Morning journal and courier., 1881-01-05
THE FIRE RECORD.

A Tenement House HorrOr-A Crowded
 House in Flames-Terrible Fate of the
 Inmates-Jumping from the Windows
 in Despafr-Horrfble Scenes at the
 Blaze-Incidentso of the Fire.
 NEW YORK; Jan. At 8:15 this morning rear of James Doyle's liquor store at No 35 Madison street. It started at the bottom of the stairs that formed the only mode of exit for the tenants in the five-story building bar ring the outside fre-escape, and in less than five minutes swept through the stairway to the roof, cutting off the escape of score of persons, and finding vent through the two lower stories to the yard, barred egress also by means of the fre-escape. The imperilled tenants made rush for the roof, but the scuttle was firmly hooked and would not yield The ascending flames drove them back into their rooms, and scene of wild confusion ensued. Men and women threw their children from the windows and jumped after through the flames that swept across the yard and caught their clothing.
 Plumbers were busy at the foot of the stairs thawing out the frozen water pipes, and for this purpose used gasoline appar-
 
 inflammable material ran out. There was a binding flash as of exploding powder, puff that blew in the door of the saloon and on the instant black smoke welled up the long stairway, impelled onward by the draught setting toward an open window in the top story. The frightened plumbers rushed into the yard, and man sitting by the barroom stove slammed the hall door on the advancing fire. Then there was wild rush overhead with the sound of breaking glass, and the air was filled with the cries of imprisoned men and women, the shrieks of frightened chil- dren and the cries for help of the barkeeper and the scorched plumbers, who ran wildly through the street to the police station. The fire, finding vent through the open doors and windows of the untenanted ground floor of the house, and through the door, had seized upon the shutters, window-f frames and the wooden floors of the balconies outside, lick ing them up like so much tissue paper, and reaching upward toward the floors where men and women were huddled together, afraid to venture out upon the fre-escape that seemed to lead into the very jaws of death The whole scene was over in less time by far than the scene can be described. The police and firemen made heroic efforts to gain the upper floors, whence issued the cries of more yet imprisoned, but they were driven back by the flames.
 A coroner's jury has been impanelled and a subscription list started for the relief of the sufferers.
 Amongst the incidents of the fire are the following: The flames issuing from the scuttle were quickly licking up the woodwork on the roof of adjoining houses before the fire men arrived, when youth named Donegan got an axe and cut away the burning wood work This same boy attempted to assist Katy Sheridan as she was fighting her way up the burning stairway leading to the scuttle with child in her arms. The girl had al most reached the top with her clothing burn ing and her flesh badly burned, when Done gan grasped her arm to assist her. The arm was so badly burned that the flesh peeled off as the boy grasped the arm and the girl fell back in the flames. leaving large piece of her flesh in the boy's hand. She and the child in her arms were burned to death al- most before his eyes. At the police station the number of dead was placed at nine but the deputy coroner turning over the burned body of Mrs. Cassidy found at her breast, wrapped in blanket that enveloped her. a year old baby smothered in her embrace. Cassidy, whose eyes it had also escaped, rec. ognized it as his child. His grief at the dis covery was heartrending.
 Mrs. McKenna who occupied front rooms on the third floor, was sweeping in the yard when the fire broke out. She rushed to the stairway. but was met by a solid sheet of flame and realizing the danger of her chil- dren reused them by shouting before they were rware the house was on fire ssJump Charles; throw them down." the agonized mothed cried and stretched out her arms to receive them as three little heads looked over the window sills Their brother measured the distance with his eyes. It was more than twenty feet, and he shrank from the venture with dread of death. But the smoke was already filling the room and pour ing through the window, obscuring the faces of the children, who now cried and stretched their hands toward the mother. The baby's calls for ttMamma! Mammal" was heard above the roar of the fire and the clangor in the street. The mother could bear it no longer. Charley, for Gods sake jump!'' she cried in despair. and the boy hesitated no longer. He flung the baby into her arms. The other children followed, himself last All reached the ground in safety.
 As the procession filed out of the station house to the morgue with the dead a man who sat at the door in the mems room with his hands swathed in lint bandage shrank back with look of horror and averted his face. He was one of the plumbers that were at work in the hallway when the fire broke out and to whose carelessness it was charged. His name was Timothy Harrington. Cues tioned by the coroner he explained that he was using gasoline lamp to thaw out the pipes. With him was boy, McGlone, a green hand, who had worked for him only since the previous day. He held the lamp, the contents of which were exceedingly in hammable. He had been warned several times, but heedlessly tipped. the lamp and the oil ran out It flashed up at once. In his flight Harrington's hands were burned The boy McGlone disappeared. The police are looking for him, and at the order of the coroner took Harrington to the house of de- tention, where he will be held as witness pending the inquest. His employer, Mr. Patten, was taken to the station by police man at o'clock and examined by the coro-