The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1883-01-19
4 Thrilling Scene-Narrow Escape from
Death by Fire.
NEW YoRK. yanusHs.

NEW YORK. Ja1uaY8.
A hre broke out in the five-stoTy brick tene-
nent at No. 80 Hester street at an early hour
this morning, which was accompanied with
heartrending scenes. The building 10 tenanted
by eighteen families. Last night all the ten
ants of the place except three families resid-
ing on the top floor were at a wedding Short
ly after twelve o'clock Mr.. Marks, residing on
the top floor. returned hsme with his wife from
the wedding. Before retiring for the night
his wife looked out of her door into the hail, to
see IL everything was right. The sight which
met her gaze startled her and caused her to cry
out with alright. Flames were issuing from
the door of a rear room on the south side of the
second floor, occupied by Mr.. Lewis Salskow-
ski. Her husband, who heard her shrek, hur
ried out into the hall. Seeing the place was on
fire he ran to the doors Of the rooms occupied
by the other families, and. pounding thereon,
awoke them from their sleep. There were
on the floor at the time four men, fifteen chill
dren and five women, one of whom, aged
eighty years, lay very i'll. All, with the ex-
ceptiOn of the sick woman, ran into the hall
in their night-clothes. The men, seeing that
the lives of all depended on them, hurried
downstairs through the binding and suffocat-
ing smoke. which was rapidly filling the place
They could not get further than the floor be-
low. Here their further progress was barre
by a wall of flame, which was issuing from
Salskowskfs room and eating away the stair
case, the only means of exit into the street.
The men, finding that they could not escape
this way. hurried upstairs to where the wom-
en- and children were shrieking and running
about in a half-crazed condition. They went
into the rear rooms and opened the windows
to go out on the fire-escape. As they did so a
mass of flame shot up from below. Finding
that there was no chance of reach ng the yard
below by this means, the men took the women
and children and hurried them up onto the
roof. They then took out the old woman
on her bed and carried her up. Here the
situation was terrible in the extreme. They
many feet above the low buildings on either
side of them. Below them the fire was raging
without hindrance. For moment even the
men became excited, and the scene was heart
rending. They soon regained their presence
of mind, and looked about for means of es-
cape from their perilous position. The house
at No. 20 Essex street. the rear of which abut-
ted on to the yard behind the burning build
ing. and which was the same h light as the
latter. seemed to them to be their only means
of escape. A space of twelve feet was be-
tween them and it. One of the men thought
of some planks that were laid over the roof
Quick as thought they were torn up and
thrown across the space. shaky b. idge was
thus hurriedly cOnStru ted. The four women
crawled over on their hands and knees. The
men picked up the sick woman and carr. ed
her over. When the women were i'll safety,
the men made four Journeys to the burning
building for the children