THE AMERICAN CALAMITY

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 97, 17 January 1908, Page 6

THE AMERICAN CALAMITY

THEATRE HOLOCAUST. ■ 1 CLOSED BUILDING BE-LICENSJED. ' 0T TELEGRAPH—SPECIAL COBEESPOHIiKNT.) . Auckland, January 16. The Rhodes Opera House, tha scone .of th« terrible, lire .disaster reported in tha NeW . York cablegrams, which resulted in 16f deaths, was a small wooden building, audi though' dignified by tho name of "Oporf Houso," was really nothing but a hall. Mr, Salmon, of Salmon and Chester, sketch an tists,. now appearing in Auckland, hy played in Boycrton, and, in describing hall to-day, stated that it was 0110 oftV small and antiquated halls which were closa after tho great Iroquois Theatre . fire' i . Chicago, when hundreds of halls were close! in various parts of tho country, owing to tW exits in the evont of panic being insufficient In three or four. months tho danger wa forgotten, and, the grafters gottinc to work tho application of sufficient palm oil m the ro-issuo of tho liconso ■ without any., thing heme effected in tho way of improve monts, with tho inevitable result. The fact that tho hall was small an/ out of date is proved by the cabled staU ment that the footlights wcro oil lamps, fol in all up-to-dato buildings in that part ol 1 ennsylvama eithor natural gas or electricity is tho light medium. Boyerton has a popula. tion, of about 4000, and tho Rhodos Hall would hold about 1000 people. Although th( licensing of such "shackes," as .the Amer* cans call them, was secured without adoquat< exits, the strictest regard, for tho safety o{ ° tho audienccwas insisted upon in the mail theatros, and tho principal theatre in Boycrv ton is well provided with ample exits. Ther< is 110. danger in any of the big amusemenf placoS. The destroyed hall was largely used for dancing purposes. Mr. Salmon is of opinion that it was the calcium light and not a cinematograph that caused the panic. Evidently the connecting tuba broke off tho reservoir, and the compressed gas, escaping through the aporturcj made a noiso like tho hissing of flamo, and frightened tho audience to such an oxtont that a panic immediately followed.