Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1872-05-19
COAL-Ou HORROR.
The Worst Disaster Yet A whole
Family Burned.
A Gallon OF COal-Oil Exploded On a
Stove, and Four Children burned.

Family Burned.
Gallon of COal-Oil Exploded On a
Stove, and Four Children Burned.
Another Fearful Warming to those who
Use "NOn-ExPIosiVe OIL"
At six o'clock yesterday evening the
most disastrous and heart-rending acci-
dent from coal-Oil that ever occurred in
Memphis startled the dwellers on Rob
eson street and brought feeling OF
sickening horror to the bosoms of all
who witnessed the effects of the disaster.
a whole family of innocent little chill
dren were literally burned up, some Of
them done to a cinder. No ordinary
newspaper account, written in the hurry
of reportorial habit, is at all adequate to
do justise to the scene that Mortified the
beholders of this most fearful accident.
To simply tell the tale, however, is in
itself sufficiently tragic to move all
hearts capable of any feeling or SYM
pathy with human suffering.
THE HOUSE
in which the accident took place is 104
Robson street, between Winchester
avenue and Hill street, a small frame
comprising two rooms and kitchen,
with a good size yard in front and in
the rear. 1t was occupied by Henry
Frank, a German, who worked as ma
chinist in the Foundry of Messrs. Ran
dali & Heath. Mr.. Frank has been in
this country some time, but the family,
consisting of five children, are here but
five months. Last winter they came
here from SaXOny, and went to house
keeping at 104, next door to Mr.. John
Lilly. They are represented as having
been an exemplary family in every
way. The children were particularly
good, quiet, industrious, and sweet in
temper and manner. The mother of
the family had
GONE To MARKET
about five o'clock, and an hour or so
afterward the little nousekeeper Nina,
who was a sort of a mother to the other
members of the family, thought it time
to make fire and prepare for supper
She started the fire, but finding that it
did not burn up as briskly as she de-
sired. She got a gallon can of cOal-oil
and poured some of it on the shoulder
ing embers in the stove. She must have
left the can standing on the top of the
stove in her hurry to look after the other
children or to do something of pressing
necessity. In the meantime the fire
blazed up, the oil in the can was brought
in contact with the flames and
AN EXPLOSION
followed which the neighbors say was
like the sound of a cannon or a blast in
a mine. -Four of the children were in
the kitchen at the time. The gallon of
oil being scattered by the explosion over
the floor and over the children at once,
the whole kitchen was in a flame. The
screening and excitement was great.
The work of ruin was short. A police
man who lives out on that street rushed
into the house and found the children in
the midst of the flames. Nina, the most
heroic Of children, was, regardless of her
own sUfferings, trying to tear the burn
ing garments from the body Of the
youngest girl, a little thing of only two
years or a little over. The other chill
dTen's clothing was atiame.
THE HEROIslI OF LOVE.
hllld " d. llkb OuG A4cbEdCltus Dut II
a lovely girl of eleven or twelve, with
sense beyond her years, and was en-
gagged in succOring her brothers and sis
ters, but was particularly anxious for
the youngest. Finding that the 9TH
er two would be succOred by the good
policeman, she caught up the youngest
in her arms and rushed into the back
yard with it. Both of them were burn
ing. Mr.. Lilly says that she had not a
shred of clothing on her save the light
body of her dress around the waste, and
that was burned to a cinder. The little
heroine, even in that condition, was not
Of herself, her thoughts and
were entirely centered on the
child in her arms. Here" said she,
''for Gods sake save the baby.n The
baby was beyond all aid that could
be given by human hands. Its face was
as black as a coal, the eyes seemed
as if they had been blown out by the
explosion and Mrs. Lilly thought it was
dead. 1t was only five or ten minutes
when it was heard crying
that the neighbOrs thought there was
life in it. The other two children boy
nine years old and a girl between seven
and eight, had their clothes burned Off
and were badly mUtilated from the eff
fects of the flames. Nothing can equal
the heroic conduct Of the girl, Nina, in
the midst of this great disaster. She
was fOrgetful Of self, never once thought
of self, but devoted herself entirely to
the succOr of the others. Except the
child she was the worst burnt of the
whole, but her sweetness of disposition
and her extraordinary love for her
brothers and sisters were of the in
tensest kind. No such devotion in
girl of her years is known in this city.
1t We're a pity that she should die, for
this wicked world needs the example of
such angels. Before the excitement had
THE DISTRACTED MOTHER
from the market. With the
Instinct which belongs to women who
have families, she said she apprehended
the danger while she was yet on Poplar
street, and hastened her steps toward
that sorrowful sight. 1t was not neces-
saTy for her to enter the house to be in
formed of the full extent of the disaster.
Her wOman's heart defined all before
she got inside the gate. 1t was perfectly
heart-rending to the sympathetic neigh
bOrS to see the poor woman, not able to
speak any English, overwhelmed in her
sorrow at the ruin of her little, promis
ing, beautiful family that had crossed
the ocean with her from Saxony, who
We're so loving, so kind, so obedient
toward her. No one can conceive her
great agony, Only one of her five prom
ising flowers was uninjured. DR.. Saun-
ders was promptly at the house, for
the policeman went for him and re-
turned in a few minutes. The good Doc
tor gave all the assistance in his power,
but could not save 'my baby;n that
little sufferer died in an hour or so.
Nina, the heroic girl was burned over
fve-siXths of her body. The regions of
the stomach We're particularly injured.
The other little girl was also badly
burned, but the boy, some nine years old
was not so badly injured, and the doc
tor thinks he may live. Nina remained
with the infant at the house, but the
other two children, while still burning,
ran to the house of a German neighbor
q few doors down the street, where the
Doctor attended to them subsequently,
DIR. Saunders despairs of Nina and
Anna, but thinks the boy may live.
When the father arrived home, be
found his house in a state of confusion,
his little ones all scattered and burned,
the house Cup side down" as it were,
and the mother in state of distraction
more easily imagined than described. It
was house of agony last night. One
infant lay dead IN one room-in another
Nina lay stretched out on a bed of tor
ture, most every part of her flesh being
burned. At a neighbours house two
others were suffering agony, being
burned most severely. Later in the
night a German doctor waited on the
family and attended to their wants, and
in conjunction with the neighbors made
the family feel as comfortable as could