Wichita eagle., 1888-08-04

NEW YORK, Aug. 3.-Thirteen people
were burned to death in a s;X-stOry build
ing in the rear of No. 1877 Bowery this af-
ternoon. Six more, burned 50 badly that
they Will plo5abid die, were removed to
various hospitals. The house was a ram
shackle affair, hidden in the middle of the
block. the only entrance 10 it being a mar
row alley way from the Bowery. In front
of it was a four-story building, on the first
floor of which was a saloon called the
white House" Adjoining this is Harry
Miners Peoples theater. In the rear of
the burned house were two houses hem
ming it in on the Christie street side. In
this caged-in building lived about $50
people Each of the SIX floors was
occupied by single family, the head of
which was tailor who made clothing for
the cheap wholesale clothing houses and
employed from fifteen to twenty men, wo-
men and children, in addition to his own
family, in making up the clothing. They
were all Polish Jews and employee and en-
ployed worked, ate and slept in the crowd
I'd rooms of the dingy tenament. The
tenants who rented the apartments were 5.
Coon, 5. Graft, Klein & Marks, s. Harris
and H. Levant. About 4:l5 o'clock this
afternoon, while all the occupants of the
building were busily at work in the clos
ing hours preceding their Sabbath eve,
flames broke ont on the lower floor. The fire
when discovered had gained such Roadway
that it was in full possession of the stair
way and escape by it seemed impossible.
A stout German woman rushed frantical
ly into the street wringing her hands and
screaming ''Men GOtt, Mein Gott, dose
peoples are burning up This was Il
reminder that lives were in peril, and
great excitement ensued The police re-
serve was called out and in short order 100
blue coats, in charge of Inspector Williams
were on hand. ready to assist the firemen.
Alarm after alarm was sent ont for am
balances and in a very little while sur
geons rolled in from St. Vincent, Cham
bers street. Bellevue and New York hos
pitfalls, while the department of charity
and corrections sent two of their ambul
ances. Their services were not badly
needed. Many of the frightened
inmates rushed down through the
flames and escaped to the
narrow court yard with clothes ablaze
and hands and bodies burned. Sixof them
were so severely burned that they were
taken to the hospital and may die. There
were escapes on the front and rear of the
house-perpendicular ladders running
down the front and rear of the building
but before any Of the Inmates had tried to
escape by them the flames had extended
through the house and were reaching
from the windows, so that descent by the
fire escapes was impossible. One man,
already burned to death, leaped from a
fifth story window and fell a mangled
mass of flesh in the little court yard.
Others jumped from the second windows
and escaped with bruises.
The enormous crowd that had gathered
shrank with fearsome dread and sympathy
rs some wounded person shrieked with
pain, then some other moaned out in an
guish. One poor woman lay on her back
in little store on the Bowery with not
only her clothing, but the hair of her head
burned off. 1t seemed as if she must be
dead, but slight upheaval of the bosom
told that little life still remained She
was unconscious and the surgeon said she
would not live 10 reach the hospital. An
other woman was deiirious with pain. She
was not so badly burned as the Others but
in mad jump from one of the windows
she had received internal injuries, and
also cut terrible cash in the side of her
head from which the blood gushed forth.
giving her CHASTITY appearance. She
rsved and screamed and had to be held by
two attendants while her wounds We're
being dressed. The scene as the various
ambulances received their human freight
and drove rapidly away was a sad one, and
attracted An enormous crowd.
A. II. Sheldon. manager of the Peoples
theatre, on discovering the fire sent out an
alarm and the firemen responded. but
when they arrived the flames already had
complete possession of the house and
nothing could be done to save it. and
little to save the inmates. ChaS w Nor /
man, property man of the Peoples theatre I
with several Of bis comrades, ran out TO /
the roof.of the theater carrying small
ladder, which they stretched oyer to
window of the burning building. a
woman with her hair and clothing already
abiaze appeared at the window and Nor
man called 10 her TO cross over the ladder
She cried back that she could not leave
her two children. Norman tried TO cross
over on the ladder. but the flames drove
him back and he could not save her. After /
wards the charred bodies of the mother i
and two children were found In the build !
ing. Three men, however, availed them |
selves of the ladder and escaped to the roof |
of the theater