The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1881-01-06

Several were injured in making their
escape and were sent to the Cham
bers' Street Hospital.
The scene ofthe dreadful holocaust,
The like of which has not occurred in
Ibis city since The tenement house
fire which occurred more than
year ago, and the dreadful terrors
of the hall calamity about the same
time, Is approached through a mar
row alley hardly wide enough to
allow the Passage of policeman.
Between the two tall tenements,
Nos. 80 and 81. Madison street, in
front of 70. is James Doyle's LIQUOR
store. Its back door opens directly
upon the narrow hallway in rear of
The tenement where the start was
given TO this mornings fire. Pluml
ers were busy at the foot of the
stairs throwing out frozen water
pipes. and for this purpose they
used gasoline apparatus,
and by some means il was explod-
ed. There was binding flash
of the explosion that blew in the
door of the saloon, and in an instant
black smoke swelled up the long
stairway impelled by the draught
setting towards the open window TO
the top story, the fire finding vent
through the open doors of the I'M
tenanted ground floor of the
house, had seized upon the shutters,
frames and wooden floors of
the balcony outside, taking them up
like so much tissue paper, and reach
/ m Or unxra ri ~ ord sh. 49, ,.,ho...
the frightened men and women hud-
died together, afraid TO venture out
on the fire escape that seemed to
lead into the very Jaws of death.
Eight families occupied the house,
two on each floor. On the second
floor Egans and Muldoons, had, at
the first alarm, escaped through the
Mrs. Mary A. Egan, a
widow, and her four grown children,
Margaret, Thomas, Joseph and John
reached the ground in safety by
a quick jump. Mrs. Muldoon, who
is over eighty wears old was
less fortunate, and seizing her two
grandchildren, Annie, aged ten, and
Kate aged seven, she sprang from
the fire escape, and in tha fall she
sprained or broke her leg, and
crawled away with difficulty.
On the floor above, Mr.. Regain,
who lived alone, escaped with his
neighbors. The McKennon family
likewise, by jumping. James, aged
nine, Hugh aged four, and the only
one that was thrown through
the window by Charles was
his eldest brother, aged fifteen.
The mother, Mrs. McKennon,
was sweeping in the yard when
the fire broke out. She rushed
TO the stairway but was met by u
solid sheet of flame, and then real
izing the danger of her children
she reused them by shouting, before
they knew of the approach of the
deadly visitor. Jump Charles and
throw them down." the agonized
mother cried and stretched out her
arms to receive them as the three
little heads looked over the window
sill beside their brother. The lad
measured the distance with his eyes,
it was more than twenty feet, and he
shrank from the venture with the
dread of instant death, but the
smoke was already filling the room
and pouring through the window.
The children now cried and stretch
ed theis hands out towards their I
mother, the babies calling, "Mama,
mama" was heard above the noise
street. The mother cried, Charlie.
for Gods sake jump" and the boy
flung the baby into her arms The
other children followed, himself
leaving last, all reaching the ground
safely. On the fourth floor lived
the Cassidy family and Egans; also
another family but of the same name
as those on the first floor, and in the
fifth, top story, Mrs. Ellen Sheridan
was at breakfast with four children.
The men, as in all the other families,
had gone 10 their work. At tho first
alarm Mrs. Sheridan ran TO the
door, and seeing the hallway efisctu-
ally blocked. turned TO the Window
The flames there met her, and, in den
spair, she rushed for the scuttle OF
the roof. Ii was firmly hooked, and.
her strength, desperate as she was,
did not suffice To open IL. Returning.
to her room, she closed the door on
the advancing fire, but IL was TOD
late. The room WAS filled with
smoke, growing more dense every
moment, in which the woman and
her children CROPPED about yainly
seeking windows. They were found
dead. evidently choked before the
flames reached them. The Cassidy
family had attempted TO escape bJ
a room also, but failing, had reached
the windows and flung themselve
out, and only two of them, Charlie
and Thomas, six and eight years Q
age, were left. They were suffo
Gated, and when found their clothe
were burned of. The Eagan famiI
were all saved. A little girl OF wv
years escaped by throwing herse
into the yard, but Mary Eagan wa
badly injured in the fall, and wa
taken to the hospital. The Dire wa
over in less time Than IL takes to &c
il.
NASHVILLE, January 1T. u
Ramsey who was elected Speaker
the House yesterday is regarded
more of Greenbacker than II
publican. The Republicans we
iOI CCl W hCitDb dSNiuA uAlOn
the Greenbackers and ignore II
caucus nominee, II. II Butler TO pr
vent the election of q Democra
State credit and low tar. III
Democrats acted in the utmost ha
mony. The Democratic Senafo
of bolh wings had caucus Ia
night and resolved 10 vote for
Democrat for Speaker of the Senat
PHILADELPHIA. January Al
the United States Circuit Court ID
morning Judge Butler granted pr
liminary injunction restraining Il
Pennsylvania Railway CofnpaI
from interfering with the wires an
offices of the Western Union Tel
graph Company along the route
the railway, until The case can
fully heard in the Supreme Cou
before Judges McKennan and Blu
Ter, on the 18th inst.