The Toledo chronicle. [volume] (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1873-1924, 1874-09-24
A TERRIBLE CALAMITY.
Burning OF . Cotton Mill at Fall
River, Mass.-Several Lives Lost.

River, Mass.-Scveral Lives Lost.
By the burning of large cotton mill
at Fall River, Mass, on the 10Th, several
operatives lost their lives and many more
were fatally injured by jumping from the
windows. The operatives at work in the
fifth story were penned in by the flames,
and, bewildered; refused tp avail them
selves of the 6e-escape& A dispatch
from Boston on the night Of the 10Th
gives the following particulars:
Mills Nos. l and 2, of the Granite
Works, Fall River, had been running
about twenty minutes when the opera
| tives in No. were startled with the cry
Of fire and the escape of smoke from the
fourth story. In this, next to the upper
floor, was the mule-warp spinning depart
ment, and there were nearly 100 girls at
work, under male overseer. On the
upper floor, the fifth, about thirty girls
were employed, spooling and warping
cotton. These were the youngest of the
operatives. With the alarm the flames
seemed to leap to tbs attic, coming
from the windows tse>g and up the
great tower in the ce.S toa'.hse building,
IN which were serienca sommanl-
4 y. .
| in the mule-spinning-room, in the north
| west corner of the mill, from friction in
a mule-head, and spreading, by means of
| oil on the floor and about the machinery,
with great quickness, rushed toward
the center tower the only means of es-
cape for those in the fourth and fifth
stories besides four fireescapes,
two on each gable end. Once getting
into the tower, the flames ran up to and
through the single entrance to the fifth
story, then, springing to the roof timbers,
filled the two great rooms, 450x90 feet,
with dense black smoke and flame
While the flames were making such ter
rlble headway the operatives became
fairly wild. I he overseers saw there was
no way possible to check the fire, and
gave their sole attention to those whom
they had at work. They called to
them to save themselves, and pointed
out ways of escape, principally fire-lad
ders. The overseer of the spoolng room,
who remained till nearly suffocated,
states that the scene in his room-and it
must have been worse in the room be-
low-cannot be depicted. Children ran
about crying and begging piteously to
be saved, yet wrenching themselves
away when taken forcibly to the tower
while yet there was some chance, or
to the iron ladder that reached
two of the scuttlewindows of the
south end opening upon the roof of
the balcony at the head of the Twelfth
street fire ladders 1t was impossible to
get the great majority to take this method
to save theiI lives. Some wanted cloth
ing, others something else AS the fire
frightened them away from these lad
ders they rushed to the windows at the
south gable end, nearly sixty feet
from the ground, but dared not
jump down. Cotton ropes were
put out for them to slide down by, |
but no sooner would rope be lowered |
than there was rush for it from below.
Too many would take hold, when it
would break, and all clinging to it would !
come down in bunch. Similar scenes
were going on in the mule spinning |
room. The flames had ascended rapidly I
to the entrance of the tower on
the fourth floor, cutting off their
means of escape, but the operatives had
two ladders of the south gable directly |
before them, and were urged by the |
overscers and citizens below to take |
them Some did, but others rushed |
headlong upon the balcony and dropped |
or threw themselves from the guards. !
There was ample time for every one to |
have been saved had the girls taken the |
course directed.
Fall River dispatches of the Goth say |
the number of killed would reach twenty, |
missing three, and wounded-several |
fatally-bptWeen thirty and FORTY