The Sentinel. [volume] (Trenton, N.J.) 1880-1882, 1882-02-04
A DISASTROUS FIRE,
Ine Flames Sweeping Through a Crowded
business Building In New Yerk-Thril,iun
Scenes and Incidents.

Ihe Flames Sweeping Through a Crow
business Building in New Yerk-Thril,
Scenes and Incidents.
At 10 O'Clock in the morning the jaEeA
story building on Beeknah street. extend
nom Park row 10 Nassau street New VI
was discovered to be on fire, and in abopt
minutes the whole structure was i'll fau
The buildiro was commonly known as
word building, part of 1t having been oc
ped until recently by that newspaper. II,
Old and peculiarly constrncc..eea having a la,
wen IN me center. up which the flames rusl
t WIN iearinl rapidity, cutting off many of
senaI.s from escape by the stairs. The st,
! = TINS hre-one OF the most disastrous q
mas visited the metropolis In many years
smoke was first observed the flames shot
nom the basement through An elevator Wav
the Nassau street door, spreading in every
OF the hye seeriess reaching the top in an
| slant, blazing right through the roof. !
mingling luridly with the column of sfno
| 10 most Of the $50 to 175 persons In
| many offices which occupied the str,
ture, the fire itself gave the only va
ing. Few heard any cutlery. Fian
cracking at the doors were in some instan,
the first sound of the danger; and insta
deadly danger it was for the railways $
stalrways were filed with fire before 4
thirds OF the inmates could escape thfo..
them. The rest got out by the windows or
at all. The fire had other ways of rising d
spreading than by the pine boarded ele1!II'
though that would have been sufficient II
self to distribute the flames quickly. Inc
center ofthe building was huge well, .cn-
ing from the second story to the roof, az nav
ing windows opening into the adjoining o Oh
In this the fire roared as in chimney lt d q
mighty draught, kindling the woodwo2f the
windows and shivering the glass. r. large
square openings made by the we'll Two OF
the floors were rallied around with wen pal
ustrades and formed CALLER from
which offices opened, and all this ace was wa
speedily ablase. Those who esoed with,
out hindrance did so Ia ae wild
rush down the small row II stair
ways into Park row. They were n, women
and boys. Many of them were bsAesded and
without overcoats or wraps, 50 hsg was their
hight. A few carried books ID bundles,
caught up on the instant. Ther3ere similar
stairs leading down to Nassau stet, but along
side these was the elevator, an gress was I'M
possible by them within two mates after the
ire gained Roadway. It isaid that there
were $50 persons in the bujlng,. and that
nearly, or quite, fifty were stil ineide when nc
further hope Of escaping BY oors and stairs
remained. These imperib persons wer'
scattered on all the floors atfe the lower one
I ly wero chiefly the etors, publisheIh
clerks and printers q the Sc1entlsc
American, the O5sera', the Scottish,
american, the Retailer, 40 Tsty, Field and
Fdr7n, and Thompson's INK Note Repre-,
y. NJ. Pettengill & Co., tbPaine BrotheA anu
several patent solicitors also had employees
there. The World establishment hal lately
been removed, and twelp carpenters we're al
terlng the vacated roor for other occupancy.
The adventures OF the imprisoned nifty were
varied in their degreesof peril, from COM
paratively easy climb own ladder all the wa.
to horrible death.
A iallen horse or a car on the track VII
cause crowd in Par row. 1t may be reanzed
Therefore, that the Spectacle OF INVESTOR
building all ablaxe- half block OF red fam
reaching solidly tdk height Of $50 feet, an
topped with 200 fit more of dense smoke
drew multitude flick filled Printing Hous
square. The hek drove everybody out
Nassau and Beeknan streets, but on the Par
row side there VI plenty of available spac'
and its earlier 7kupants were Mortified by wins
they saw.
After the fir loutpour Of panic-stricken pei
sons from til doorway on Park row came Sc
ersl strasyler | singed by the flames which hs
touched then hs they stumbled down the stair
choked by tide smoke and wild with terro
Then big blaze burst out and the spectacle
knew that yb more could come out alive att
point. fneral cry OF sympathy and alai
arose as TIL figures Of men and women appear
at the wiu.3ws of the fourth and fifth stori'
Firemen had arrived, an alarm at 1O;l6 havl
been promptly responded to, but their long
laddersi only reached we'll up to the third sto
A grill tainted at sight of these seeming
doomed prisoners, and exclamatens OF P
were Touched In the strongest terms. Fr
the THIRD story 1t was easy to climb down
ladders, and many did so, with the sse,stal
OF tire firemen. But there wafo not ladd
epofigb for all who were oa that floor even,
cauf.se the fire was already in the rooms, cat
ing in the piles OF paper with which nearly
thas newspaper offices were incumbered,
tn e utmost haste was requisite to escape BIT
az or suffocation. a.
Two men threw up window Of the Obse'
d bfice, and climbed out on the marrow SILL
red glare behind them, with q black ~
aground of smoke, showed how holly they
pursued. They we're the Rev. Dr. 3. Iren
Prime, editor OF the Observer. and the REV..
Stoddart. A wide signboard served as gu
II for them. and thew edged along behind it u
n;'. rot to.Asea Times building adloln
where they entered - window, At the 8
time edward L. G. BrucSA of She Turf, I
and Farm, climbed from a Ssgindow OF ms
nee, IN the next story above, and bv n 0eS'
q handy signboard reached Thompson's a,,v q
Using agency in the Times building. Int n.
without burned hand and face. A Cheer we
up from the crowd.
But the cheering was only for an instant
was sdenced by horrifying sight. Mrs. Eli
brdi colored, the janitress of five offices in Il
Guiding, aged about fifty years, came to
third-story window and called loudly for he'll
Some men held large sheet for her and 81
jumped, but missing the sheet, fell with terri
BILE force on the sidewalk. She was raised a,
taken at once to the Chambers street hosnit,
where she died in about an hour
Richard s. Davy, printer, native OF En-
land, forty years old, was seen on the re
running wildly up and down and calling lond
for "Help help" Suddenly he was seen
slip and fall. On his way he struck AGAR
the telegraph wires and was badly hurt. 4
bounding from the wires he fell to the sidews
with crash, breaking his leg and injuri
himself badly in the face. He was taken
the Chambers street hospital, where he died
While these scenes were being enacted
the firemen in Nassau street similar ones WI
going on in Park row. Hook and Ladder Co
pany No. 10 was stationed there, and
daring and bravery of private John ]. Il,
commanded the admiration of the spectato
He ran up the ladder in Park row, near
Beekman street corner, and rescued two n
and one woman. To do this he had
be supplied with another ladder ten
long, which was held by one of his &C
panions on the first ladder. After t
Horn placed the ladder against 70
on the same floor near the Times building.
faces had been seen to disappear from the "
| dow. He could see nothing when the wind
was reached, as the room, which was nea
| fifty feet square, was thick with smoke. Ins