Butte semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1886-1890, 1888-08-08
A NEW YORK HOLOCAUST
THLRTEEN PERSONS BURNED TO
DEATH YESTERDAY AYAFrERNO0N.
Many Others Badly Injured and Burned
and May swell the Death list Gagged
in Ramshackle Building Near the
Bowery = Terrible scenes = The Fire

Il
Cuts OF the Avenues Of Escape.
New York. August 8.-fhirteen people
were burned to death in six-story brick
building in the rear OF 1877 Bovery, this
afternoon. six more were burned SO that
they will probably die. They were removed
to the vatious hospitals.
The house was ramshackle affair, hid
den in the middle of the block, the only en-
trance to it being q narrow alley way from
the Bowery. Engaged in the building were
about one hundred and fifty people. Each
oil the six floors was occupied by single
family, the head of which was tailor who
made clothing for cheap Wholesale cloth
ing house, and employed from fifteen to
twenty men. women and children, in addi-
tion to mis- own family, in making up cloth
ing. They were all Polish Jews, and en-
ployers and employed worked and slept in
the crowded rooms OF the dizzy tene-
ment.
At about 4:15 O'Clock this afternoon,
while all the occupants Of the building were
busily at work,
THE FLAMES BROKE OUT
on the lower floor. The fire had, when dis
covered, already gained such headway that
it was in full possession of the stairway,
and escape by itsesmed impossible. Many
OF the frightened inmates rushed down
through the flames and into the marrow
court yard with their clothes ablaze and
hands and bodies burned. Six OF them were
SO severely burned they were taken to q
hra fol or RI 10
capes on the front and rear OF the house, and
perpendicular iron ladders running down
the rear OF the building, but before any OF
the inmates had time to escape by them,
the flames had assembled through the house
aud were reaching the front windows, so
that escape by the fire escapes was impos-
sible.
One man already half burned to death
LEAPED FROM THE FIFTH STORY WINDOW,
and fell a mangled mass Of flesh, in the
little court yard. Others jumped from the |
second story windows and escaped with |
bruises. The enormous crowds that had |
gathered shrank with dread and sympathy, |
at the scenes and the shrieks and |
groans OF the wounded. One poor woman |
Icy upon her back in a little store in the |
In the Bowery with not only her clothing I
i
seemed as if she must be dead but slight |
upheaving of the BOSOM told that life still |
remained. She was unconscious, and the
surgeon said she would live to reach the
hospital.
Another young girl was delirious with
pain. She was not SO badly burned as
others, but in mad jump from one of the
she had received internal injuries
and also cut a terrible cash in the side OF
her head, from which the blood rushed
forth, giving her q CHASTITY appearance. She
raved and screamed, and had to be held by
two men while he wounds were being
dressed.
A. Fl. Sheldon, manager OF the Peoples
Theatre, on first discovering the fire. sent
,ut an alarm. and fremen- responded, kut +
when they arrived the flames already had Is
complete possession OF the house and
NOTHING COULD BE DOME
10 save it and little TO save the inmates.
Jhas. W. Norman, the property man Of
he Peoples theatre, with several OF his
ran to the rear OF the theatre,
ARRIVING a small ladder which they stretched
,ver to the window OF the bnrning building.
| woman with her hair and clothing
.lready ablaze appeared at the window !,
md Norman called to her to cross over on
he ladder. She cried back she'could not /
cave her two children. Norman tried to
ross over on the ladder, bnt the flames ,
rove him back, and he could not save her. b
afterwards the charred body OF the mother j
md two children were found in the building.
'hree men, however, availed themselves OF
adder and escaped to the roof OF the Z
heatre :
When the firemen had at last drowned ..
he flames so they could enter the house, ,
hey searched, floor by floor, as they :
scended, and on the third floor they found
he burned bodies OF a man, a woman and
boy. On the fourth floor they found
We
BODIES SO BADLY BURNED II
hat it was impossible te tell whether they |
,ere those of men or women. On the fifth |
oor no bodies were found, but on the sixth
oor five more bodies werefound, and they 9
lso were burned SO it could not be told j
neither they were men or women. This i
lade thirteen bodies found in the building, {
nd those of the men who leaped from the {
fth story window increased the death list ;
0 fifteen, while it is feared that the death e
some, if not all, of thosein the hospitals
ill make the number still greater. 7
Several of the bodies burned SO badly
hat they fell apart when they were re-
loved, and the fremen were Obliged to Z
,wer them from windows in nets. i
NAMES OF THE DEAD AS FAR AS KNOWN.
Philip Talopie, AZ years old, who jumped !
.om the fifth floor.
Mrs. Adelia Gruft and her two children, ,
oseph aged z, and Celia 6 years old. The
lother is the woman who refused to escape ]
ecause she would not desert her children. t
Ter husband escaped with an infant in his I
rms and was almost crazy with grief at {
,e loss OF his wife and two other children. /
Other bodies are at the morgue awaiting 8
Io
The fire started on the first floor, to the /
Of Emma Stevenson, lanitrees ,
the building, and was caused by an ex- {
losion in the kerosene oil stove. Ie