The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1874-10-17
A Curious Story from Maine About the
Fall River Fire.

The editor of the Brunswick (Me. }
Telegraph, himself a trustworthy man,
in the issue of his paper for last week,
tells the following:
On Monday last we called on Mr..
John Fitzgerald, the we'll known tenn
perance lecturer, diving on Bank street, }
but still able to converse briefly with
friends who call At this interview he
related to us remarkable experience,
for so we will call it, through which he
passed on Saturday moi1ng, 18th ult.,
the day upon which the fire occurred in
Fall River, Mass. Mrs. Fitzgerald had
arraigned her husband for his morning
nap, and left to enter the stable,
Ill the rear of the house and attached
thereto; almost as soon as she had pass
ed into the building she heard the cry
of % fire, in tones so startling that she
rushed back to the house i'll the great
est alarm, to hear her husband repeat
the cry in tones as loud as the first call
all the more startling to her as for
several days he had spoken not above a
whisper; he was evidently greatly ex-
cited, catching at the bed-clothes, and
attempting to get out of bed-saying he
must have his clothing. Mrs. Fitzger-
aid asked her husband "What does this
mean ?"
''Wife, says Mr.. Fitzgerald, "there
a fire i'll a factory i'll Fall River,
Mass, in the upper story, the mule
room; [ see the spaaks flying from the
machinery as sparks fly from a grind
stone when men are grinding their
tools, and the factory is full of women
and children. [ see it all
Mr.. Fitzgerald remarked that his wife
must tell lis the rest, which she did sub
stantially as follows in us brief a
from rs possible, as our only object is
take plain recital of what we heard III
the course of conversation. Mrs. Fitz-
gerald then went on to remark that her
husband all the time was endeavoring
to get up from his bed to escape the
fire, saying that it was near to him and
he must assist the poor people-close
that door into the entry or the women
and children will be burned to death
an old sailor he could rig better lad
der than that-splice this, splice that T.
don't Jump from the windows, this eX-
preston of-repeated,) for it Is only
choice Of death between fire
and being crushed upon the pave.
ment-to the firemen, why do you dc
this and why do you do that those
poor women and little children filling
the room, and, yet, the laws Of Massa
chusetts forbid the employment i'll fac
| tories of children under certain age.
Mrs. Fitzgerald was alone with her hus
band, and eXerted her utmost strength
to keep him in bed. 1t seemed to hel
almost an age, but she took no note OF
the time All at once Mr.. Fitzgerald
fell back upon the pillow and said: 81
is all over; the roof has fallen in, and
those poor people are burned. " After
that he was completely Frustrated
and Mrs. Fitzgerald for some time
feared that he would not recover from
the shock.
Mr.. Fitzgerald said he never though
of looking at his watch, but that he saw
the fire in the morning, somewhere
from 7 to 9 o'clock. 1t was not unit
Monday that Mrs. fitzgerald heard o
the fire, and not until Tuesday, ODD
that she got paper containing an &C
count of it. This she read to her hus
hand; he several times stopped her anC
told her what was to come Ill the news
paper account, as he had seen it all.
Subsequently Mr.. Fitzgerald repeated
somewhat, and said: 81 saw the fire
but somehow | could not tell the build
ing, and it must be factory put VI
since | was acquainted with Fall River.
He has often lectured there