The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1881-01-05
TELEGRAPHIC
DEATH AND DESTRUCTION.
Another Tenement TEOuHe Dis
aSter IN New York.

Another Tenement House Die
aster IN New York.
New York, A fire broke out thii
morning in the rear of 80 Madison street,
iour-stOry tenement, and nine live:
were lost, as follow: Ellen sheridan,
age 43 years: Kate Sheridan, "A; Maggie
| sheridan, 5; NJ artin Sheridan, 8; John
Walsh, Is; Thomas Cassiday, 6; Charles
Cassi1ay, Z; girl named EIan, ged u;
and Mrs. Sheridan, age unknown Sew
era persons were injured, among ih-m
James Cassiday, Mary Egan and Charles
Walsh. The fire broke out in the tene-
ment in the rear of James Doyle's liquor
store. l. started at the bottom of The
stairs that furnished the only exit for the
| tenants in the fve-story building, ex-
cepting the fire eEcare attached TO the
building outside, and in less than Eve
min Ites swept through the stairway to
the roof, cutting off the escape of q score
OF persons. The flames SION found vent
also through the two lower stories, and
thus barred egreSs by the fire escape. The
tenants, panic-stricken, made rush for
the roof, but the scuttle was firmly
hooked and would not yield. The ascend
| ing flames drove the people back to their
| rooms. The widest confusion followed.
Men and women threw children from
the windows and jumped after them
| through the flames that swept across the
yard, and set their clothing ablaZe.
When fremen obtained the mastery, the
| dead budies Of the nine already men
toned were taken out Of the ruins. Sew
eral were injured. The scene of the
calamity, the like Of which has not oc-
CURED in the city since the tenement
house fire In Cannon street, a year ago,
and the Turner Hall disaster about the
same time, is approached through mar
row alley, hardly wide enough to allow
the passage offs portly man, between two
tall tehements, Nos. 80 and IS Madison
street. The back door opens directly
uuon the narrow hall way in the rear Of
the tenement where the FIRE obtained its
start. Plumbers were at work at the
foot OF the stairs thawing out frozen
water pipes, and for this purpose used
gasoline. The vessel was by some means
pet and, becoming iguited, was the
cause of an explosion, which blew In
the do n oil the saloon. In an in.tant
black smoke rol ed up the long stair
way, drawn onward by the drsught
e>used by an open window in the top
story. There wac mymentary brush as
the frightened plumbers hurried into the
road. A man sitting by the bar room
: owe slammed the hall door on the Rd-
va cling fire. Immediately there was q
wild rush over head and the sound Of
breaking glass, and the air was filled
with the walls Of the imprisoned men
and women, the shrieks of frightened
chi dren, and the cries for help Of the
bar-keepsr and plumbers, who ran
through the street to q nearby police
STATIC. The clang Of the fire bells filled
the street, and the narrow alley became
filled with iremen and police struggling
to bring help to the imprisoned and burn
ing. tenants. They came too late. The
fire, finding vent through the open doors
and windows of the uutenanted ground
Il or of the house, and through the door
had seized upon the shutters, win
dow frames and wooden floors of
tue balconies outside licking them Up
like So much tissue paper, and reaching
upward toward the floors where frightened
men and women hu ldled together afraid
to venture out on the fire escape that was
itself fame, while the flames within
the house were plainly visible through
the uplifting doors, then being fast con-
.umed. Eighth families occupied the
house, two on each floor. On the second |
floor the Egans and Nuldoons had at the
first alarm escaped through window.
Mrs. Mary Egan, widow, and her four
grown children Margaret, Thomas, Jo-
eph and John reached the ground 10 |
safety by quick jump. Mrs Muldoon,
who is over so years old, WAS less
fortunate. Selling her two grand |
children, Annie, age 10, and Kate, sge7,
she sprsng from the fire escape, but in |
the fall sprsined or broke her leg, and |
crawled away with difficulty. On the |
lhrd floor Mr.. Regsn, who lived |
alone, escaped with his neighbors,
The McKenna family likewise |
by jumping. james, aged 9, Hugh, |
aged 4, aud the baby, were thrown |
through window by Charles McKenna,
their eldest brother, lad of 10. The |
mother was sweeping in tbs yard when |
the fire broke out. She rushed to the |
stairway, but was met by solid sheet of |
flame, aud real zig the danger of her |
reused them, by shouting, be- |
or they knew of their danger. The |
mother appesled TO the son to throw the |
children to her and jump himself While |
the bsby, frightened by tie cries of the F,
others, who we're alarmed st the smoke |
which Was fast filling the room, con-
stantly cried, with its little arms out
stretched, MAMA, mama,n the boy
quickly measured the distance to the
ground from his perch. and taking the
baby up first tossed il out, and it fell into
the arms OF its mother, who caught the
other children as they we're sent down
10 her, one by one, and finally
broke the fall Of Charles, as he
leaped, and all escaped unhurt.
{ sss,day and the other family Of Egans
lived On the fourth floor, and Mrs. Ellen
Sheridan, and four children on the fifth.
Al the first alarm she sought escape with
children by the stairs, then tried the
scutt,e Of the roof; both failed to afford
an exit, and closing the door of the loom
,he and her children were sufOcated
with smoke. All of the Cassiday family
jumped except the two boys, aged and
8, who burned TO death. The EgAns also
lesped except child years old, who
suffocated. Officer Thomas Barrett saved
two children from the second floor by the
fire escape, but the flames drove him
away with burned hands. The fire only
lasted half an hour. The bodies were
and presented horrid spect4-
Gle. Some instances Of remarkable
bravery snd quick wit we're dsvel-
oped during the progress OF the flames.
A youth named Donegsn reached the
roof of the burning building from an ad-
joining house, and with an axe opened
the scuttle. Katy Sherlday, with a child |
in her arms, endeavored to escape; her
was already sblaze, but as Don
egan caught her arm the flesh peeled |
from the bone, and the girl fell back int
the flames, pieces of chsrred f-sh re-
naming in hi. hands. Three Of the
Egans may recover. Mary Muldoon
,aved three grand hildren by wrapping
them in bedding and dropping them into
arms extended below. Another victim,
Mrs. Cassidsy's baby, is just found,
making ten A plumber is arrested for
causing thu FIRE.
Pittsburg, 4.-Oben & Bros brewery,
Allegheny City, burned. It had ca
pacity of Il, 600 barrels Of beer annually.