appointed by j President McKlnley. He was assist-i assist-i ant attorney for the Santa. Ke Rail' j way company for the district cover- ing southeastern Kansas. uaiin-s miui up iiuictuy a. i hi ufioiu mi r.larm could be turned In, were fast I making their way up the wide corrl- dors and filling the open spaces with j smoke. When Ihe fire apparatus arrived ar-rived on the scene It was apparent that the structure was doomed. A dozen guests appeared at the upper up-per windows prepared to jump, when .pressed too hard by the flames, while others mado their way through tho halls and down to the street through the dense smoke orAciambored down the fire escapes. The .firemen were to make headway' in fighting the flames and presently guests began Jumping from "the windows on alt i sides. Fortunately the ground was covered with. snow and this partially broke tho fall of the frightened people. But few were able to save their personal per-sonal belongings. Within an hour after af-ter the fire started, the hotel was a - complete loss, only the walls remaining. remain-ing. C. The hotel was owned by J. C. Gordon. Gor-don. The loss Is estimated at $100,-flOO, $100,-flOO, Insurance about $45,000. Thw origin of the flrejis thought to havo U-'tn a defective electrict light who In the storeroom. , The building was situated oiie block from the state capltol and was one cf the oldest hotels in Kansas. Henry Wells, the colored prter. was the first to learn of the lire. ' A P'oment later, William Jenkins, the; night-watchman, and Wells began a 1 systematic trip throuph the house, waking the guests. Men, women and children, scantilly clad, were soon crowding the upper halls. About halt of the one hundred and fifty guests ! ruanaged to get to the lower rioor and out and through the Trout and side doors before the stairway was cut off Kalf a dozen wero forced to jump from windows, while the others were rescued by firemen from th window or the hotel, tops of adjoining buildings build-ings to which they had jumped, and 1'om fire escape landing3. Most of the guests got out or the. huilding only in their night clothes. The, ground was covered with snow and the refugees trampeil barefooted nnd scantily clad to the Y. M. C. A. building and nearby drug stores.where the injured were cared Tor. There were many thiilling escapes. A. W. Smith, of McPherson, former department commander of the Grand |